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The pragmatism of United Methodism
By Stephen Rankin

Like many people, I’ve been a United Methodist all my life. My father was a preacher, always serving among the most rural of the rural places in Kansas (and while he was in the Course of Study in Northwest Texas). That view of the church from the parsonage is often a very interesting one and deeply formative as well. Somewhat from the other side, I’m also an academic, and have taught United Methodist history, doctrine, and polity. In that sense, I know Methodism by the book as well as by experience.

I don’t know that any of those things qualify me to have much of an opinion about United Methodism, but they certainly help me to have an informed one. As a first-reserve delegate to General Conference, I had the privilege of acting in the capacity of what cultural anthropologists call a “participant observer.” As a reserve, I sit in the wings, waiting, in case someone needs a substitute. When called upon, I go to work. In this way, I participated both in the legislative and plenary sessions, yet also had large blocks of time to watch…and think. So what do I think?

I think United Methodist pragmatism is both a blessing and a curse. The blessing is, of course, that we get things done. We jump in and go to work. (The nearly half-million dollars raised for Nothing But Nets was amazing!) We problem-solve. Figuring out how to support retired African clergy and to fund new bishops as the church grows there was both compelling and exciting.

The curse is that sometimes we waste time because we’re in such a hurry. There’s quite a build-up to General Conference. It’s as if people spend four years preparing and then, in less than two weeks, all the pent-up dreams, goals, aspirations, and hopes come spilling out. We want to get things done and General Conference is often viewed as the mechanism by which we get them done. We plead with one another on the floor. We listen to impassioned sermons from bishops and speeches from delegates, all beseeching us to act, act, act. That pragmatism—and our way of doing church business—creates a good deal of impatience. We have to wait four years and then we have to hurry up.

I’m glad, therefore, that we formed a standing committee on faith and order. Maybe, just maybe, we can make some progress on those most contentious issues that tear at our hearts and our ecclesiastical fabric. The standing committee won’t be tied to votes or to schedules. It surely will be much better than some of the study commissions we have, which are always tied to a four-year time frame and making a report/proposal at the next General Conference. It remains to be seen, of course, who populates that committee and how they’ll do their work, but it seems like a big step in the right direction to me.

I’m also glad that, after having met certain criteria, full-time local pastors will get to help elect clergy delegates to General Conference when we meet in 2012. I have taught in the Course of Study and, more importantly, I’ve preached in lots of churches in my annual conference who are served by local pastors (rather than ordained elders). At the local ice cream shop or over a cup of coffee at the kitchen table, I’ve listened to intelligent, articulate, committed Christian brothers and sisters talk about the frustration of not being fully “in the club,” because they’re not headed toward full membership and elder’s orders. With the growing number of local pastors serving in the Connection, this is a big step forward to make our clergy delegates representative of the beliefs and wishes of a larger pool of people serving as clergy. This decision is not without controversy (it raises some interesting questions about the meaning of ordination, for example), but it will certainly be an improvement.

Finally, the decades-long disagreement over homosexual practice reminds me of the United Methodist rift. Those of us who believe that we must uphold a biblically and pastorally sound practice, must also (and equally) listen very carefully to the people who think we are their enemies. It takes both courage and compassion to tread this path. I’m reminded of Jesus’ words to pray for our enemies. We must make the first steps toward our opponents. We must demonstrate our love for brothers and sisters who think we are pathologically afraid of them. And we must speak the truth, as ever-so-gently as we can.

May we all willingly yield to our Lord and King as he prunes our pragmatism in order to make us more fruitful.   

 

Stephen Rankin is professor of religious studies and campus minister at Southwestern College in Winfield, Kansas.



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