United Methodist Church Drops LGBTQ Clergy Ban
There was no debate when the United Methodist Church repealed the decades-old ruling which prohibited “self-avowed practicing homosexuals” from serving as ministers within the denomination.
For the many who have witnessed a mass exodus from the church founded by John Wesley, the writing has been on the wall for some time now.
The vote wasn’t even close.
As the Associated Press reports, “Delegates voted 692-51 at their General Conference—the first such legislative gathering in five years. That overwhelming margin contrasts sharply with the decades of controversy around the issue. Past General Conferences of the United Methodist Church had steadily reinforced the ban and related penalties amid debate and protests, but many of the conservatives who had previously upheld the ban have left the denomination in recent years, and this General Conference has moved in a solidly progressive direction.”
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With this abandonment of the biblically adhering congregants, the UMC was able to shift towards societies moral system as a replacement for that found within the pages of the Bible.
Prayers were offered up, to whom remains disputed, with thanksgiving and praise among the many conference attendees and LGBTQ advocacy groups.
This was not the only measure passed that was accepting of non-biblical sexuality at the conference. On Tuesday, the delegates removed the ability of regional superintendents to punish officiation or hosting of same-sex weddings. Clergy cannot be punished for refusing to to perform or host such events either, but let’s just see how long that remains in the denomination.
By definition, the word ‘apostasy’ means “the repudiation of Christ and the central teachings of Christianity by someone who formerly was a Christian.”
Sadly, the UMC appears to have shifted further and further into this status over the years, leading to the massive split within their church.
But these types of events were bound to happen, because the Bible says that many heart’s will grow cold toward Jesus and will instead follow the ways of the world.
It is truly heartbreaking to hear some of the statements by those who are so clearly deceived by the world when it comes to gender and sexuality.
The UMC’s first openly lesbian bishop, Karen Oliveto, stated that is was the Holy Spirit calling LGBTQ people into ministry, without the transformational power of Jesus Christ.
“It seemed like such a simple vote, but it carried so much weight and power, as 50 years of restricting the Holy Spirit’s call on people’s lives has been lifted,” Oliveto says.
A prohibition on people living in unrepentant sin is not the hindrance of the Holy Spirit, it is the adhering to biblical principles that protect the integrity of the church, it’s leadership and congregants.
While the secular media are calling those who have disagreed with the path of the UMC on sexuality “conservative” in their values, this is an incorrect designation. They are abiding by biblical values, which are the only values a church should be standing firmly on when it comes to leading people in their faith walk with God.
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James Lasher is Staff Writer for Charisma Media
