by Steve | Mar 10, 1992 | Archive - 1992
Archive: Declaration Signed
An ad hoc group of United Methodists has issued a call to the denomination’s highest governing body for actions ranging from renewed emphasis on evangelism and affirmation of the church’s stance against ordaining homosexuals, to reducing costs and size of church bureaucracy.
The “Memphis Declaration” is addressed to nearly 1,000 delegates to the church’s 1992 General Conference.
Championing traditional forms of address for the deity, more power to local churches, and the denomination’s current anti-gay ordination law, signers of the three-page declaration specifically asked General Conference to:
- mandate using “Father, Son and Holy Spirit” when referring to the Trinity, and reject “replacement of Biblical language and images … which alter the apostolic faith”;
- reject recommendations from the church-wide committee that has studied homosexuality for the past three years and “oppose further study,” and “reaffirm Christian sexual morality” by reaffirming church law opposing ordination of gay men and lesbians;
- reduce the “number, size, staff and costs” of church-wide agencies, specifically abolishing the program-coordinating agency, the General Council on Ministries, located in Dayton, Ohio;
- create a Board of Evangelism “so that reaching the world for Christ will again be central to the purpose and mission of the church”;
- approve a study committee’s recommendation that the world mission arm, the Board of Global Ministries, be moved from New York “to enhance the mission and ministry of the church”;
- affirm baptism as “a means of God’s grace” but declare as essential for salvation and full church membership the “personal decision to accept Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord.”
Host of the gathering was the Rev. Maxie Dunnam, pastor of the 4,000-member Christ United Methodist Church in Memphis, Tennessee. He and several others present signed a similar “Houston Declaration,” sent to the 1988 General Conference in St. Louis.
“We feel the Houston Declaration affected the General Conference significantly four years ago, in terms of the actions taken,” Dunnam said. “Since equally crucial issues are facing us now, we felt we needed to meet and do it again.”
“The liberal side of the church is very organized and very militant, and those of us who are maybe more traditionalist need to make our case known,” said UM evangelist Ed Robb.
The group represents an increasingly vocal segment of United Methodist conservative traditionalists concerned with falling church membership and enthusiasm, and a perceived betrayal of the tenets of Methodist-style Christianity. Many blame the church’s problems on a liberal hierarchy they claim is out of touch with the grass roots.
The Rev. George Anderson, pastor of Mount Oak United Methodist church in Bowie, Maryland, opposes softening the current language on homosexuality. “We believe that the whole tradition of the faith, based on the Bible says, affirms homosexuals as persons of sacred worth but the practice of homosexuality as sin,” he said.
Among signers of the declaration were retired United Methodist Bishops Ole Borgen, Wilmore Kentucky., William Cannon of Atlanta, and active Bishop Richard Wilke, Little Rock, Arkansas.
Several pastors of large churches also signed the declaration. Among them were the Rev. John Ed Mathison, Frazer Memorial Church in Montgomery, Alabama, which has more than 5,000 members, and the Rev. William Hinson, pastor of First United Methodist Church in Houston, the denomination’s largest congregation with more than 13,000 members.
United Methodist News Service. Portions of this story were reported by Cathy Farmer, editor of the Memphis conference edition of the United Methodist Reporter.
by Steve | Mar 9, 1992 | Archive - 1992
Archive: Vision for Renewal
Urban Outreach
by Jose R. Velazquez
There has always been an aura of both strange fascination and overwhelming fear surrounding the city. For the city is a place of stark contrasts: it is a mammoth conglomeration of magnificent sights and marvelous opportunities. But it is also a place beset with drugs, crime and poverty. In this milieu, the Church and its programs, for the most part, has been woefully inadequate. At best, some local churches have become nothing more than glorified social agencies attempting to meet social needs. Others are interested only in spiritual welfare. This dichotomy has been tragic. Both extreme approaches fall short of the biblical pattern that Jesus modeled for us and commanded us to follow.
