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Posted: July 4 2024 at 04:51 PM
Author: United Methodist Queer Clergy Caucus
The Northern Illinois Queer Clergy Caucus presented this statement at the June 2024 annual conference session.
Shouts of joy rang out across our beloved denomination as the 2020 Postponed General Conference lifted 52 years of discrimination and condemnation against LGBTQIA+ people, even as wails lamenting the damage already done rose up as well. There were many meanings to the tears shed after each harmful passage was removed from the Book of Discipline. Many diverse people from different contexts and lived experiences came together, working to overcome decades of division and discrimination. Even as we joyfully give thanks and praise God for the tremendous progress made, we first need to acknowledge what did and did not happen through the legislative action of the General Conference.
Yes, abusive policies and declarations were deleted.
Rev. Britt Cox (left) and Rev. Gregory Gross presented the statement from the Northern Illinois Conference session plenary floor on June 17, 2024. Photo by Marc Dean.
Yes, we overcame restrictions against LGBTQIA+ people becoming clergy and preventing all marriages from being celebrated in our denomination.
These deletions, however, have only moved the UMC to a neutral position on the value of LGBTQIA+ people and our place in the denomination.
The General Conference made no concrete divestments from the theology that clobbers and denies queer persons’ sacred worth. No apologies for past harm were offered. No recognition of the gifts and graces LGBTQIA+ people bring to the church was made. What was once declared incompatible is simply no longer named. That’s not affirmation. That’s neutrality.
Ending legislated exclusion does not mean true inclusion. Different conferences will make different choices about the ordination and licensing of LGBTQIA+ people. Doors will open in some conferences and stay closed in others. We are already seeing the implementation of the changes applied differently based on local leadership. Queer clergy who transferred their credentials to safer conferences face barriers to returning home. While we recognize the temptation to linger in the joy of this moment, we call on our allies to stay alert, keep informed of the evolving situations of continued injustice, and be prepared to help mitigate or eliminate harm when necessary.
We must also remember that to be a fully inclusive church requires more than LGBTQIA+ justice. In the US, our membership remains 95% white in a country that is 40% BIPOC. The ongoing trauma from our racist history hinders the authenticity of relationships across racial lines. Women have poked holes in the stained-glass ceiling, but it remains largely intact. Retired deaconesses and home missioners did not have their annual conference voting rights guaranteed as requested at this General Conference. Licensed Local Pastors and Associate Members requested representation in our voting bodies and saw their requests dismissed by delegates without discussion. The colonizer mentality that was embedded in our polity from the very beginning is inherently not inclusive. Ratification of regionalization would be a good first step in the work of decolonizing our structure, but we still have a long way to go to decolonize our practices. A fully inclusive United Methodism is a beautiful vision that is yet to be achieved. The UMC must continue the work of ensuring our hearts, minds, and doors are as open as we say they are.
We pray that, in time, the UMC will truly be a fully inclusive denomination, and we will do our part to make that prayer a reality. Our joy at the outcomes of this General Conference is real, but God’s beloved queer members, clergy, and allies deserve better and will be working for more to be accomplished in and by our beloved UMC.
We in the United Methodist Queer Clergy Caucus will continue to work with our co-laborers for intersectional justice in the Love Your Neighbor Coalition to make the UMC the fully inclusive and fully affirming church God calls us to be. We pray that the UMC can fully embrace us as partners in discipleship.