Issues at the 2000 General Conference
Detailed background on some
of the major issues such as homosexuality may be found online at
www.umc.org/umns/background.html .
Homosexuality
Homosexuality
has been an issue at every General Conference since 1972. Petitions to the 2000 General
Conference represent a wide range of views. United
Methodist members on one side of the homosexual issue are pressing delegates to retain the
current language of the Book of Discipline, while members on the other side are working to
have language removed, particularly the sentence prohibiting same-sex unions and a
statement declaring the practice of homosexuality to be “incompatible with Christian
teaching.”
Delegates to the 1996
General Conference inserted in the church’s Social Principles a sentence saying,
“Ceremonies that celebrate homosexual unions shall not be conducted by our ministers
and shall not be conducted in our churches.” The
status of the statement was challenged, but the church’s highest court ruled that it
is enforceable under church law. The church's Book of Discipline:
- condemns the practice of
homosexuality as "incompatible with Christian teaching";
- affirms that God's grace is
available to all;
- commits the church to being
in ministry for and with all people;
- supports basic human rights
and civil liberties for homosexuals;
- condemns violence against
gays and lesbians;
- prohibits the candidacy,
ordination or appointment of self-avowed practicing homosexuals as clergy;
- prohibits the use of
churchwide funds from being used by any group to promote the acceptance of homosexuality;
and
- prohibits same-sex unions.
Connectional Process Team
The 1996 General Conference
created a 38-member Connectional Process Team (CPT) to "manage, guide and promote a
transformational direction" for the United Methodist Church. The team was asked to
continue the work begun during the previous quadrennium by the General Council on
Ministries' Connectional Issues Study Task Force and the Council of Bishops' study of the
"Global Nature of the Church."
The CPT, chaired by Bishop
Sharon Brown Christopher, Springfield, Ill., is bringing a 24-page report to the 2000
General Conference. If adopted, the report will have significant implications for how the
church will be organized and function in mission and ministry around the world in this new
century. Specific recommendations in the report include:
- creating "covenant
councils" at every level of church life;
- putting churches in the
United States in a "central conference" like those outside the United States;
- reconstituting the
General Conference as a United Methodist Global Conference, a 500-member body that would
meet first in 2008 for six days followed by a six-day session of the U.S. Central
Conference. The U.S. body would have no more than 1,000 delegates.
- asking the five U.S.
jurisdictional conferences and all central conferences outside the United States to meet
before the Global Conference to elect bishops who would then be consecrated at the Global
Conference;
- asking the churchwide
Covenant Council to prepare legislation between 2001 and 2004 to implement the Global
Conference and the U.S. Central Conference as proposed in the CPT report. A draft of
that legislation is requested by July 1, 2002, with a final draft going to the 2004
General Conference.
asking the Covenant Council
to redesign and realign the work of the church (general) agencies.
Act of Repentance for Reconciliation
Two
hours have been set aside on the evening of May 4 for an "Act of Repentance for
Reconciliation." The service is being planned by the denomination's Commission on
Christian Unity and Interreligious Concerns, in consultation with representatives of the
African Methodist Episcopal Church, the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church and the
Christian Methodist Episcopal Church. The worship
service will provide an opportunity for the predominantly white United Methodist Church to
confess the sin of racism and to express regret for the way people of color have been
treated inside and outside the denomination and its predecessor churches. All three
historically black denominations originated through acts of exclusion or discrimination by
white Methodists in the 18th and 19th centuries.
Delegates also will consider
a study guide developed by the Commission on Christian Unity to help United Methodist
congregations engage in an act of repentance for racism during 2001. The delegates will
consider adding an amendment about racial justice to the church's constitution.
Complaints Against
Clergy
The 1992 and 1996 General
Conferences made sweeping changes in the way complaints against clergy are handled.
Delegates to the 2000 conference will refine judicial and administrative processes,
including violation of ordination and membership; statute of limitations when filing a
compliant; what should be forwarded to a committee on investigation; separate listings of
chargeable offenses for sexual harassment, sexual misconduct and sexual abuse; and
separation of the clergy trial and penalty phase.