We evangelicals have to admit a poor track record in this area of urban ministries. Though we take pride in our belief on the primacy of the Scriptures and our total commitment to its authority, we have failed to integrate its truths into the arena of city life. We have failed to trust the Holy Spirit, for ultimately it is not through programs that the effectiveness of the gospel is proven, but by utter faithfulness and bold reliance on God’s promises and power (Zechariah 4:6).
We have largely ignored the ever-growing presence of newcomers living in our cities, and have failed to develop meaningful and redemptive ministries for them, as well as for the poor and the oppressed (The United States is now the fourth, and possibly the third largest Spanish-speaking country in the world!). We have ignored the glaring fact that it is in our cities where the greatest concentration of persons live. And it is in our cities where 60 percent of the world population will be living by the year 2000!
So, where is the evangelical presence in our cities? How are we facing up to our commitment to demonstrate and proclaim the message of the Good News? Some are praying for solutions—and fleeing the city! (Did Jesus say something about being his witnesses in the suburbs of Jerusalem and in all the suburbs of Judea and Samaria…?) Jesus loved the city. It is significant that of the two occasions recorded in the Bible when Jesus wept, one was for a beloved friend, and the other for Jerusalem, the Holy City. Desperately needed in our cities are people who are motivated not by guilt nor by pity, but by a deep sense of love for Christ and people.
The city, indeed, presents for all of us a formidable challenge! Both the church with its resources and our seminaries must reformulate and reconstruct their focus of mission, giving priority to urban ministries. The crisis and opportunities implied in the urban challenge cannot be met by following old assumptions and using traditional structures. The voice of God is calling his ambassadors of reconciliation, who out of their love for God and for the sake of his kingdom are willing to invest their lives in the barrios and ghettos of our cities.
Jose R. Velazquez is a member of the Northern Illinois Conference of the UM Church and a member of the Good News board of directors. With his wife, Ruth, and their children, they have lived and ministered in the Chicago area for 25 years.
by Steve | Mar 8, 1992 | Archive - 1992
Archive: Vision for Renewal
Our Theological Witness
By Mack B. Stokes
My father and mother, Dr. and Mrs. Marion B. Stokes, were missionaries in Korea for 35 years. Early in his ministry my father said, “With God’s help, I am going to make it my main business to save souls.” As a missionary, his primary passion was evangelistic preaching, teaching, earnest prayer, and bringing people together into local churches. To do this he first mastered the Korean language, in which he preached far more freely than in English.
During those 35 years, my father was instrumental in establishing almost 200 local churches. He started a city mission in the heart of Seoul, where people were invited to come off the streets to hear the gospel. Many were converted there, and those converts often became central figures in establishing local churches. But the strongest sources of church growth came from prayer, revival meetings, one-on-one encounters, and the consecrated efforts of Korean men and women who were imbued with the spirit of evangelism.
My three brothers and I entered the ministry of the Methodist Church largely because of this emphasis on vital Christianity and evangelism in our home. The greatest honor I ever received was when, as a high school boy, God called me to preach the gospel of salvation in Jesus Christ.
As a theological professor at Candler School of Theology for 31 years, and later as a bishop, I determined to do three things which I felt were essential to evangelism and world missions.
The first was to recover, in a secular age, the reality of the supernatural realm of God’s grace. This requires defending the faith on a highly intellectual level without neglecting the realities of prayer, grace, faith and love.
The second essential for evangelism was that of recovering the authority and finality of the Bible. I did not feel that this should drive me or my students into the pitfalls of obscurantism. Though I had plunged deeply into philosophical studies under the Boston personalists, Knudson and Brightman, and under Hocking and Whitehead at Harvard, I knew that our preaching had to be based on, informed by, and proclaimed under the authority of the Word of God. No human discoveries would do. No mere good advice or neat little stories would suffice.
The third essential for evangelism is the passion for souls. When I accepted the invitation to join the theological faculty at Candler, God spoke to me in an unmistakable inner voice, “Always see the students and the congregations they will be called to serve.” Without losing sight of the fact that systematic theology is an intellectual discipline of supreme importance and integrity, I wanted my students to see that a major outcome of Christian doctrine is to help us win people to Christ and to build them up in the fellowship of believers.
