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What is the purpose of The Book of Resolutions? This book, published by the United Methodist Publishing House, is a collection of “all current and official social policies and other resolutions adopted by the General Conference of the United Methodist Church.”

These resolutions are used as: 1) official policy statements that guide the work and ministry of the UM Church on 200 subjects; 2) educational resources for the UM Church on many issues; 3) guides and models for United Methodists to “relate a lively biblical faith to action in daily life;" and 4) resource materials for persons “preparing public statements about United Methodist concerns on current social issues.”

The policies and resolutions in this 954-page volume originate as petitions sent to General Conference every four years by general agencies, annual conferences, local churches, church-related groups, and individual members. These petitions are worked on by delegates in legislative committees (i.e. accepted, rejected, or amended), who then report their recommendations to the General Conference plenary for a final vote.

One would think that this massive book would be representative of a diverse cross-section of the entire church. Analysis of the origination of each resolution included in the 2004 volume paints a very different picture. Our Wesleyan heritage was founded on the tenets of personal and social holiness and involvement in social action has always been an important component of that history. Over the years, however, much has changed with regard to the social witness agenda of the church.

This change has come about because the majority of the resolutions which ultimately are included in The Book of Resolutions, and which drive United Methodist policies and social action, originate from a handful of boards and agencies within the church. These groups, in turn, use the resolutions to advocate political and social agendas which are extremely partisan and do not reflect the diversity of beliefs present among members of the United Methodist Church. These agendas not only permeate all other areas of church polity and bureaucracy, but also represent the face of the United Methodist Church in the national and international public square.

There are 368 resolutions in the 2004 Book of Resolutions. The resolutions are broken into five main categories: (1) The Natural World; (2) The Nurturing Community; (3) The Social Community; (4) The Economic Community; and (5) The World Community.

Research Findings
The top three agencies listed in Chart 1, the General Board of Church & Society (GBCS), the General Board of Global Ministries (GBGM), and the Women’s Division (WD) originated 67.3 percent of the entire volume of resolutions. These three groups work closely together and many times are co-authors of the same resolution. The policies and programs of these boards and agencies tend to be politically, theologically, and socially partisan and biased. Other groups which work closely with these three main contributors include the General Commission on Christian Unity and Interreligious Concerns (GCCUIC), the General Commission on the Status and Role of Women (COSROW) and the General Commission on Religion and Race (GCRR), also share many of the same political, social, and theological emphases. When these groups are added, the percentage of total resolutions jumps to 78.3 percent!

Resolutions
Board or Group	Number of Resolutions	Percentage
General Board of Church & Society (GBCS)	113	30.7
General Board of Global Ministries (GBGM)	93	25.2
Women’s Division (WD)	42	11.4
General Commission on Christian Unity & Interreligious Concerns (GCCUIC)	24	6.5
Annual Conferences	22	6.0
Individuals	19	5.2
General Board of Discipleship (GBOD)	14	3.8
General Board on Higher Education and Ministry (GBHEM)	12	3.0
Methodist Associated for Rights & Concerns of Hispanic Americans (MARCHA)	10	2.7
Native American International Caucus (NAIC)	9	2.4
Commission on the Status & Role of Women (COSROW)	9	2.4
General Commission on Religion & Race (GCRR)	8	2.1
Methodist Federation for Social Action (MFSA)	7	1.9

It is evident from this research that The Book of Resolutions has become a mouthpiece for a few of the boards and agencies within the church and several caucus groups, and are not representative of the United Methodist Church as a whole.

How have these few groups managed to be so successful at getting their legislation passed at General Conference? The answer is strategic planning, powerful positioning, and unlimited access to delegates. When legislation is divided into subcommittees, groups of delegates are assigned particular groups of petitions to work on. Although the bar of the conference is meticulously maintained and monitored, staff persons and directors from these boards and agencies are allowed to sit directly behind these groups of delegates and give their input as “experts” on their own legislation. These groups of delegates could number three persons to 20 persons and the boards and agencies strategically place their lobbyists on the peripheries of each group dealing with their petitions. This practice gives these boards and agencies an unfair advantage in the passage of their legislation.

Why does it matter?
Some people within our denomination say that The Book of Resolutions doesn’t really matter—they are just guidelines and are not legally binding under church law, as is The Book of Discipline. Delegates to General Conference and members of the United Methodist Church need to understand that these resolutions absolutely do matter.

• They matter every time a church member turns on the television or picks up a newspaper and sees some church official speaking about political or social issues in the name of the United Methodist Church, often quoting or reading from The Book of Resolutions.

• They matter every time a board or agency spokesperson ascends the steps of Congress and lobbies for partisan legislation in the name of the United Methodist Church.

• They matter when United Methodist pastors defy the laws of our country and provide sanctuary for illegal persons, emboldened by mandates found in The Book of Resolutions.

• They matter every time a letter or petition is sent to the President of the United States, Senators, U.S. Congressmen and women, or other elected officials, advocating partisan political views in the name of the United Methodist Church.

• They matter every time rogue leaders meet for “dialogue” or radical groups hold conferences at the Church Center for the United Nations, which the Women’s Division owns, operates, and also provides hospitality with monies raised from United Methodist Women.

• They matter when a visitor walks into the Tillman Chapel at the Church Center and sees the banners of all the world’s major religions prominently displayed above the altar while the wooden cross hangs off to the side.

And they especially matter every time another church member walks out of the door, leaving the United Methodist Church—fed up with the radical theology, massive bureaucracy, and partisan politics of a handful of boards and agencies who now dominate General Conference and the direction of the social witness of the Church. The members we are losing by the thousands every year are among those who long for Christ-centered ministry and a return to the Wesleyan doctrinal integrity of our denomination. It is often programs, policies, and actions stemming from the authorization given by The Book of Resolutions that drives them away from the United Methodist Church.

Elizabeth “Liza” Kittle is a research analyst for the Renew Network.

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News Analysis The 2004 Book of Resolutions The voice of the United Methodist Church?

By Elizabeth B. Kittle

News Analysis
The 2004 Book of Resolutions
The voice of the United Methodist Church?