On August 7th and 8th, a gathering of scholars who affirm LGBTQ+ inclusion in The United Methodist Church will present a series of resources, papers, arguments, and responses to help local churches, clergy, and regions become better informed on the state of the UMC and of academic positions regarding the topic of LGBTQ+ inclusion.
I’m a church dork and part of my work is translating academic arguments into digestible blog posts and commentaries. So I’m thankful for a conference like this that is live-streamed and accessible to everyone. The website and description for this conference is here, but below is an easier-to-read schedule of events.
Wednesday, August 7, 2019
9:00am Central Time – click here to find the streaming link
Implications and Consequences of the Process and Results of the Delegate Counts for the 2020 General Conference
- This presentation will explore the implications of US general conference delegate elections following the Special Session of the General Conference for a complex range of consequences that include but extend far beyond simply whether the traditionalist plan can be overturned.
- Anne Burkholder – Associate Dean of Methodist Studies / Candler School of Theology, Emory University / Elder, Florida Annual Conference
Reading the Bible on Slavery and Homosexuality
- There are similar patterns in the Christian use of scripture in the run up to the Civil War and in the current clash over sexuality; and there are good reasons to move beyond simple readings of scripture in each case.
- Kevin M. Carnahan / Professor of Philosophy and Religion / Central Methodist University / Layperson, Missouri Annual Conference
9:30am Central Time – click here to find the streaming link
No Male and Female
- This presentation draws on the Wesley Quadrilateral to reflect on Galatians 3:26-28 in light of the United Methodist Church’s conflict concerning the inclusion of LGBTQIA+ persons.
- Robert Allan Hill / Dean of Marsh Chapel, Professor of New Testament and Pastoral Theology / Boston University / Elder, Upper New York Annual Conference
Power, Resistance, and Organizational Politics: The Need to Disrupt the Orthodoxy of the Progressive Clerical Voice to Cultivate Sustainable Transformative Innovation
- This presentation explores how traditional frames of power in UMC clerical structure undermine social justice progress.
- Maria A. Dixon Hall / Senior Advisor to the Provost, Cultural Intelligence Initiatives, Southern Methodist University / Deacon, North Texas Annual Conference
10:15am Central Time – click here to find the streaming link
Changing Minds by Changing Ethical Frameworks: Thinking Teleologically About Sex
- Most Christians are taught to view the Bible as a sexual rulebook, but I argue that reorienting our ethical framework from a rule-based to a goal-oriented system can move us beyond the “clobber passages,” creating LGBTQIA+-inclusive Christian communities.
- Jodie L. Lyon / Senior Lecturer in Religion, University of Georgia / Layperson, North Georgia Annual Conference
Methodaltry
- This presentation contextualizes concerns about the United Methodist Church splitting over the just inclusion of LGBTQIA+ persons within a wider theology of the unity of the universal church.
- O. Wesley Allen, Jr./ Lois Craddock Perkins Professor of Homiletics, Perkins School of Theology, Southern Methodist University / Indiana Annual Conference
10:45am Central Time – click here to find the streaming link
Am I My Sibling’s Keeper?: A Practical Guide to Preserving LGBTQIA+ Life
- This presentation will examine risk factors for the health of LGBTQIA+ youth/young adults; explain how an affirming stance increases basic health factors; and outline actions individuals and churches can take to provide sanctuary and support to queer youth and young adults as disciples of Christ.
- Sam Persons Parkes / Senior Pastor, Mary Esther UMC / Elder, Alabama-West Florida Annual Conference
Welcoming the Stranger
- We will explore the rich tradition of Christian teachings and practices on hospitality that we can draw on as we engage each other across our differences of all kinds.
- Amy Oden / Visiting Professor of Early Church History and Spirituality, Saint Paul School of Theology at Oklahoma City University / Layperson, Oklahoma Annual Conference
11:15am Central Time – click here to find the streaming link
Lessons from the Heartland after General Conference 2019
- UM laity and clergy are rightly perplexed in the wake of GC 2019, but we should not set scripture and tradition aside. The way forward is to dare to “bring forth treasures old and new” from the storehouse (Matt. 13:52).