Igniting Ministry
General Conference delegates
will vote on a proposal to fund $20 million for Igniting Ministry, a national television
campaign proposed by United Methodist Communications. The campaign includes purchasing
time on cable TV three times a year for four years. The media campaign is designed to
proclaim the gospel by raising awareness and recognition of the United Methodist
Church’s basic beliefs; foster among nonmembers a positive feeling and willingness to
visit a United Methodist church; and renew commitment in United Methodists. The intent of
the total campaign is to provide local churches with new tools to call people to Christ.
The national media buys are
one element of a five-part effort, but they are the only one seeking funding from General
Conference.
Leadership for Post-Communist Europe
General
Conference members will be asked to designate $2 million toward a Fund for Theological
Education in post-communist Europe for 2000-2004 to help the emerging church there respond
to the need of trained pastoral leadership. The General Board of Higher Education and
Ministry also will provide $2 million toward the fund.
Finances
The General Council on
Finance and Administration – perhaps inspired by the success in bringing churchwide
giving closer to budget during the current quadrennium – will propose a 2001-2004
budget that includes an increase of only 3.4 percent over 1997-2000. The proposal includes
no increases for churchwide ministries during 2001 and 2002; an increase of 1 percent in
2003; and 2 percent in 2004.
Planned future expenditures
of agency reserves resulted in more than a $16 million reduction in the amount requested
from General Conference to support the mission and ministries of the general program and
communication agencies.
How these funds are raised
through apportioning to the annual (regional) conferences may be altered somewhat if a
plan developed by the Connectional Ministry Funding Patterns Task Force is adopted. The
task force decided after considerable research that the traditional apportionment system
is effective in funding the church, but the group is recommending removal of church
membership from the formula used to compute apportionments.
The recommended formula
would be based on the total dollars spent by each congregation in an annual conference,
not counting capital expenditures and payments for churchwide apportionments.Those figures
would be modified by regional per-capita income (per the U.S. Department of Commerce) and
operating costs for each congregation relative to average weekly worship attendance. The
formula would be fully phased in by 2004.
Also related to finances is
the recommendation of the joint General Council on Ministries/General Council on Finance
and Administration that the number of annual churchwide special Sundays with offering be
reduced from six to four. These would be Justice, Love and Mercy Sunday; One Great Hour of
Sharing; World Communion Sunday; and Native American Ministry Sunday. Several caucuses and
agencies are against this change and feel it will reduce the funds available for some
special ministries.
Social Justice
Petitions from individuals,
annual conferences and general agencies cover a wide range of concerns related to social
justice, but this is the first General Conference to deal with a 12-year rule that
eliminates all resolutions passed in 1988 or earlier, unless they have been updated or
modified by subsequent General Conferences.
Consequently, the General
Board of Church and Society and many other agencies and groups are submitting new or
revised resolutions on such subjects as tobacco, alcohol, gun control, health care,
racism, peace and others. In addition,
resolutions on new topics such as hate crimes and human cloning are being proposed. One
resolution in particular seeks a four-year moratorium on U.S. death penalties. The current
Book of Resolutions has 763 pages and addresses hundreds of issues.
Constitutional Amendments
The
General Board of Discipleship is seeking an
amendment to the church's constitution that would pave the way for bringing legislation in
line with the theology of "By Water and the Spirit," the denomination's official
statement on baptism.
The Judicial Council ruled
that "By Water and the Spirit" was in conflict with the denomination's rules
regarding membership and that any form of membership in the church that did not require
taking vows was unconstitutional and invalid. An amendment would pave the way for the
church to enact future legislation in relation to "By Water and the Spirit." It
also would allow the church to recognize all people who are baptized regardless of their
age or ability to profess the faith.
Proposed
constitutional amendments include one that would require that all church gatherings and
meetings, including those of the Council of Bishops, be open. An open
meetings policy, along with circumstances under which meetings may be closed, appears in a
chapter on administrative order in the Book of Discipline.
Number of Bishops
A technicality regarding
membership decline in the Northeastern Jurisdiction, which includes 11 states from Maine
to West Virginia along with the District of Columbia, may prohibit the region from
electing a bishop during the jurisdictional conference in July. Based on language in the
church’s Book of Discipline, a decrease in total church membership in the
jurisdiction since the most recent conference in 1996 would require that the number of
bishops be reduced from 10 to nine. Delegates will consider a resolution that would allow
the Northeastern Jurisdiction to retain its current number of bishops.
