NATION & WORLD
News throughout our nation and world relating to United Methodists of the Holston Conference

Violence in all forms ‘contrary to God’s purpose,’ bishops say
By Tom McAnally

LAKE JUNALUSKA, N.C. (UMNS) -– During the closing hours of their weeklong meeting Nov. 5-9, the United Methodist Council of Bishops issued a pastoral letter offering words of “hope and peace” to people struggling with the consequences and fear of terrorism.

They also expressed concern for the “thousands of people who live in fear and terror and those displaced by war and poverty.” Violence in all its forms and expressions is contrary to God’s purpose for the world, they declared. The letter was approved Nov. 9.

Officials of the council issued a statement within hours of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, but their semiannual meeting at Lake Junaluska was the first opportunity for all bishops to explore issues with one another and to consider what action they should take as “pastors” of the church and its nearly 10 million members worldwide.

To accompany the brief pastoral letter, the bishops are planning a list of resources, developed in cooperation with the top executives of churchwide agencies. The list, expected soon, will include official statements on war, peace and terrorism adopted by the 2000 General Conference and found in the Book of Discipline and Book of Resolutions. The General Conference, a legislative assembly of nearly 1,000 delegates that meets every four years, is the only body that can speak officially for the church.

The bishops voted to ask one of the church’s agencies, United Methodist Communications in Nashville, Tenn., to include a resource guide for the study of terrorism in the next edition of Interpreter, a magazine sent to nearly 300,000 pastors and local church officials.

The bishops also voted to ask the United Methodist Publishing House in Nashville to reissue “In Defense of Creation,” a document on nuclear concerns, which the council produced in 1986. They asked that the reprinted document have a new introduction that will explain its relevance to “America’s new war.”

Each bishop agreed to take responsibility for distribution of the letter in his or her own area.

McAnally is director of United Methodist News Service, the church’s official news agency. The full text of the bishops’ pastoral letter is available at http://umns.umc.org/01/nov/525.htm.


Unofficial church groups react to Judicial Council ruling
By United Methodist News Service

The United Methodist Judicial Council’s recent decision regarding gay clergy is drawing praise and criticism from independent groups in the denomination.

The church’s supreme court ruled in a lengthy decision that two passages in the denomination’s Book of Discipline do not contradict each other regarding the appointment of ministers who are gays or lesbians. One passage forbids the ordination and appointment of “self-avowed practicing homosexuals,” while the other states that all clergy in good standing shall receive appointments.

The Pacific Northwest Annual (regional) Conference requested that the court issue a declaratory decision on the passages after two openly gay clergy members requested appointments to local churches. The two pastors are deemed in good standing by the conference.

In its Oct. 24-26 session, the court ruled that a bishop couldn’t unilaterally deny a clergy person an appointment without going through the due process outlined in the Book of Discipline. It also ruled that the acknowledgement of being in a same-gender relationship is sufficient cause for a pastor to undergo ministerial review.

The ruling was praised by some groups for upholding the denomination’s prohibition against gays and lesbians being appointed in ministry.

Other groups expressed concern about the implications that the ruling could have for the rights of sexual minorities in the church.

The executive committee of Good News applauded the Judicial Council’s decision. Good News, based in Wilmore, Ky., is a United Methodist evangelical renewal organization, and it publishes a magazine by the same name.

“This decision strengthens the church’s present position while assuring fair process,” said the Rev. James V. Heidinger II, president and publisher of Good News. The decision guarantees that people who publicly acknowledge same-gender relationships, as the Rev. Karen Dammann did in the PacificNorthwest, “must have their ministerial relationship reviewed by the annual conference,” Heidinger said.

“In that review process, she must be asked if she were involved in sexual activity with a member of her gender, and if she answers affirmatively, it clarifies that she is what the Discipline refers to as a ‘self-avowed practicing homosexual’ and thus ineligible for appointment.

“This ruling prohibits a bishop from declaring unilaterally that one is no longer a ‘member in good standing,’ which protects all clergy from arbitrary dismissal,” Heidinger said. “At the same time, it affirms the church’s commitment to fair process as well as to the conviction that the practice of homosexuality remains ‘incompatible with Christian teaching.’”

John Stumbo, representing the Coalition for United Methodist Accountability, found that the Judicial Council’s decision agreed with the main points of a brief that he had filed with the court.

CUMA was formed in 2000 by three conservative groups, including Good News, to enforce the denomination’s Book of Discipline.

Now the church must wrestle with the question of how it defines “self-avowed practicing homosexual,” said Stumbo, an attorney and the mayor of Fort Valley, Ga.

That is a question that he hopes will not be left up to the individual annual conferences but will be decided at the general church level, he said. “We need uniformity across the church,” he explained.

“It’s going to take either Judicial Council or the General Conference to bring clarity to that, and I hope it will be the Judicial Council rather than have to wait on the General Conference,” Stumbo said. The Judicial Council meets twice yearly, whereas the General Conference, the denomination’s top legislative assembly, won’t meet until 2004.

The Parents Reconciling Network, representing United Methodist parents of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people, expressed “cautious support” for the ruling.

