Central Conference Funding The General Council on Finance and Administration shall maintain the goal of funding central conference operations and ministry through the 2021-24 quadrennium, funded by all denominations forming under these transitional provisions. The plan, however can be harmonized with other plans that allow for immediate exit (Traditional Plan, The Indy Plan, Bard-Jones, UMC-Next Plan, etc). Or, more bluntly, rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic. Missionary Training Centers ( MTC) are centers devoted to training missionaries for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). Boards of ordained ministry shall promptly forward the paperwork and files of candidates to the proper body in the new denomination when requested in writing by the candidate. PDF The Book of Discipline - Ctcumc Holy Communion: The Sacrament of the Lord's Supper 8100-8110 179 You need to have been confirmed to receive communion in both the Methodist and Anglican churches. There shall be a Fellowship of Bishops of The United Methodist Communion as herein described. When the Indy negotiations recently ended, I sat down and began typing. Fasting usually means eating no food for a period of time. PDF THE DISCIPLINE 2016 - Wesleyan Church 6. Annual conferences, bishops, clergy and congregations may send representatives to a convening conferences based on the parameters for representation developed by the drafting team. Article III. These statements shall be shared through United Methodist Communications with the opportunity for public endorsement. 10. The following transitional provisions shall be in effect upon ratification of this constitution and shall govern the processes associated with The United Methodist Church becoming The United Methodist Communion of Churches. Article V.United Methodist Communications. Doctrinal Standards The United Methodist Articles of Religion and the Confession of Faith shall be the doctrinal standards for The United Methodist Communion. It includes detailed transitional provisions and is modeled somewhat on the Anglican Communion. Thanks for reading and commenting. With respect, I think what you purpose is fundamentally unworkable for these reasons: 1. So what . The Governing Council shall exercise the following powers and responsibilities: 1. This vote shall be by simple majority vote of a charge or church conference, or its practical equivalent. 37. Division. (d) To model and promote faithful financial stewardship and to encourage giving as a spiritual discipline by teaching the biblical principles of giving. Organization. Notice shall be provided to the General Council on Finance and Administration or the Governing Council by the receiving denominational body. Nonetheless, thank you for your time and energy in this process. Annual conferences shall continue to be responsible for pension liabilities under the Clergy Retirement Security Program, which is reflected in 1504.1 ofThe Book of Discipline of The United Methodist Church, as plan sponsors. After GC2019 who wants to continue meeting? (b) To encourage reaffirmation of the baptismal covenant and renewal of baptismal vows at different stages of life. The $1.3 billion in assets we now have wont be coming back. The basis for this decision shall be the vision statements provided by the various drafting teams. To amendThe Book of Discipline of The United Methodist Church(2020), making such changes as necessary to complete the orderly sorting of the congregations, clergy, bishops, and conferences of The United Methodist Church into autonomous denominational bodies, and to provide interim governance to the general agencies of the United Methodist Church. He is the Directing Pastor of Geneseo First United Methodist Church which has been honored both by the Illinois Great Rivers Conference and Discipleship Ministries for its high number of new professions of faith. GC2020 Legislation: The United Methodist Communion of Churches Chris Ritter is the author of "Seven Things John Wesley Expected Us to Do for Kids" (Abingdon Press, 2016). Doctrinal Standards The United Methodist Articles of Religion and the Confession of Faith shall be the doctrinal standards for The United Methodist Communion. This service is found in UMH 12-15 and is designed for those wishing a brief text beginning with the Invitation to the Lord's table. A few months ago a member of the Judicial Council called me to say the only solution for United Methodism is a new constitution. There shall be United Methodist Board of Pensions and Health Benefits (Wespath), that is successor to the General Board of Pensions and Health Benefits of The United Methodist Church. 5. 7. Article V.Local Churches Local churches in the U.S. that disagree with their annual conferences alignment may by simple majority vote of those professing members present and voting at a regular or called charge or church conference choose to align with a denomination not selected by their annual conference or join with 50 or more other local churches in forming another denomination. [1] Jurisdictional Conferences in the U.S.; and. Amendments to the Constitution shall be made upon a two-thirds majority of the Governing Council present and voting and two-thirds affirmative vote of the aggregate number of members of the several member churches. The editors, in the exercise of their . When a local church considers more than two options, with none receiving the required majority vote, the church shall hold a run-off vote of the two options receiving the most votes, so that one of them receives a majority. When a central conference considers more than two options, with none receiving the required majority vote, the central conference shall hold a run-off vote of the two options receiving the most votes, so that one of them receives a majority. A forum for discerning God's future for The United Methodist Church, hosted by St. Stephen UMC, Mesquite, TX. The central conference shall consider this decision upon motion from the floor or may do so through its normal processes. that the Anglican Communion is a poor model for fashioning a vibrant, global Methodism is that it first permits, then entrenches, national tribalism based on the political boundaries of the modern nation-state. (1) The individual churches of The Communion will handle the ministry plans and structures for their denomination, hopefully focusing on the local church. 