Young People
The 2001-2004 proposal from
the Shared Mission Focus on Young People, a four-year-old global initiative in the United
Methodist Church, calls for the development of a consolidated, comprehensive plan for
ministries with young people (ages 12 to 30). The proposal calls for a new way of building
on what was learned during the 1997-2000 quadrennium. Intentional partnerships will be
forged with general agencies, annual conferences and local churches to expand this
movement. In addition, a fund for creative projects and training modules will be
established to equip people for ministries with youth and young adults. The total budget
request is $3.4 million.
Strengthening the
Black Church
The 1996 General Conference
adopted Strengthening the Black Church for the 21st Century as a major program initiative
to develop an avenue by which United Methodist churches with predominantly black
congregations would become effective in mission and ministry. The plan of action was an
extensive program and contained innovative approaches to congregational renewal. The
initiative is still in its early stages, and the reality of declining and struggling black
congregations remains.
The task of revitalizing and
renewing these churches for mission and ministry is unfinished. For this reason,
Strengthening the Black Church for the 21st Century is recommending that its work be
continued for another quadrennium. The initiative is requesting $2.3 million to continue
its work of developing innovative approaches to ministry and building partnerships across
the United Methodist Church.
Korean-American
Ministries
A Task Force on Korean
American Ministries, established by the 1996 General Conference, is recommending an action
plan to improve ministries to Korean Americans over the next four years, with a price tag
of $3.2 million. The plan focuses on developing leaders, fostering and expanding
next-generation ministry and developing and nurturing new congregations. Delegates also
will vote on a resolution asking the General Conference to adopt a Korean-English
bilingual hymnal as an official resource of the church.
Asian American
Language Study
The Asian American Language
Ministry Study identifies ministry needs for 10 different Asian language groups within the
United Methodist Church and asks for $455,000, to implement its recommendations. The 10
language groups are Cambodian, Chinese, Filipino, Formosan (Taiwanese), Hmong, Japanese,
Korean, Lao, South Asian (including Indian, Pakistani, Sri Lankan, Bangladeshi, Indonesian
and Malaysian) and Vietnamese.
Hispanic and Native
American Ministries
Continuation of plans
adopted by previous General Conferences for ministry to Hispanics and Native Americans is
being recommended.
"Caring for
Creation"
The
Native American International Caucus is recommending that the General Conference develop a
four-year study on "Caring for Creation from a Native American Perspective." The
caucus is proposing that the National United Methodist Native American Center be named the
lead agent and work with program agencies of the United Methodist Church and other Native
American entities in developing the study. The proposal requests that $80,000 be allocated
to complete the study and that a report with recommendations be made to the 2004 General
Conference.
General
Conference members also will decide on the implementation of a four-year study of the
economic impact of colonialism and capitalism on Native Americans and how that impact has
influenced contemporary mission and ministry with native people. The proposal requests
$100,000 for the National United Methodist Native American Center to develop an innovative
and economically strategic report for a "God-centered alternative to
gambling-centered economic development on Native American reservations." The report
and recommendations would be presented to the 2004 General Conference.
Delegates will consider a
resolution asking the church not to hold meetings in cities that have sports team and
mascots demeaning to Native Americans, particularly "Chief Wahoo" of the
Cleveland Indians.
Endowment for Historically Black Colleges
Delegates will be asked to
authorize the development of a 25-year plan to raise $300 million in endowment funds to
strengthen the $205 million endowment now collectively held by the 11 historically black
United Methodist-related institutions of higher education. The denomination supports the
largest number of historically black colleges and universities in the United States.
Africa University
Africa University is the only private United
Methodist-related university on the continent. It opened in 1992 with 40 students and two
academic disciplines - theology and agriculture. Today, the university has about 847
students enrolled and five schools of learning. Delegates to General Conference will be
asked to increase the university's endowment to $14 million for the next four years to
help the college meet new technical challenges and sustain facilities. The university is
planning to launch a school of health sciences that will include dental and medical
disciplines. |