“The decision, though narrow, appropriately focused on process and not on the validity of Discipline statements regarding the church’s stance on homosexuality,” the group said. The network “believes this action is a step in the right direction because it honors the directive in the Discipline that gives the duty of determining the gifts and graces of clergy to annual conferences,” said Jamie Stroud of Philadelphia, national coordinator.

The decision outlines the review process for annual conferences and rules out summary action without due process, she said. “This process should offer a measure of protection to gay and lesbian clergy.”

The Parents Reconciling Network and the Chicago-based Reconciling Ministries Network took aim at the United Methodist Church’s advertising campaign and its theme of “Open hearts. Open minds. Open doors. The people of the United Methodist Church.”

“The Judicial Council ruling sounds more like closed minds and closed closets,” said Marilyn Alexander, Reconciling Ministries Network executive director. Heterosexual and “closeted” gay and lesbian clergy members will not have their sexual behavior scrutinized, but openly gay or lesbian clergy members will be held to different standards, the group said. Reconciling Ministries advocates full inclusion of gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transgender people in the church.

United Methodists of Color for a Fully Inclusive Church also was critical, comparing the decision to the church’s “earlier failures to grapple with issues of social justice and civil rights.”


Ministry board adopts Hispanic theological education plan

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (UMNS) - The denomination’s Division of Ordained Ministry has adopted a national strategic plan to increase the number of seminary-trained pastors in the Hispanic community.

As a beginning, the board will work to make seminaries more inviting to Hispanic students by: setting aside funds for creative initiatives at United Methodistrelated seminaries; continuing to support a bi-annual Latino/Hispanic United Methodist Seminarian Retreat; awarding grants to United Methodist seminaries to develop training opportunities and resources for ministry with Hispanic students; and supporting the Hispanic Summer program sponsored by 40 seminaries and universities, including nine of the 13 United Methodist seminaries.

More than 40 million Hispanics live in the United States, and they represent the fastestgrowing segment of the population, according to the plan. In 2000, the church had 59 Hispanic seminarians, 42 of them enrolled in one of the 13 United Methodist-related seminaries. Only two United Methodist Hispanics with doctoral degrees are teaching in those seminaries or other theological schools approved by the denomination’s University Senate, which determines whether schools meet the criteria for affiliating with the church. None of the schools has United Methodist Hispanic women with doctoral degrees in any field of religion.

“It is imperative that the United Methodist Church develop a strong cadre of leaders who can help Latino/a/Hispanic and other congregations face the difficult challenges, and who will also help the church at large realize the joy and promise of the Latino/a/Hispanic presence among us,” said the Rev. Justo Gonzáles of Atlanta, the primary author of “Called Into Joy! An Initiative on Latino/a/Hispanic Theological Education.”

For more information on the Hispanic plan for theological education, contact the Section of Deacons and Diaconal Ministries at sddm@gbhem.org or (615) 340-7375, or visit www.gbhem.org online.


British Methodists call for gambling restrictions
By the Methodist Church Media Office

The British Methodist Church is calling for strong safeguards to protect young people from the dangers of gambling.

In response to recommendations that the gaming industry be deregulated, the Methodist Church said it welcomes plans to increase the age limit on certain forms of gambling but stresses that “18 should be the minimum age for all gambling.”

“Britain is alone in Western Europe and the (United States) in allowing under-18s to gamble,” said Rachel Lampard, Methodist Secretary for Parliamentary and Political Affairs.

“Research suggests that the earlier a young person starts gambling, the more likely they are to develop problems as young adults.”

A statement sent to the British government calls for raising the age restriction for slot machines to 18 years. The minimum age for playing the National Lottery should be set to 18 also, according to the church.

Lampard advocates taking social responsibility beyond the level of companies providing money to care for problem gamblers. She suggests developing business practices that help to prevent addictive behavior as well as fund research, through a voluntary or statutory levy.

Positive measures might include “training for staff, corporate policies or testing that new games do not appeal disproportionately to vulnerable people.”

The United Methodist Church officially considers gambling “a menace to society, deadly to the best interests of moral, social, economic and spiritual life, and destructive of good government.”

The denomination and its annual conferences, including Holston, have actively opposed gambling initiatives in the United States.


Bishops: Church ratifies constitutional amendments

LAKE JUNALUSKA, N.C. (UMNS) - All 11 amendments to the constitution of the United Methodist Church, approved by the 2000 General Conference, have been ratified by the required aggregate two-thirds vote of the 177 annual (regional) conferences in the United States, Europe, Africa and the Philippines.

The church’s Council of Bishops made the announcement Nov. 8, during their weeklong meeting at Lake Junaluska.

Only Amendment IV relating to baptism and church membership caused much debate across the church prior to the voting by regional units this year.

The amendment makes it clear that upon baptism all individuals are considered “baptized members” of the church. Once vows are taken declaring their Christian faith, they become “professing members.” Heretofore, baptized infants have been considered “preparatory members” until they are old enough to profess their own faith. This is usually done at the age of 11 or 12 in a service of confirmation.

The amendment brings the denomination’s baptism ritual, “By Water and the Spirit,” and the Book of Discipline into agreement regarding membership.

Full text of “News Briefs” may be viewed at http://umns.umc.org/.

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