- Michael G. Cartwright / Vice President for University Mission, University of Indianapolis / Elder, Indiana Annual Conference
Considerations of Nepantla for Latinx United Methodists
- This presentation notes the Nepantla experience for Latinx young people that inhabit the traditional religious cultures of our Hispanic congregations and manage within the diverse positioning of our academic and church communities affirming the inclusion of LGBTQIA+ communities.
- Cristian De La Rosa / Assistant Professor of Contextual Theology and Practice, Boston University / Elder, New England Annual Conference
12:45pm Central Time – click here to find the streaming link
Individual Consideration and Transformational Leadership in a Post-Way-Forward Era
- Scientific research and meta-analytic data show that leaders must defy previous leadership practices and engage the Queer Community on an individual level if they are to effectively lead and transform the United Methodist Church.
- Scott Moore / Director of Missional Excellence, Texas Annual Conference / Ph.D. Student, Our Lady of the Lake University / Elder, Texas Annual Conference
The New Morality: An Exploration of a Methodist Sexual Ethic
- In 1963, Methodist agencies embraced the “new morality” as their sexual ethic; in 1968, Good News Magazine began a campaign against this ethic; and thus, in order to understand our current division we have to look at events in the 1960s and not just those after 1972.
- Ashley Boggan Dreff / Assistant Professor of Religion, High Point University / Layperson, Arkansas Annual Conference
1:15pm Central Time – click here to find the streaming link
Teaching about Gender and Sexuality in the Bible: Reflections from a Seminary Classroom for Congregations
- This session shares lesson plans, bibliography, and pedagogical reflections and invites conversation around the question, “What pedagogy and theology inform how we might teach the Bible in diverse ministry contexts?”
- Jennifer Quigley / Assistant Professor of New Testament and Early Christian Studies, Louisville Postdoctoral Fellow, Drew University / Elder, West Ohio Annual Conference
The Rural Church in Connection after General Conference 2019
- As rural churches are often left out of the conversation or assumed monolithic in their opinion, this presentation suggests a focus on connecting rural communities with the greater church through education, economics, and holy conferencing.
- Jonathan LeMaster-Smith / Affiliate Faculty, Sioux Falls Seminary / Adjunct Faculty, Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary / Layperson, Western North Carolina Annual Conference
3:00pm Central Time – click here to find the streaming link
FOUR, THREE, TWO, ONE: Four Words, Three Rules, Two Standards, One Grace
- In five decades of an obsession with homosexuality, The United Methodist Church has neglected its theological foundations, beginning with four words, which threatened three General Rules, violated two Doctrinal Standards, and overlooked the one indivisible grace of Jesus Christ.
- William B. Lawrence / Professor Emeritus of American Church History, Perkins School of Theology, Southern Methodist University / Research Fellow, Duke Center for Studies in the Wesleyan Tradition / Elder, North Texas Annual Conference
Not Giving Up on the Authority of Scripture
- Too often issues are framed by traditionalists to cast progressives as not recognizing the authority of scripture; this presentation will argue for a progressive approach to the authority of scripture in relation to LGBTQIA+ issues.
- Sarah Heaner Lancaster / Professor in the Werner Chair of Theology, Methodist Theological School of Ohio / Elder, North Texas Annual Conference
3:30pm Central Time – click here to find the streaming link
Faithful to Our Holy God: Leviticus, Holiness, and Violating Scripture’s Commands
- This presentation discusses how to address the explicit commands against gay sex in Leviticus 18:22 and 20:13 as we also ground our support of our LGBTQIA+ members and pursuit of Wesleyan holiness on the foundation of the Old Testament and Christian Scripture.
- Robert Foster / Lecturer in Religion and New Testament, University of Georgia / Layperson, North Georgia
United Methodism at the End of White Christian America
- Striving to be a “worldwide” church presents systemic challenges to UMC polity and unity revealed through demographic shifts that frame the battle over LGBTQIA+ rights within a larger narrative of increased internationalization in the UMC.
- Darryl W. Stephens / Director, United Methodist Studies, Lancaster Theological Seminary / Deacon, Eastern Pennsylvania Annual Conference
4:15pm Central Time – click here to find the streaming link
Preaching to a Split Church: Homiletical Strategies that Promote Inclusion in a Polarized Context
- This presentation will explore the question: What strategic homiletical choices guide a preacher who favors full inclusion, but who preaches in the context of a split congregation? This includes choices of texts and themes, imagery and story, and sermonic form for specific sermons, as well as delivery style.
