Several years ago, a friend was extolling the virtues of a particular social issue on which he felt he needed to take a stand in his daily life. He felt like he had to take this stand because he was a Christian. He said, “You’re a minister . . . so I know you agree with me on this.” In fact, I did not agree with his stand and did not share his conclusion. My faith in God, connection to Christ, and reading of holy scripture led me to a different conclusion. He was flabbergasted. He could not imagine that a Christian could end up thinking differently. From the way the rest of the conversation went, I think he felt like I was a flawed Christian.
My friend presented me with a ‘false dilemma’. A false dilemma is an informal fallacy based on an assumption that if the first part of something is true, your options are limited to a single course of action or a single result. A false dilemma says, “If A is true, then B must be true” or “If A is true, you must respond in this particular way.” If you do not respond in the way another feels is appropriate in their original “A” statement, then you must not be “A” – it only limits your options because the other person chooses to limit your options. A great biblical example is Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness. The devil challenges Jesus’ identity with, “If you are the Son of God, then…”. Jesus refused to be limited to only one way of affirming His identity. He passes the test by refusing to be limited by the false dilemmas presented to Him.
I am a United Methodist Christian. I am an orthodox Christian – which has been defined by the history of the Church as one who aligns with the historic creeds and affirmations of the Church. I am an evangelical Christian – which means I believe a personal relationship with Jesus Christ is the central aspect of our Christian faith. I have a high view of Scripture – it guides my daily personal life and the congregations I serve and have served. As an ordained elder in the United Methodist Church since 1992, I’ve served churches in both the South Georgia and Texas Conferences of the United Methodist Church. In every United Methodist I’ve encountered, I’ve seen the same deep passion for Jesus, a desire to impact the community, and a belief that grace is at work in broken lives.
I am a United Methodist who is compatible on many issues where United Methodists have historically disagreed, such as; divorce and remarriage, women in ministry, and the many changing cultural and social positions the church takes. The United Methodist Church has always been a big-tent church. We often land in different places on some theological positions. It doesn’t mean anything goes…it simply recognizes that in 2,000 of Christianity, we have often found ourselves in different places on theological issues.
Is it easy to be a part of the United Methodist Church? Of course not. But I have always believed that if we keep Jesus as our center, around which all other loyalties orbit, we can remain a United Methodist family even when we have significant disagreements.
I am excited to be a part of the United Methodist Church and to keep serving in this denomination. We live in a great country, and we are blessed to be a part of a diverse denomination where committed and deeply connected Christ followers engage in faithful mission every day. I love our United Methodist Wesleyan theology, our heritage, our history, and our amazing connectional footprint that equips us to make a much more powerful impact in the world together. United Methodists number over 12 million with half in the United States and half in Africa, Asia, and Europe. We are a global Methodist church. The mission we undertake through Jesus Christ spans more than 130 countries engaging in evangelism through health and welfare ministries, education, and financial support. And, I love that we have many deep ecumenical relationships across the USA and the world.
In October 2021, over 700 United Methodists gathered to discuss our future together. Over 150 young clergy were there. And over 250 of the largest 400 United Methodist churches were represented. When we discussed what we value most in The United Methodist Church, five top values were clear: emphasis on God’s grace, passionate faith in Jesus Christ lived out by serving others, theology shaped by scripture interpreted with the aid of tradition, experience, and reason, a wide welcome for all God’s children, and a church for thinking people. The over 700 gathered viewed themselves as orthodox and evangelical. We were clear that the doctrinal standards of The United Methodist Church must be retained. And the large group self-identified as traditionalist and progressive.
When we discussed what needs to change in The United Methodist Church the top four responses were: reforming the general church structure to be more effective at making disciples of Jesus, inclusion of all persons into the life of the church, reworking apportionment formulas, and creating a simpler Book of Discipline to be a more effective church in our current day. Those present had differing views on controversial issues like same-sex marriage, but over 92% of those gathered believed that same-sex marriage should be ‘allowed, but not required’ of any church or clergy person. 95% of those gathered considered themselves compatible on the issues we disagree about, and 95% of those gathered said they would remain in The United Methodist Church even though there are things about which we disagree. This became even more clear when we asked, “how would your church define themselves on these issues of disagreement?” It was almost exactly a 50/50 split between ‘traditionalist’ and ‘progressive’. That is a pretty amazing image of the kingdom of God.
United Methodists live the Gospel of Jesus in our various contexts. There is a richness in this theological diversity where we hold together in essentials, show tolerance in non-essentials, but always love one another with the love of Jesus Christ. I am proud to be a Christ follower and I am proud to be a United Methodist. I have been and will continue to be the pastor of a church where we don’t agree on every issue, but we deeply love each other.
I am a United Methodist Christian. I am an orthodox, evangelical, traditionalist with a high view of scripture. I am, and I plan to continue, to be United Methodist. #BeUMC
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