The United Methodist Church General Conference has voted to drop its ban on the ordination of practicing gay clergy. Church delegates also voted to stop penalizing clergy or churches from holding same-sex weddings. https://twitter.com/nytimes/status/1785709531818840467 From the New York Times:
Methodist leaders are meeting for the first time since 2019, after several delays because of the pandemic. The overturning of the 40-year-old ban on “self-avowed practicing homosexuals” passed overwhelmingly and without debate in a package of measures that had already received strong support in committee.
Delegates, meeting in Charlotte, N.C., also voted to bar local leaders from penalizing clergy or churches for holding (or declining to hold) same-sex weddings. Further votes affirming L.G.B.T.Q. clergy and churchgoers are expected before the meeting adjourns on Friday.
The delegates also removed a ban on funding LGBTQ advocacy groups. The last time the conference met, delegates voted to tighten its ban on same-sex weddings and gay/lesbian clergy. It’s quite a remarkable set of changes for the United Methodist Church. But there is a particular reason why this is possible today. At that last conference in 2019, Methodist leaders opened a window in which conservative congregations could leave the church while retaining their property and assets. And many did. For instance, in Texas, more than 40% of congregations left to join the more conservative Global Methodist Church, while others have remained independent. So, the makeup of today’s attendees was considerably less conservative than four years ago. https://twitter.com/uwomenfaith/status/1785673068418830763
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