4. The General Council on Finance and Administration, Special Authorities Upon certification of the ratification of this constitution, The General Council on Finance and Administration, as constituted by the 2020 General Conference of The United Methodist Church, shall have the following authorities and responsibilities: 1. Those failing to achieve this goal in the timeframe allowed by the Governing Council shall negotiate with the Governing Council for independent status or dissolution. 5. Formation of the Governing Council.The Governing Council of The United Methodist Communion may convene when member churches representing three-fourths of the 2020 membership of The United Methodist Church shall have elected their representatives to the Governing Council. 39. Representation. (4) To participate in community, ecumenical and interreligious concerns and to encourage the people to become so involved and to pray and labor for the unity of the Christian community. To amend the budget of The United Methodist Church. Article I. If the clergy persons current local church appointment aligns with the same denomination as the clergy person, it is recommended that stability of that appointment be maintained where possible. Would I be interested in writing one? A delegate to the 2016 & 2019 General Conferences of the UMC, he is active in church vitality efforts and sits on the Global Council of the Wesleyan Covenant Association. When a clergy person serves an appointment outside his or her chosen denomination, the clergy person shall be required to abide by and satisfy the standards and requirements of the denomination in which he or she is appointed to serve. As one said the denomination males me feel dirty. The denomination shall begin on the date established by the convening conference. Comprised of equal numbers of clergy and lay members, the Governing Council includes representation from the various autonomous member churches of the Communion and manages what are now the general agencies of the UMC. I am just one of twelve million United Methodists. It may not establish any new standards or rules of doctrine contrary to our established doctrinal standards. The Governing Council shall become the successor organization to the General Conference and General Council on Finance and Administration of The United Methodist Church. The connectional system is the strength of The UMC. The Anglican Communion. United Methodist Publishing House. Article I. Description The United Methodist Communion of Churches is a voluntary association of autonomous denominations in United Methodist and related traditions that . To recognize, receive, suspend or expel member churches of the United Methodist Communion by two-thirds vote. To assess member churches a minimum share of the financial support necessary for the work of the Governing Council, pension support for retired bishops of The United Methodist Church, Archives & History, and United Methodist Communications.This assessment may be based partially or entirely upon measures of financial capacity. The parts of the service preceding the text in UMH are guided by a bulletin or by announcement. 18. In addition, all denominations are encouraged to continue supporting Advance Specials and other mission projects in the central conferences. PDF FAQs about Holy Communion in the United Methodist Church - Clinton First Let us give thanks to the Lord our God. When a central conference considers more than two options, with none receiving the required majority vote, the central conference shall hold a run-off vote of the two options receiving the most votes, so that one of them receives a majority. A 60-100 member Governing Council replaces the UMC General Conference and the General Council on Finance and Administration (GCFA). To secure the rights and privileges of membership in all agencies, programs, and institutions of The United Methodist Communion regardless of race, gender, or nationality. Article XI. Used by permission. United Methodist Communications is an agency of The United Methodist Church, 2023 Article I. General Council on Finance and Administration shall administer the funds received and distribute them pro-rata or in such other manner as has been the historical pattern. Interesting, detailed post, Chris. PDF The Transitional Book of Doctrines and Discipline the Global Methodist To ensure that the proceeds from the Publishing House be used in support of pensions of clergy of the former The United Methodist Church who serve in conferences in the developing world. 5. Article II. Interim Governance Any annual conference or local church taking a vote on alignment shall specify as part of that action the date on which it will become effective. What will be the umc response when multiple annual conferences declare independence. 28. 2. The Swedish UMC united with other churches is no longer part of the UMC. (a) To ensure faithful transmission of the Christian faith. Article IV. To establish, authorize, sponsor, or otherwise endorse such commissions, networks or similar bodies as shall advance the councils mission. Clergy who wish to align with a denomination other than that chosen by their annual conference shall notify their bishop and the leadership of the denomination with which they desire to align. When a local church considers more than two options, with none receiving the required majority vote, the church shall hold a run-off vote of the two options receiving the most votes, so that one of them receives a majority. Assets from dissolved general agencies shall be redirected to other agencies or returned to the member churches in an amount proportional to that given over the previous ten years. Board of Global Ministries. The board members shall be elected in accordance with its own policies from among the member churches of The United Methodist Communion of Churches. Article VI. Annual conferences, bishops, clergy and congregations may send representatives to a convening conferences based on the parameters for representation developed by the drafting team. General. 6. These agencies shall develop covenant agreements with the member churches of the communion for financial support and services. We lift them to you, Lord. Article IV. United Methodist missionaries aligning with one of the member churches of The United Methodist Communion may seek cooperative relationships beyond that member body. (e) To lead the congregation in the fulfillment of its mission through full and faithful payment of all apportioned ministerial support, administrative, and benevolent funds. 