Protestors disrupt a session of the UMC General Conference after Methodists fail to change anti-gay policies. Photo from the United Methodist News Service
I feel as though I could just copy and paste most of the previous entry.
To my brothers and sisters in Christ who are members of the United Methodist Church: my heart aches for you. I have been sitting on the sidelines, occasionally glancing at headlines coming from your General Conference. Needless to say, I was greatly disappointed to see that the body of Christ that is your particular denomination could not see fit to repeal the language that calls homosexuality "incompatible" with Christian teaching.
You and I both know that is not true. You and I both know that you are a beloved child of God. You and I both know that just because your fellow Methodists have failed you, God will not abandon you... nor let your church off the hook. As more and more Christians come to understand that God doesn't reject the LGBT community, and as other protestant denominations (Evangelical Lutherans, Episcopalians, and Presbyterian USA) offer the unconditional welcome you seek, the United Methodist Church will feel the Spirit breathing down its neck. It may respond by sticking its head even further into the sand. But the Spirit will not allow you to be left in the cold. You are surrounded by a cloud of witnesses who recognize your sexuality as a gift from God.
I have felt this same rejection of my lesbian-self from the Episcopal Church before. Things do change, even if the changes are slow and come in patchwork form across your broader church.
God is love. Never forget that.
Discrimination is incompatible with Christianity.
ReplyDeleteIntolerance is incompatible with Christianity.
Inequity is incompatible with Christianity.
Judgement is incompatible with Christianity.
Hate is incompatible with Christianity.
Do they believe those things are OK?