- Alyce M. McKenzie / Le Van Professor of Preaching and Worship; Director, The Perkins Center for Preaching Excellence, Perkins School of Theology, Southern Methodist University / Elder, North Texas Annual Conference
All the Wrong People
- Mainline churches often talk about inclusion and yet become more homogenous. What if, instead, we talk about Jesus, and see what sort of unexpected people Jesus draws to himself?
- Jason Byassee / Butler Professor of Homiletics & Biblical Hermeneutics, Vancouver School of Theology / Western North Carolina Annual Conference
4:45pm Central Time – click here to find the streaming link
Defining Moments: Resistance to Changing Social Structures
- Using the theory of Pierre Bourdieu and looking also at race and gender, this presentation links resistance to LGBTQ inclusion to the underlying sense of threat that traditionalists experience when social structures that define us undergo significant change.
- Jane Ellen Nickell / Chaplain and Religious Studies Faculty Member, Allegheny College / West Virginia Annual Conference
Preaching Outside the Lines for LGBTQ+ Equality
- Clergy are trained and conditioned in the UMC to preach starting with the text and running through the Quadrilateral; but when preaching for LGBTQ+ equality, a theology of the reign of God is a better driver of the sermon process.
- Alex Tracy / Elder, South Georgia Annual Conference
Thursday, August 8, 2019
8:30am Central Time – click here to find the streaming link
Romans 1:26-31
- This presentation examines the function of Romans 1:26-31 in the larger context of Romans, different understandings and types of same-sex sexual activity and relationships in the Greco-Roman world, and the exegetical and hermeneutical difficulties posed by the passage.
- Mark A. Chancey / Professor of Religious Studies, Southern Methodist University / Layperson, North Texas Annual Conference
Resisting Sacred Violence through Contemplative Practice and Positive Mimesis
- The presentation asks the question: What psycho-spiritual practices (of body, mind, and spirit) might facilitate resistance against the deployment of sacred violence against the LGBTQ+ community?
- Rolf Nolasco / Professor of Pastoral Theology, Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary / Layperson, Northern Illinois Annual Conference
9:00am Central Time – click here to find the streaming link
Christian Marriage is a School of Holiness: A Scriptural and Theological Case for Same-Sex Marriage
- A succinct statement of the theological case in favor of same-sex marriage and a reply to some common objections.
- Kendall Soulen / Professor of Systematic Theology, Candler School of Theology, Emory University / Elder, Virginia Annual Conference
Bend it Like Buttigieg: Reclaiming United Methodist “Values”
- Reclaiming rather than reinventing UM values moving forward, as witnesses, scholars, and DCAs reveal that it was fear-mongering, not biblical/Wesleyan family values, that motivated the GC1972 homophobic response to the General Rules-rooted, carefully prepared Social Principles as originally proposed.
- Natalya Cherry / Assistant Professor in Methodist Studies and Theology, Brite Divinity School / Elder, Susquehanna Annual Conference
10:45am Central Time – click here to find the streaming link
The Iron Curtain is Back: UMC in Europe in the Aftermath of General Conference 2019
- An oversight over the divided situation and possible ways to proceed in Europe concerning human sexuality, where the division follows the same line as the old iron curtain, and where cultural differences are huge.
- Hilde Marie Movafagh / Rector, The United Methodist Theological Seminary, Oslo, Norway; The Norwegian School of Theology, Religion and Society, Oslo, Norway / Elder, Norway Annual Conference
What Do We Say When Nobody Is Listening?
- The church must respond to changes in media, culture, and politics that have blunted the Christian message and sharpened the divisions in society.
- Robin W. Lovin / University Professor of Ethics Emeritus, Southern Methodist University / Elder, North Texas Annual Conference
11:15am Central Time – click here to find the streaming link
My Grandmothers’ (United) Methodist Church
- Before 1972 the United Methodist Church had no explicit statements or restrictions concerning homosexuality. This presentation proposes that when a denomination makes no statements or condemnations on an issue, local congregations and annual conferences are free to make their own decisions about issues like marriages or ordinations of gay and lesbian people.
