United Methodists will again debate LGBTQ clergy and same-sex weddings
A MARTÍNEZ, HOST:
Same-sex weddings and LGBTQ clergy are two of the topics front and center as the United Methodist Church opens its general conference today in Charlotte, N.C. In recent years, the church, which is one of the largest Protestant groups in the U.S., has seen many of its congregations leave over the issues. Joining us now to talk about what's at stake for Methodists is NPR religion correspondent Jason DeRose. Jason, let's start with what church leaders will be deciding. So what's on the agenda?
JASON DEROSE, BYLINE: As you mentioned, the biggest issues are LGBTQ -related. Right now, the Methodist Book of Discipline, which is the church's rulebook, says the practice of homosexuality is incompatible with Christian teaching. It also prohibits clergy from performing same-sex weddings and says the church does not ordain LGBTQ clergy. Now, the general conference, which includes United Methodists from around the world, could do a variety of things with that language. They could leave it as it is, they could remove the language, or they could remove that language and add affirming language.
MARTÍNEZ: So, remind me - because didn't United Methodists have a big meeting about this very, very topic a few years ago?
DEROSE: Yes. In 2019, they met to discuss the issues and create a path forward. The plan was to then vote on all of these issues at the 2020 general conference. But the pandemic intervened and postponed that meeting until now.
MARTÍNEZ: So what has happened in the five years since?
DEROSE: Well, a couple of things - many local geographic conferences of the church chose not to enforce the bans on LGBTQ clergy and same-sex marriage, and many congregations upset over that nonenforcement chose to leave the denomination. Now, the deadline for disaffiliating, as it's called, was last December, and more than 7,600 churches, or one-quarter of its congregations, left.
MARTÍNEZ: All right, so that sounds like a big number. Where does that leave the Methodist Church today?
DEROSE: Well, let's take a look at one state. Duke University has done some research surveying clergy and congregations in North Carolina. They found that the clergy who left were more conservative than those who stayed. Now that's, of course, expected, but they also found even among those who remained, a quarter of those clergy oppose LGBTQ ministers, and nearly a third oppose same-sex marriage. David Eagle from Duke's Religion and Social Change Lab says there's also another surprise.
DAVID EAGLE: I'd also been left with the impression that this split would make the United Methodist Church a more progressive denomination. And, in some ways, amongst the clergy, that has happened. But amongst congregations, congregations still remain very evenly divided, both theologically and politically.
DEROSE: And another finding that Eagle is quite worried about is this. The clergy are not OK. The study found significant numbers of United Methodist ministers there in North Carolina say they're suffering from high levels of stress, exhaustion, depression, anxiety, in part because they've been dealing with these divisions for years.
MARTÍNEZ: Wow. Any sense of a path forward?
DEROSE: Well, the departure of the most conservative congregations and clergy means there's a chance the rules around same-sex marriage and LGBTQ clergy could change. One middle-path option is for the regional conferences to decide for themselves and not have a unified policy across all of the church. I spoke with longtime United Methodist Minister Patricia Farris here in Southern California. She's hoping this meeting will finally allow her denomination to move on.
PATRICIA FARRIS: Methodists have always been concerned about our communities, about unhoused people, about labor. How do we focus our energy in caring for people and changing the world and making life better for more people? That's what we're really about.
DEROSE: Farris says, perhaps United Methodists' witness to the greater world is to demonstrate how to live together despite deep differences.
MARTÍNEZ: That's NPR religion correspondent Jason DeRose. Jason, thank you.
DEROSE: You're welcome.
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