Even as they grieve this season of disaffiliations, the Council of Bishops president urged his fellow bishops to work to reclaim, revive and renew The United Methodist Church.
“The future of The United Methodist Church hinges on our ability to deeply pray that God will give us the strength and the courage to do what we must, what we have been called to do all along,” preached Bishop Thomas J. Bickerton, who also leads the New York Conference.
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Bickerton spoke to a gathering characterized by the joy and hugs of a family reunion as well as the excitement of welcoming 17 new bishops — the most demographically diverse class of episcopal leaders in the denomination’s history.
But the gathering also carried the deep sense of sorrow and weariness that comes with a difficult farewell to another part of the church family.
“I admit that I’m eager to get past this,” Bickerton told those watching. “I want us to stop talking about disaffiliations. I worry that we have spent more time on those who are leaving than focusing our energy on those who are staying.”
Bickerton likened this time in denominational life to his own experience in recent weeks of marking the passing and celebrating the life of his father.
As he spoke and listened to time-honored funeral prayers, Bickerton said he “began to think about a local church that we have loved but will not see any more, a pastor who we mentored and ordained that we wish well even in our sadness, a longing to end these deaths that we are experiencing in the midst of the life.”
Church leaders and members need to grieve, Bickerton said.
The denomination is experiencing an upheaval unlike any that these leaders have experienced in their lifetimes, as they deal with a mounting number of disaffiliations under a church law that allows U.S. congregations to leave with property if they meet certain procedural and financial requirements.
Not every departing church is heading to the new denomination. Some are joining another denomination in the Methodist movement and some are going independent, seeing no need to be part of any denomination.
So far, a UM News review has found nearly 2,500 congregations have met the requirements to leave under the provision. That translates to only about 8% of U.S. United Methodist congregations leaving since the church law took effect four years ago.
But more departures are coming. Seventeen annual conferences — the church regional bodies where bishops preside — have scheduled special sessions in the next two months to vote on church disaffiliation requests
It will take a while to know how much membership loss these withdrawals represent. That’s in large part because some members of exiting congregations are opting to remain United Methodist by transferring to other churches or, in some cases, planting new United Methodist faith communities.
He urged his fellow episcopal leaders to proclaim Jan. 1, 2024, the beginning of a time to refocus, rebuild and “get on with what God has called us to do from the very beginning.”
Still, he also acknowledged that the denomination will need to rebuild with less capacity financially.
However, he said, United Methodists can reclaim the denomination’s identity as a church that proclaims God’s grace in baptism, in an open table and in missional outreach.
To make that openness a reality, Bickerton urged United Methodists to revive the tradition of inviting friends to church. He also encouraged those listening to renew their sense of God’s calling on their lives.
Bickerton said bishops and other United Methodists have work ahead, but he too looks forward to a renewed church.
“Let’s love coming to church again,” he said, “and make absolutely sure that when people pass by our buildings, they will know that inside those walls are people who absolutely love God and genuinely love every soul as a precious part of God’s creation.”
excerpt from a story by Heather Hahn, assistant news editor, UMNews
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