Editorial: Missing questions In Charlotte

By Rob Renfroe

July/August 2024

During the recent General Conference of The United Methodist Church, I was interviewed by the Associated Press, The New York Times, and other news outlets. The most intriguing question a reporter asked was, “What has surprised you at this General Conference?”

Some church commentators (UM and otherwise) have expressed surprise, even shock, that The General Conference went as far as it did. Redefining marriage to include “two persons,” no longer restricting marriage to the union of one man and one woman. Allowing for persons who are engaged in gay or lesbian relationships to be ordained as pastors and serve in United Methodist churches. Removing the requirement that pastors who are single also be celibate and eliminating adultery as a chargeable offense for clergy.  Changing the church’s stance on abortion so that it no longer states that United Methodists “are bound to respect the life and the well-being of the unborn child.” Instead, there is the assertion that the UM Church upholds a person’s right to an abortion.

None of that surprised me. Neither did the Conference’s refusal to provide Africa the same rights we in the U.S. were given to discern God’s will for our churches and disaffiliate if so led. Nor did the fact that many delegates as they introduced themselves to the conference, also included their sexual identities (using terms such as “straight,” “gay,” “lesbian,” “non-binary,” and “queer”).

Those of us who have followed The United Methodist Church for decades and have been in countless meetings with centrist and progressive leaders could have predicted all of that. Most of the traditional delegates have left the UM Church for the Global Methodist Church or another orthodox, biblical denomination. Twenty-five percent of the African delegates were absent, most because the Commission on General Conference did not provide them with the documentation they required in time for them to receive their visas. So, we knew the changes the liberals wanted to make in Charlotte before the Conference began and we knew they had the votes to do it.

So, what surprised me? The utter dearth of self-awareness and introspection of the Conference’s speakers and leaders. The tone was set by the opening episcopal address when a bishop spent a good fifth of his talk to tell those present who could not embrace where the UM Church was headed that maybe they did not need to be in the room, that maybe they should just leave now. This from one of the leaders of the “Big Tent” United Methodist Church that prides itself on having open hearts, open minds and open doors. This from a church that was unwilling to make a way out for churches in Africa that did not want to be in the room and that wanted to leave – and still do.

This same speaker, after firing a salvo at those he accused of spreading disinformation and creating division, then said in his next breath that we should avoid “finger-pointing.” And all done with such an air of self-righteous indignation that one was uncertain whether to laugh or or to worry that he had become untethered from reality. I understand being angry with those who have challenged your views in the past. But for one who is looked up to by many as a leader and a model to be so lacking in self-awareness – honestly, it was more than surprising. It was shocking.

The message trumpeted in the opening address continued to be the drumbeat of the Conference. The UM Church had been through a hard time because of a cabal of disgruntled, dishonest, divisive dissenters.  But now that those troublers of Israel had left, everything was going to be okay. The new UM Church is united and poised for great things. One speaker even stated that she was more hopeful than ever for the United Methodist Church. Twenty-five percent of its churches are gone, many of its largest congregations are out, a good number of its most entrepreneurial pastors have left, and the Conference cut the denomination’s budget by over forty percent. But the word was – all is good, our best days are yet to come – and the U.S. delegates applauded the message they wanted to hear.

But there were no questions from any of the speakers that even a middle-manager in a mediocre company would have asked. “How did we lose twenty-five percent of our base?” “What did we do that alienated so many people who identified with us and gave their lives to this institution for decades?” “What lessons do we need to learn?”

There was no one who addressed the Conference with the reality that The United Methodist Church has lost membership every year since it was founded in 1968. Fifty-six years of decline and no one asked, “Is it possible that maybe we’re doing something wrong? We’re starting something new here at this General Conference – at least we have the opportunity to do so. Maybe before we go too far, shouldn’t we try to determine why we have lost members even in places, especially in places, where our pastors and our congregations are the most progressive?”

Any company in the United States that had experienced fifty-six years of constant decline would long before have removed its board of directors and demanded a new kind of leadership. Instead, the UM Church has doubled-down in recent years, electing bishops that are more and more liberal – and not surprisingly the rate of membership decline for the denomination has only increased.

Admitting there’s a problem requires introspection and self-awareness. Being a leader means asking oneself, “How have I contributed to the problem and what can I do better?” Getting better as a church doesn’t happen when its representatives and delegates applaud when its bishops point the finger at others and tell them everything’s going to be all right. No one and no institution ever grows or gets right until there is a willingness to ask difficult questions and be honest about the problems. There was none of that in Charlotte.

Image: Visitors to the United Methodist General Conference in Charlotte, N.C., watch the proceedings on overhead video monitors. Photo by Mike DuBose, UM News.