4. Article XII. The Presidential term shall be four years with a maximum of two terms. In two of these three cases, these have been the official position of The United Methodist Church at least since we adopted This Holy Mystery (2004). The central conference may also call a special session upon motion from the floor. To be a badge of the Christian profession. These members shall not contribute to the 100-member maximum for the council. If you were just baptised into the Methodists and never confirmed, then you'd need to get that sorted. 28. Any denomination forming under these transitional provisions may freely editThe Book of Discipline of The United Methodist Churchas a basis for its own polity. Discipleship Ministries | A SERVICE OF WORD AND TABLE I AND 2. Conferences. Those member churches with non-episcopal forms of government may select supervising clergy to represent them in the fellowship. It would appeal most to the methods and procedures of clerical aficionados and semi-professional laypersons who are, IMHO, inclined to think that the cutting edge of evangelistic church-growth occurs around conference tables where committees convene. The name of the communion may be translated freely into languages other than English. In its Position Statement on women in the ministry, the Wesleyan Church cites numerous Scripture verses . GCFA is empowered to amend the UMCBook of Disciplinefollowing the ratification of the new constitution until everyone finds a place in a member church and the Governing Council is formed. Individual provisions can be harpooned by anyone, and justifiably so. 10. Representation. In short, its new wine into old wineskins. The Governing Council shall meet annually at such time and place determined by its duly authorized committees. The Rev. 33. 4. Three Simple Rules DO NO HARM James 1:19-27, 3:3-10 INTRO: In the 1700s in England, there were two very famous preachers who lived and worked at the same time A. Pension Matters The General Board of Pension and Health Benefits will reassign pension liabilities related to realigning local churches, and clergy who have served in them, pursuant administrative processes by which the General Board of Pension and Health Benefits is able to reassign liabilities and assets based on local church and clergy transfers among continuing plan sponsors. As you gather your faith community for Holy Communion, discuss our theology of the Eucharist and how it is a means of grace that binds us to Christ and one another. Annual Conferences Annual conferences may by simple majority vote of those members present and voting at a regular or called session choose to form or align with a denomination formed under these transitional provisions. Each drafting team shall develop 1000-word vision statements signed by their members. The annual conferences of a central conference shall align by default with the denomination body chosen by their central conference. #2 GoodbyeDave, May 14, 2015. 41. If the annual conference does not align with a denomination by a deadline established by the General Council on Finance and Administration, it shall be considered an autonomous denominational body by The United Methodist Communion of Churches, unless the conference is part of a central conference who selected or formed a denomination under the provisions of 31. Contact him by email or at 615-312-3733. Article I. You display a deep love and respect for the UMC, and your thoughts are worthy of wide consideration. Use and teach the United Methodist ritual found in "A Service of Word and Table I" found on pages 6-11 of The United Methodist Hymnal . Thank you for this huge and undeniably difficult task. The Anglicans have a communion and it is not working out to well for them. There is room for expanding and focusing s every good Methodist effort should provide. The house is on fire. (e) To select and train deacons and lay members to serve the consecrated communion elements. Special sessions may be called at the discretion of its officers. Meetings The fellowship shall meet once every four years and as called into special session by the conveners. 45. Article V.Restrictions. Article VI. 23. Local congregations may reaffiliate with another denominational body formed under these transitional provisions at least through December 31, 2028. It would be easy for any group that wanted to get out. 5. The board may also select other members for the purpose of expertise, provided that these board members represent no more than ten percent of the total board membership. General Conference 2020 in Minneapolis could be something of a constitutional convention equipping the heirs of the United Methodist Church to live together as a commonwealth of autonomous churches and share the fruits of our forbears. Composition The Governing Council shall be composed of not less than 60 nor more than 100 members, selected from among the member churches in equal numbers of lay and clergy members. Howeveryou knew there would be a however from somewhere, so it might as well be meI wonder, is this solution too late? The annual conference shall, however, have right to vote by simple majority to align with a different denominational body or to become a denominational body. Responsibilities and Duties of Elders and Local Pastors. Local churches of the central conferences shall have the right to align with a separate denominational body than their annual conference under these transitional provisions. Practicing widely divergent visions of faith within the same institution is causing conflict that is killing us. Service as active bishops in each of the new denominations shall depend upon the provisions adopted by that denomination. We don't make this journey alone but surrounded by God in all the ways we experience that loving presence. 25. Article IV. It's not even all that new. My concern with this proposal is that it puts structure and process into the constitution. The annual conference shall consider this decision upon motion from the floor or may do so through its normal processes. Holy Communion is a gift of God thru the grace of Jesus Christ and the work of the Holy Spirit. To facilitate the cooperative work of the member churches of the United MethodistCommunion. The criticism that is sure to come is that we dont have time to ratify a new constitution and later go through the whole process of sorting. 