“For everything, there is a season.” Ecclesiastes 3:1

We recognize that COVID 19 continues to spread globally and that many throughout our global connection continue to suffer from the inequitable distribution of vaccines. Given the safety considerations that result from this tragedy, it appears likely that the General Conference, scheduled for August-September 2022, may be postponed again.

As the writer of Ecclesiastes notes, “For everything there is a season,” and the season for waiting on General Conference legislative solutions as the only way forward has passed. We recognize that continued delay in making decisions about the future of The United Methodist Church hurts our mission and is especially harmful to our central conference and LGBTQIA+ siblings who are caught up in this conflict.

Therefore:

- We call the church to a pastoral response to the anxiety generated by having to delay decisions that impact peoples’ lives and ministries.

- We call on bishops and annual conferences to develop resources to assist local churches in discerning their future, including resources on how to have difficult conversations in ways that reduce harm.

- Honoring the expressed desire of some churches and church leaders to leave The United Methodist Church and participate in other denominations, we call bishops and annual conferences to use existing disciplinary authority to find grace-filled ways for these leaders and churches to follow their call now, allowing them to take their church property with them where appropriate.

- We further call upon churches and leaders who wish to leave and join other denominations to engage their bishops in dialogue about how they can realize their hoped-for future.

- In this time of great transition, we call on our episcopal leaders to continue a grace-filled approach and hold in abeyance any complaints related to ministry with LGBTQIA+ persons and matters concerning the future direction of the church.

Those who have decided to remain in The United Methodist Church wish to begin doing the work now of envisioning the future UMC. To be able to do that requires the ability to graciously release others to their own future. As our Book of Discipline notes, “We make disciples as we… send persons into the world to live lovingly and justly as servants of Christ by healing the sick, feeding the hungry, caring for the stranger, freeing the oppressed, being and becoming a compassionate caring presence and working to develop social structures that are consistent with the gospel.” (Paragraph 122)

We, the undersigned, want all of our churches to be able to get about the business of making disciples now. Therefore, it is our intention to shift our focus from legislative solutions that are dependent upon a General Conference to supporting strategies for a gracious exit that can be enacted at the annual conference, central conference, and jurisdictional levels. We call on bishops, conference leaders, and all United Methodists to join us in this effort.


*** By submitting this form you are adding your signature to this statement and your name will be made public. You are signing as an individual, and NOT representing your church, organization, annual conference, or central conference.

French translation: https://tinyurl.com/frenchcalltograce
Portuguese translation: https://tinyurl.com/calltograceportuguese