COMMENTARY: It aint’ over ‘til it’s over…

Translate Page

It’s Saturday, and the 2012 General Conference is about to have a needed time of rest. Some of the legislative committees have completed or are very near completing their work, and their members get a chance to put their feet up, check out some of the sights in Tampa, and prepare their hearts and minds for the marathon that is to come next week. Other committees are still hard at work, and very likely will be in session until the deadline tonight.

It’s been interesting so far to watch the reports of the committees via twitter and on the net. If you are keeping up with the latest news, it’s easy to think that the General Conference has made decisions about restructuring, sexuality, guaranteed appointment, and a whole host of other topics. And yet, outside of making some decisions about the rules and making some nominations for Judicial Council and the University Senate, the General Conference as a whole hasn’t made a significant decision about anything. Yes, the committees are making recommendations, and very often these recommendations are adopted by the broader body, but there is still a long way to go before this thing is over.

All indications from the General Administration committee seem to suggest that the Call to Action vision for restructuring is quickly being superseded by the plan known as “Plan B.” Yet the supporters of the CTA/IOT plan have (and are not) giving up, and it’s very likely there will be a minority report presented to the plenary body, allowing the full body the chance to overturn the recommendation of the committee.

There have been reports that the Church and Society committee charged with looking at human sexuality is going to propose removing the language which says that homosexuality is incompatible with Christian teaching. This has happened before, only to be overturned on the floor of the conference.

What I’m trying to say is that any reports about what the General Conference is going to do have to be taken with a grain of salt at this moment. The fact is that no one really knows what the body of the General Conference is going to do until they do it. We may be able to spots signposts which give us an inkling of what’s to come, but strange things often occur in the mists that cover the plenary floor of a General Conference, and things that folks thought were “done deals” become much more tenuous.

So take a breath. There’s still a long way to go. There is another full week ahead of us.

It ain’t over yet.


Like what you're reading? Support the ministry of UM News! Your support ensures the latest denominational news, dynamic stories and informative articles will continue to connect our global community. Make a tax-deductible donation at ResourceUMC.org/GiveUMCom.

Sign up for our newsletter!

UMNEWS-SUBSCRIPTION
Poverty
Urs Schweizer.  Photo courtesy of author.

When the poor share what they have

An agricultural program initiated by the United Methodist Church in Albania to help those struggling economically led to an inspiring act of charity.
Judicial Council
The coming General Conference is scheduled to meet April 23-May 3, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. The Judicial Council, The United Methodist Church’s top court, faced questions about how to handle delegate vacancies for the postponed General Conference, and whether another General Conference should be held between 2024 and 2028. Photo courtesy of charlottesgotalot.com.

Court rules on General Conference questions

The United Methodist Church’s top court addressed questions about filling delegate vacancies and whether another General Conference needs to be scheduled after the postponed 2020 General Conference takes place in 2024.
General Church
An excerpt from a map detailing the central conferences in Europe shows the Central and Southern Europe Central Conference (in red), the Germany Central Conference (in green), and the Northern Europe and Eurasia Central Conference, which contains the Eurasia Episcopal Area and the Nordic and Baltic Episcopal Area (in orange and blue respectively). Original map courtesy of UMC.org; edited by UM News.

Eurasia and Estonia begin exit from church

Church regions in Eurasia and the Baltics, built up after the breakup of the Soviet Union, now plan to leave The United Methodist Church.