- Ted A. Campbell / Professor of Church History, Perkins School of Theology, Southern Methodist University / Elder, Texas Annual Conference
Holy Train Wreck: Divine Purpose in Inconsistent Scripture
- Using contradictions, translation issues, and poor grammar examples from the Bible, Michelle Morris will make the case that the mess in the Bible reveals God’s divine purpose of driving us to need God and to need each other.
- Michelle Morris / Lead Equipper, Center for Vitality, Arkansas Annual Conference / Elder, Arkansas Annual Conference
12:45pm Central Time – click here to find the streaming link
More Than Meets the Eye: Why How We Read the Bible Deserves More Attention
- This presentation will explain how the Bible itself can and should be read inclusively, and that such readings are consistent with the biblical witness and the loving nature of God.
- Cheryl Anderson / Professor of Old Testament, Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary / Elder, Baltimore-Washington Annual Conference
Methodism’s History of Rejection of General Conference Actions
- This presentation identifies historical examples having nothing to do with homosexuality where clergy, laity, bishops, and annual conferences disobeyed General Conference legislation, showing that “rejection through actions” is a well-established response to divisive legislation in American Methodism.
- Lovett Weems / Distinguished Professor Church Leadership Emeritus, Wesley Theological Seminary / Missouria Annual Conference
1:15pm Central Time – click here to find the streaming link
What is Love? Augustine, the Church, and a New Approach to Sexual Ethics
- Augustine (354-430AD) is often blamed as the source of everything bad in Christianity, but in this presentation, we will explore how he might help us think about love in ways that enrich the progressive movement for justice and inclusion.
- Adam Ployd / Assistant Professor of Church History and Historical Theology, Eden Theological Seminary / Deacon, West Virginia Annual Conference
Breaking the Baptismal Covenant
- What are the consequences when the community of faith refuses to marry and ordain the children (or adults) they promised to nurture in the faith as part of the baptismal covenant?
- Michelle Whitlock / PhD Candidate, Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary / Elder, Susquehanna Annual Conference
Your Turn
The above schedule may change – check their website the morning of for any corrections. All text from above is from the organizers–tweet at them for corrections.
Thoughts?
Thanks for reading, commenting, and sharing on social media.
Will these presentations be commuted to paper or electronic text for those of us who read faster than the presenter can speak, and who like to make notes, etc.?
Quite an impressive gathering. Problem is I do not see one session that addresses this question posed by Tom Lambrecht:
“It takes quite a lot of nerve to call all the church fathers and mothers, teachers and theologians for the past 3,000 years sinful and causing harm because they adhered to the scriptural teaching that sex outside of heterosexual marriage is contrary to God’s will. On what basis would [progressives] have us adopt their understanding of the Missio Dei (mission of God in the world), as opposed to the one put forward by countless generations of Christian teachers and leaders? “
In 1955, the question might have been written:
“It takes quite a lot of nerve to call all the church fathers and mothers, teachers and theologians for the past 3,000 years sinful and causing harm because they adhered to the scriptural teaching that the ordination of women is contrary to God’s will. On what basis would [progressives] have us adopt their understanding of the Missio Dei (mission of God in the world), as opposed to the one put forward by countless generations of Christian teachers and leaders? “
Being a Methodist means respecting Tradition but also using Reason and Experience to understand the Scriptures.
Being a Methodist means engaging in Holy Conferencing, sincerely and in good faith.
Both of these practices are consistent with the example of our Lord, who taught his followers by explaining in ways that appealed to their Reason and Experience, and of the Church, which throughout its history has used councils and conferences and all sorts of meetings to discuss and debate in order to discern and illuminate the Will of God.
This conference seems perfectly in accord with Church practices and our Wesleyan heritage. Perhaps it’s Rev. Lambrecht who is out of step.
I don’t recognize any of the speakers’ names. Are any queer people speaking? Straight people talking about queer people to other straight people gives us a skewed perspective. I’d rather hear directly from members of UM Forward or the Queer Clergy Caucus about these issues. I’m sure there are some queer theology scholars. Rev. Jay Williams comes to mind.
After reading these synopses, I think the time watching this podcast would be better spent volunteering at a charity that really helps the needy. Either that or watching reruns of “My Mother the Car”.
No one is stopping you, Dave.