The passion for souls begins with intercessory prayer. It consists in seeing with Jesus the incalculable preciousness of every human being. Human rights and human dignity are basic. But also the passion for souls means seeing with Jesus that all people are sinners in need of prayer and of God’s redeeming grace in Christ. Once more, this passion for souls means, receiving, through the Holy Spirit, the burning desire to lead people to Christ so they might join other believers in serving, pleasing, and glorifying God forever.
Mack B. Stokes is a retired United Methodist bishop living in Atlanta, Georgia. He held several reaching and administrative positions at Candler School of Theology. He is the author of The Bible in The Wesleyan Heritage, Questions asked by United Methodists, The Holy Spirit In The Wesleyan Heritage, Major United Methodist Beliefs, and Talking With God: A Guide To Prayer.
by Steve | Mar 6, 1992 | Archive - 1992
Archive: Vision for Renewal
Time For a New Coalition
By Joe Harris
As Good News celebrates its 25th year of service to the United Methodist Church it marks a time of reflection and forward-thinking about its relationship to the African-American community.
Good News has at times been viewed by some in cautious and suspicious terms. It has been perceived that Good News has advocated policies that were counter-productive to African-American concerns. Because of this perceived lack of awareness, many people of color have taken a hands-off approach toward Good News. Conversely, too many have not taken the time to look beneath the rhetoric, the stereotyping, the labeling, to discover the Good News attitude toward black Americans and other people of color in United Methodism.
Too often we have dismissed this group as being just a bunch of non-thinking, right-wing southern white males who have little or no concern regarding the poor, racism, sexism or the environment.
As one who has taken the time to look beyond the labels and stereotypes, I have found that there have been those in Good News who lacked sensitivity and promoted policies and pronouncements that were at times counter-productive. But I also found that like most organizations, Good News is composed of a wide variety of people: Democrats, Republicans, clergy and laity, from north, south, east and west, male and females, African-Americans, Hispanic-Americans, social liberals, social conservatives. In reality, Good News looks much like most United Methodist committees.
The one difference may be in its concern when United Methodism strays from scriptural Christianity and its historic Wesleyan roots. Yet all these different kinds of United Methodists want to see the church respond to the issues of contemporary society without compromising the church’s historic mission. At the same time, they are calling United Methodists to an evangelical faith that is characterized by faithfulness, service, mission and ministry to one another and the world.
That is why people of color, if they will take the time to look beyond the stereotypes, labeling and the rhetoric, will find that they might have more in common with Good News than difference. Like many of our great black churches, Good News emphasizes strong biblical preaching, a solid commitment to personal conversion to Jesus Christ, concern and active participation in programs to reach the poor, and involvement in drug and alcohol ministries of prevention and intervention. In fact, Good News probably has more in common with the goals, aspirations and historic mission of the black church, than differences we could note.
A creative coalition of African-Americans and Good News leaders could only help in creating greater understanding and perhaps a model for what can happen when people of different races, experiences and backgrounds come together for the good of the kingdom of God. A skeptical world is waiting to see the people of God live out reconciliation, mutuality and mission together, rather than hold it up as an ideal.
The question remains, will we run toward or away from one another. God has given Good News a unique role to play in the church. It has no desire to be exclusive in that role, but wants to be inclusive. My prayer is that in the next 25 years African-Americans and others will join together with Good News in seeking God’s best for the people called Methodists.
Joe Harris is the district superintendent of the Ardmore district in Ardmore, Oklahoma. He is also on the executive committee of the Good News board of directors.
by Steve | Mar 5, 1992 | Archive - 1992
Archive: Vision for Renewal
Renewal In Evangelism
by Barbara Brokhoff
I believe that the best word to describe the future of evangelism within the United Methodist Church is promising. I love the church, and in a secular world, and an almost amoral society, she has never been more needed than today. The church is called to be far more than a holy Masonic order, a heavenly social club, or even a sanctified service center. Rather, she is called to condemn sin, proclaim and offer Christ, provide a place for confession and repentance, and ever point persons to the Redeemer. Evangelism, therefore, is not optional, but critical. A Christian who is not an evangelist is like a fire that isn’t burning.
