Pandemic and schism have combined to challenge The United Methodist Church in an unprecedented way.
And that offers a not-to-be-missed opportunity, according to the Rev. Mike Slaughter.
“What a time to reimagine what God’s next is for The United Methodist Church,” the retired United Methodist megachurch pastor told a Dallas gathering on Nov. 16.
About 300 clergy and laity came to Lovers Lane United Methodist Church for “Space at the Table: Conversations of Hope for the UMC Future,” and others joined by livestream.
A follow-up to a similar event held in Atlanta in August, “Space at the Table” offered panel discussions with United Methodist academics and young clergy of the denomination. Another panel featured three South Central Jurisdiction episcopal leaders: Bishops Cynthia Fierro Harvey, Ruben Saenz and David Wilson, who was elected earlier this month and is United Methodism’s first Native American bishop.
The program included the airing of a video podcast with retired Bishop Will Willimon, author of the new book “Don’t Look Back: Methodist Hope for What Comes Next.”
The Rev. Michael Bowie, national director of the denomination’s Strengthening the Black Church for the 21st Century, also spoke and shared a sentiment that seemed to be a consensus.
“Normal will never come back,” he said.
Since early 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic has altered United Methodist life, with many churches still seeing significantly reduced in-person worship attendance.
On top of that, U.S. annual conferences have, since 2019, approved more than 820 local church disaffiliations. Many of those churches are choosing to enter a new, breakaway traditionalist denomination, the Global Methodist Church.
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Source: United Methodist News
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