Introducing the NEW United Methodist Church
/by Rev. Eric Folkerth
Friends:
It’s been an historic General Conference like non other in our history.
It truly is like a “rebirth” of a New United Methodist Church.
Please join us Sunday as we celebrate all that’s happened.
For those who haven’t been following along in the news, the United Methodist Church has fully removed all harmful polity against the LGBTQ community.
The long struggle —which Kessler Park has been a part of for years— is now over. The scale of the positive votes far exceeds even my prognostications for how well things would go.
Here is an online Dallas Morning News story with a short quote from me and a picture of our own Kessler Park Pride Flag taken by their photographer this week.
We had the honor of welcoming North Texas Methodists to watch the livestream with us this week, and as you can see from the pictures, several folks came in and out to see how things were going.
I could get into a lot of “Metho-Nerd” weeds with you right now, but probably better just to say: The “harm” has been removed, and the message of the General Conference is this:
The United Methodist Church is now truly a global church that respects our cultural differences and seeks to reach people in the love of Jesus, wherever they live and whoever they are.
THAT is the bottom line.
For years we United Methodists have used phrases that sometimes grated we “Reconciling Methodists” (RMN) the wrong way.
We would say “Open Hearts, Open Minds, and Open Doors.”
And we RMN Methodists would snark, rightly, that it actually wasn’t true.
Well, now it’s actually true.
Please find HERE my initial thoughts about this decision and the challenge of this struggle over so many years. I try to put the struggle in context for you.
YOU have been a part of this journey. Our very existence as a Reconciling Church…the desire to include all people…is a part of this powerful story. And now the open and inclusive church you have always desired to be is the model of ALL United Methodists everywhere.
It’s a remarkable moment.
Again, I will share more about all this on Sunday…it should be a time of joy and celebration. Please don’t miss it!