11. Therefore, The United Methodist Church adopts and amends the following Constitution to become The United Methodist Communion of Churches as herein described. 3. 13. A high priority is given to missions and continuation of support to the developing world. Requested URL: web.colby.edu/coronaguidance/2020/03/24/umc-guidance-communion/, User-Agent: Mozilla/5.0 (Windows NT 10.0; Win64; x64; rv:102.0) Gecko/20100101 Firefox/102.0. The amendedBook of Disciplineshall be published electronically and shall be in force for all those congregations and annual conferences not yet aligned with a new denominational body. This legislation reconstitutes the United Methodist Church as The United Methodist Communion of Churches. These central conference apportionments shall be listed separately, so that each local church may determine how much of its apportionment is going to this central conference apportionment. Article VII. Worship is a sacred time when the people are led by the Holy . He lives with his wife of 31 years, Becky, and the couple are the parents of four young adults. To assess member churches a minimum share of the financial support necessary for the work of the Governing Council, pension support for retired bishops of The United Methodist Church, Archives & History, and United Methodist Communications.This assessment may be based partially or entirely upon measures of financial capacity. 7. What follows is a new constitution that transforms the United Methodist Church into The United Methodist Communion of Churches. Members of the Governing Council shall be selected in a fair and open process by the member churches, who may elect lay and clergy reserves as deemed appropriate. The United Methodist View of Communion GC2020 Legislation: The United Methodist Communion of Churches. Article VI. Therefore, The United Methodist Church adopts and amends the following Constitution to become The United Methodist Communion of Churches as herein described. Article IV. No member shall be seated without a 2/3 consent of the Council. I think for the most part your draft constitution is a fair representation of where Methodist need to go. Article IV. My pleasure, Chris. Central conferences may choose a different alignment until at least December 31, 2028, under these transitional provisions. Methodist Guidance for the Observance of Holy Communion 27. Article II. 30. Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in: You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. The site owner may have set restrictions that prevent you from accessing the site. The movement spread to America by the emigration of Methodists, who, beginning in 1766, began to organize the Methodist "classes" and "societies" in the colonies. 4. The Governing Council may not speak for the member churches except by agreement. Local churches would be far better off if they didnt pay apportionments, but rather concentrated on reaching out to their communities. In these cases a fair reallocation of agency assets shall be approved by the Governing Council. Each drafting team shall also develop a date, location, and basis for representation for a convening conference for the new denomination. 19. It may not establish any new standards or rules of doctrine contrary to our established doctrinal standards. In no case shall persons drawing a salary from an agency of the United Methodist Communion exercise voting privileges on the council. Would we let them go or waste millions of Jesuss money on lawsuits. If the clergy persons current local church appointment does not align with the same denomination as the clergy person, the clergy persons current bishop and the designated leadership of the denominations involved shall consult regarding the status of that appointment. Candidates for Ministry It is recommended that candidates who are in process toward licensing, commissioning, or ordination be grandfathered into that point in the process in whichever denomination they want to align with, so that they would not have to repeat requirements for licensing or ordination. (1) To embody the teachings of Jesus in servant ministries and servant leadership. Article XII. The days of building big centralized denominations is over. We believe that the Holy Spirit is present in a unique way at the communion table, and are praying for this time to be holy for all who participate. 42. The restrictions of the trust clause ( 2501 ofThe Book of Discipline of The United Methodist Church) shall carry forth to each new denominational body which may alter or amend it as deemed consistent with their polity. Article I. DIVISION FIVE THE FELLOWSHIP OF BISHOPS. (LogOut/ The General Board of Pensions and Health Benefits shall calculate and manage these pension obligations. This date is not to exceed December 31, 2024. The General Council on Finance and Administration shall provide for continuation of episcopal salaries and support to those member churches in developing nations dependent upon the Episcopal Fund of The United Methodist Church. The map is inaccurate the Central Conference of Central and Southern Europe includes France, Belgium and Tunisia. All Rights Reserved, The Book of Discipline of The United Methodist Church -- 2016. While ecumenical relationships shall be determined by the member churches, the Governing Council shall work to foster Christian unity and shall work closely with The World Methodist Council for greater alignment among Methodists in mission, witness and evangelism. The church also exists to multiply the transforming presence of Christ in all the world. Organization of denominational bodiesConvening conferences for new denominational bodies may be assembled based on the organizational work of drafting teams. The annual conference shall, however, have right to vote by simple majority to align with a different denominational body or to become a denominational body. Publisher of The United Methodist Church and the Committee on Correlation and Editorial Revision shall be charged with edit-ing the Book of Discipline. 3. 18. 43. Name: The Anglican Communion is the third-largest international Christian family of churches, with congregations in more than 165 countries.