| How the Amy DeLong decision renders the Book of Discipline meaningless |
| Written by Rick Silva |
| Thursday June 23, 2011 |
In 2008, the United Methodist Church spent $6.6 million on a 10-day gathering known as General Conference. Almost 1,000 delegates flew into Fort Worth, Texas and spent 10 grueling days hammering out the church's policies. Delegates worked 14 to 18 hour days in mee tings, committees, debates, and legislative sessions crafting the Book of Discipline - the law and doctrine of the United Methodist Church.
Was all this hard work and expense worth it? The answer is no. Yesterday the answer was yes, but today the answer is no. Today the Book of Discipline was rendered meaningless by those who want to do things their way rather than God's way. Today a Methodist pastor brazenly and publically flipped her own denomination the bird and let them know just what she thinks of their doctrine. In a circus trial, she walked away with barely a slap on the wrist. At the beginning of the Book of Discipline it says, "the Discipline is the book of law for the United Methodist Church". It is wrong. Starting today, The Discipline is a book of unenforced laws of the United Methodist Church. It is a paperweight. Is gambling allowed in the Church? Who can be a member of the Church? How are bishops elected? All of these questions are answered by the Book of Discipline, which was painstakingly crafted at General Conference. But since rules are pointless without enforcement, the Discipline's answers are no longer binding. Are same sex marriages allowed in Methodist churches? The Discipline says no, but starting today it is wrong. As of today, they are allowed as long as the pastor is willing to risk a 20 day time out. Are homosexual pastors allowed? The Discipline says no, but as of today it is wrong. The Discipline couldn't be clearer on the matter: The practice of homosexuality is incompatible with Christian teaching. Therefore self-avowed practicing homosexuals are not to be certified as candidates, ordained as ministers, or appointed to serve in The United Methodist Church. "Self-avowed practicing homosexual" is understood to mean that a person openly acknowledges to a bishop, district superintendent, district committee of ordained ministry, board of ordained ministry, or clergy session that the person is a practicing homosexual. But don't bother yourself with that old mumbo jumbo. That's just what the Discipline says. Starting today, you can declare yourself to be a married lesbian, decline to answer any further questions about your sexuality, and unless the bishop is actually in your bed with a tape measure, measuring the distance between you and your partner, it's not a problem. Yesterday the Book of Discipline detailed what is, and is not allowed in the Methodist Church. Today it does not. Yesterday if you asked me what it means to be a Methodist I could have told you. It was spelled out in the Discipline. Today I cannot. The Book of Discipline was originally published in 1784. It was rendered meaningless in 2011. |
Comments
We are now the HOPELESS, but the rights about what my kids will be taught are mine. SIN IS SIN AND THEY ARE DEAF. GOD HAS MERCY ON THEM!!!!
The secular world is very broken, and has been for a long time. But in tough times like these, we have always had our faith community to sustain us. But now they have infiltrated even that.
The Church was where we learned the difference between right and wrong and Biblical lessons about living a good life. We learned that "Jesus loves me. This I know. For the Bible tells me so."
I guess if the Bible doesn't matter anymore, maybe Jesus DOESN'T love me.
The UMC needs to fix this, and fix it quickly.
If the UMC intends to take some kind of corrective action - and they should - I hope that they communicate that to the Body quickly, maybe via United Methodist Communications.
People will leave the Church over this, and that would be a shame if the UMC is actually working on making this right behind the scenes.
As a member of Amy's Witness Team I can with certainty say that Rev. Amy is not going to celebrate a Holy Union in August. She deals with same-gender relations and covenants the same way she does with heterosexual relations and covenants. She has not been asked to do another and it takes months to honor a pastoral process regarding relationship blessing.
Your other question is answered in the Book of Discipline. The church sets the rules and processes for a trial. It cannot appeal its own procedures officiated at by a Bishop and prosecuted by an Elder. To honor the possibility of what the Judicial Council calls an egregious error of law, a person being tried may appeal to a Jurisdictional level.
Blessings on listening again that the Book of Discipline has been upheld in its processes even though there are those who, not having heard the evidence, would rather the decision had been stronger or weaker.
-John Wesley, Letter to John Valton, 18 June 1782
Question: If she can't abide by the Discipline, why stay in the UMC instead of going to another denomination that allows what she wants?
Answer: She wants to eventually force a rewriting of the Discipline and reinterpretatio n of scripture.
It's a shame. (-_-')
And don't tell me I have to stay to fight the good fight. The laity apparently has no influence.
In many places it essentially says, "Do Ministry, no matter what!" and in some places it says, "Don't do that, no matter what!"
My understanding of the trial court, most of whom I know and it would take a very biased view of them to say that they were biased. The process of their selection was rigorous and half the trial court was changed during questioning of their views. They are representative and impugning them won't change that. They appeared to take the "Do" and "Don't" parts of the Discipline very seriously and were led by their hearing of the evidence to bring a restorative justice decision rather than a punitive one. I hope they will be heard.
You might be interested in Bishop Linda Lee's Blog wherein she says, in part, "Being in denial is not a position of spiritual strength. And I believe we have been in denial. The truth is that there knowingly have been and continue to be self-avowed, practicing homosexual persons both ordained and appointed in the United Methodist Church, at every level I believe. And for me, the reality is that it is not possible to legislate, berate, abuse, ostracize or exclude this reality away. Nor do I believe it is what Christ calls us to be about." [http://bishoplindalee.wordpress.com/2010/05/28/i-believe-we-are-one/]
Those "Do and Don't parts of the Discipline" were debated endlessly at General Conference, and justice was taken into consideration. To now trash our own doctrine in the name of "restorative justice" is shortsighted and irresponsible.
If you want to change the UMC's rules on homosexual marriage and ordination, the honorable way to do that is to persuade GC to change the Discipline. Whether you agree with the rules or not, the UMC has the right to set its own rules. To do an end run around those rules by refusing to answer questions about whether Amy DeLong is a "practicing" homosexual is shameful.
The complainant claimed the Discipline was for them a sacred book. Many on this list seem to claim the same. That's fine, everyone needs a benchmark. The best I can do is that it is our latest attempt to move ourselves on to perfection/wholeness.
Blessings to us all as we work on salvation matters with fear and trembling. Here it is time to be off for worship.
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