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General Church
Delegates attend opening worship at the 2019 United Methodist General Conference in St. Louis in February. Given escalating conflict in the denomination over LGBTQ inclusion, two bishops are pushing a plan to create two or three self-governing church groups, with The United Methodist Church remaining as an umbrella organization. File photo by Kathleen Barry, UM News.

2 bishops offer plan for denomination’s future
To deal with schism-threatening conflict over homosexuality, Bishops Bard and Jones favor making The United Methodist Church an umbrella for self-governing church groups.
General Church
The Rev. Nyenda Okoko (center), a district superintendent, leads a procession of church members as they welcome visitors to Oye United Methodist Church, south of Kindu, Congo, in October 2015. Providing exact membership numbers is difficult in a denomination that spans multiple countries, languages and cultural understandings of church membership. File photo by Mike DuBose, UM News.

How accurate are church membership numbers?
Denominational membership data comes with uncertainty. There are very good reasons why.
Annual Conferences
Clergy and lay members from the East Ohio Conference use their voting cards during the 2019 annual conference held at Lakeside Chautauqua. They use cards to cast votes for motions, resolutions and petitions but secret ballot for delegate elections. The conference elected a mix of delegates who support and oppose the Traditional Plan. Photo by Brett Hetherington, East Ohio Conference Communications.

US elections see shift in GC2020 delegates
U.S. annual conferences elected more delegates opposed to the Traditional Plan, but traditionalists say they still have the majority.
General Conference
Delegates Jorge Lockward and the Rev. Beth Ann Cook embrace during the closing moments of the 2019 United Methodist General Conference in St. Louis. The two had previously spoken on opposite sides in a debate over possible church exit plans. U.S. conferences are calculating how much a church must pay if it leaves under legislation General Conference approved. File photo by Mike DuBose, UM News.

Exiting congregations face hefty price tag
U.S. conferences are calculating how much a church must pay if it leaves under legislation approved by General Conference 2019. The big cost will be pensions.

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