We do have some great things happening that could make a life or death difference to our Christless world. United Methodists are good at program. We have no peer in this area, and some of our programs are working marvelously well. Vision 2000 is proving fruitful in every conference and church which uses it. Growth Plus is showing positive results. Our Disciple Bible study is one of the best. Prayer groups are being born. Creative kinds of visitation are being carried out. Social ministries to people of varied needs and interests are being extended, and relational evangelism is working. May Christ be praised for every good program!
And we are learning anew that prayer has lasting consequences, that it is a powerful means of changing situations, persons and churches.
United Methodists are experiencing again the joy of praise. People are tired of reading litanies and liturgical responses that become mere rote. People want to sing—not chant, but sing! They want to sing the great hymns of the church, the new gospel songs, the old gospel songs, and choruses. They want to express in singing what is in their hearts. Our new hymnal offers many such options.
And, of course, preaching is always at the heart of all renewal. People are still asking us, as they asked Jeremiah, “Is there any Word from the Lord?” Now, as then, there is a Word from him! Preaching the gospel is far more than psycho-babble, opinions on current events, pep talks of self-acceptance, self-esteem, and self-improvement. Preaching is love, but it is also proclaiming justice. It is not the true gospel if we preach less than the indispensable Christ. “Ye must be born again” cannot be replaced by, “Let’s all try a little harder.” We are either slaves to sin or slaves to Christ.
The only freedom from one’s sinful self is the liberty found in Christ. The only ground for our forgiveness is in the work of the Cross. To put forgiveness on any other level is blasphemy. Forgiveness is so easy for us to accept, for we need it so badly, but let us never forget that it cost the agony of Calvary. So, unabashedly, unashamedly, and unremittingly, our message is “Jesus Christ and him crucified.” Therein is hope, renewal, and growth. Yes, indeed, the future of evangelism is promising!
Barbara Brokhoff is an approved United Methodist evangelist in the Florida Conference.
by Steve | Mar 4, 1992 | Archive - 1992
Archive: Vision For Renewal
Steps to the Future
By Earl G. Hunt Jr.
In spite of the fact that United Methodism is doing many things right, I believe, as one who loves his church deeply and sincerely, that certain changes in its present life and structure are critical to its future survival.
First of all, there must be an intentional acceptance of the historic doctrines of Wesleyan theology as they are delineated in the new Theological Statement in the 1988 Book of Discipline which was overwhelmingly adopted by the General Conference.
Secondly, there must be a thorough rethinking by United Methodist ministers of what is actually involved in total Christian commitment, including such matters as a cultivated sensibility to the presence in one’s own heart of Jesus Christ, a fresh dependence upon the Holy Spirit, a fuller, richer prayer life, and the willing assumption of a far more austere and morally sensitive lifestyle.
Thirdly, there must be a conscious, unapologetic adoption of a high doctrine of the Bible. This does not mean belief in Biblical inerrancy, and it surely can include grateful acceptance of data provided by reverent scholarship. But it does require restoration in the mind of the church and its leadership of the authentic authority of the Scriptures.
Fourthly, we must deliberately develop priorities of valid, holistic evangelism as a primary missional thrust of United Methodism, based always on the Great Commission, and love and concern for people.
Fifthly, since bureaucracy exists for the church, and not the church for bureaucracy, the time has come to examine our official structure critically and to undertake its reorganization for purposes of economy and more helpful ministry to local congregations.
Lastly, I do not envision United Methodism remaining united into the next century unless our leaders and people are willing to exert a deliberate effort to find agreement on basic principles and to practice respectful tolerance of each other on matters of marginal differences. Put another way, I pray for a new integrity in our intra-church relationships and a new outpouring of Christian love and kindness upon us all.
Earl G. Hunt Jr., a retired bishop, currently serves as president of the Foundation for Evangelism in Lake Junaluska, North Carolina. The Foundation is an affiliate of the General Board of Discipleship.
