The anxiety is beginning to rise.
Bags are being packed. Fights confirmed. Hashtags established.
Delegates, observers, and press are preparing for the called General Conference of The United Methodist Church. For outsiders, many cannot fathom why the UMC is continuing the debate fight over the issue of human sexuality. In 2019, for the majority of Americans, the issue has been settled and yet the debate fight continues in the UMC.
Theological debate is healthy. After all, half of the delegates are clergy, and clergy (according to my systematics professor Rev. Dr. Kendall Soulen) are the resident theologians of their local churches. Theologians love to debate. Theologians love conversations that draw us out of our comfort zone and into a place where we are changed as we engage the divine through the lenses of scripture, tradition, experience, and reason.
Debates are good.
Debates are healthy.
It is obvious to many that the called General Conference will result in more fighting than debating. There will be more personal attacks than theological discussion. There will most certainly be more harm done to the LGBTQ community than discernment.
And that is where the problem begins.
Leading up to the called General Conference, any reasonable person can see that harm will be done and yet, many observers (and even delegates) are preparing for this international gathering as if they are attending Methodist-palooza.
Drinking games are being organized.
Bingo cards have been distributed.
General Conference 2019 is NOT Methodist-palooza.
The called General Conference is a body of delegates tasked with a serious issue: determining how the UMC can continue to holds it’s connection while in the midst of a deeply rooted theological debate. Yes, money is on the line but at the root of the debate, we are talking theology, scripture, and discernment.
The work this body will do is serious work. Instead of preparing for a Methodist Woodstock, perhaps it would be more prudent for those planning to attend the conference to take a posture of prayer and hopefulness instead of a posture one would assume as though they were attending the Wild Goose Festival.
What is about to/could happen will not have the potential to separate the body of Christ, but also, harm will be done to LGBTQ persons. Debates Arguments are going to happen that will de-humanize LGBTQ persons. It is going to happen. Anyone who tells you they know the final outcome of the coming General Conference with any certainty is lying. But with certainty, we know LGBTQ persons will be harmed. They have left the UMC and will continue to do so. No amount of inclusivity can overcome the harm done. No rainbow icon on your website or on the front porch of your church can overcome the amount of pain caused. Reconciliation is required, and it appears reconciliation will not be on the agenda of the called General Conference.
With all of this in mind, please do not treat General Conference 2019 as Methodist-palooza.
Put away the drinking games and do not print the bingo cards. What is about to happen in Saint Louis will cause harm and in treating this conference like a festival, we have the potential of harming people further.
