United Methodist General Conference: A Preview (3-4-12)

By Ginny Finch

Tough decisions face the 1,000 delegates to this year's General Conference in Tampa, Fla. April 24-May 4. the Rev. Neal Christie briefed adult ed on some of the contentious issues facing the 2012 decisionmakers. Christie is assistant general secretary of education and leadership formation at the United Methodist General Board of Church and Society, or GBCS. Like the United Methodist Committee on Relief, the General Commission on Religion and Race, and other agencies, GBCS is funded by less than one percent of the money dropped into church collection plates.

Christie described the makeup of General Conference (38 percent of delegates come from outside the U.S.), and he reminded adult ed about the denomination’s governing  Social Principles. The 2012 delegates will wrestle with these relevant petitions:

• Removing condemnatory language on human sexuality;
• Amending language on reproductive choice;
• Introducing a new position on corruption and economic justice;
• Divesting in U.S. companies which profit from doing business in illegally held territories;
• Opposing a restructuring proposal which would significantly cut the budgets of United Methodist agencies and consolidate their boards into a single group run by 15 un-elected people and 45 advisors.

Christie thinks a recession-era restructuring of the church is unwise. “If we can’t raise the Titanic, we’ve got to figure out another way of building boats,” he said. “There are ways to do church faithfully and successfully where the numbers will go up…The  problem is not in our connective tissue.”
 
For information on the GBCS, click here.