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The National Council of Affirmation adopted a slate of proposed changes to the United Methodist Discipline at its April 1998 meeting and added more changes in October 1998.
Those changes can be summarized as follows. (For ease of reading, we
propose deletion of underlined material, and addition of words printed in boldface type. Material currently in the Discipline for which we propose no changes will be printed in italic.
1. Delete between a man and a woman in the first paragraph of Paragraph 65C:, We affirm the sanctity of the marriage covenant that is expressed in love, mutual support, personal commitment, and shared fidelity between a man and a woman
2. Delete the last sentence of Paragraph 65C: Ceremonies that celebrate homosexual unions shall not be conducted by our ministers and shall not be conducted in our churches.
3. Add a new paragraph after 65E: Covenants—We affirm the right of all human beings to enter into covenants with one another. We believe that covenants are social agreements in the pattern of those first inaugurated for us by God, which we find in Scripture. In general, covenantal relationships are characterized by love, justice, commitment and faithfulness.
4. Move the sentence, We seek for every individual opportunities and freedom to love and be loved, to seek and receive justice and to practice ethical self-determination, from 65F to the end of the first paragraph of 65G.
5. Add the words, including sexual orientation, to the first sentence of Paragraph 65G, so that the sentence reads, We recognize that sexuality, including sexual orientation, is God's good gift to all persons.
6. Modify the fifth paragraph of Paragraph 65G to read: Homosexual persons no less than heterosexual persons are individuals of sacred worth. All persons need the ministry and guidance of the church in their struggles for human fulfillment, as well as the spiritual and emotional care of a fellowship that enables reconciling relationships with God, with others and with self. Although we do not condone the practice of homosexuality and consider this practice incompatible with Christian teaching. In the midst of disagreement about the meaning, nature and origins of sexual orientation, we implore families and churches not to reject or condemn their lesbian and gay members. We affirm that God's grace is available to all. We commit ourselves to be in ministry for and with all people.
7. Add the word comment to the third sentence of Paragraph 65I: We define sexual harassment as any unwanted sexual comment, advance or demand, either verbal or physical, that is reasonably perceived by the recipient as demeaning, intimidating or coercive.
8. Amend the preamble to Paragraph 66: The rights and privileges a church or society bestows upon or withholds from those who comprise it indicate the relative esteem in which that church or society holds particular persons and groups of persons. We affirm all persons as equally valuable in the sight of God. We therefore work toward a church and society societies in which each person's value is recognized, maintained, and strengthened. We support the basic right of all persons to equal access to housing, education, employment, medical care, legal redress for grievances, and physical protection.
9. Add the word marriage to the last sentence of the first paragraph of Paragraph 66: We support the basic rights of all persons to equal access to housing, education, employment, medical care, marriage, legal redress for grievances, and physical protection.
10. Modify paragraph 66H by adding the words, or Gender Identity, to the title and by substituting the words, all persons, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity, for the words, homosexual persons, in the second sentence: We are committed to supporting those rights and liberties for all persons, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity.
11. Amend the fourth paragraph of Paragraph 70: We commit ourselves to the rights of men, women, children, youth, young adults, the aging and those people with disabilities; to improvement of the quality of life, and to the rights and dignity of racial, ethnic, and religious minorities all people, regardless of race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender or religious affiliation.
1. Amend Paragraph 117 by adding a last sentence: No unit of The United Methodist Church may discriminate against lay persons on the basis of race, ethnicity, gender, disability and/or sexual orientation in employment or volunteer positions in the Church.
2. Delete Paragraphs 304.2, 306.4.f, 315.9.n, 321.4.a(6) and 326.7.a(6).
3. Delete Paragraph 304.3
4. Delete the footnote to Paragraph 306.4f.
5. Delete Paragraph 806.12.
6. Amend Paragraph 811.1.a and b.: General Policies—1. The General Council on Finance and Administration is authorized to withhold approval of a portion or all of the budget of any agency or any Church-related institution receiving general Church funds until such agency or Church-related institution certifies to the council in writing that it has established and complied with a policy of: (a) recruiting, employing, utilizing, recompensing, and promoting professional staff and other personnel without regard to race, color, age, disability, sexual orientation, or sex; (b) fulfilling its duties and responsibilities in a manner that does not involve segregation or discrimination on the basis of race, age, disability, sexual orientation or sex; and . . .
7. Amend Paragraph 2624, Chargeable Offenses, by deleting (b) practices declared by The United Methodist Church to be incompatible with Christian teachings; and by addition of (j) encouraging one's pastoral charge to withhold or redirect annual conference or general church apportioned askings as an act of ecclesiastical witness.
NO DISCRIMINATION
The United Methodist Church exists in a world where forces of fear, hatred and misunderstanding rip apart the fabric of community. In the face of these destructive forces, The United Methodist Church re-asserts its condemnation of discrimination against people because of their race, color, national origin, gender, status or economic condition.
We commit ourselves to confront such discrimination wherever it occurs. We will continue to work to eradicate discrimination at all levels of The United Methodist Church.
INCOMPATIBLE WITH CHRISTIAN TEACHING
The following practices are incompatible with Christian teaching:
RESPECT IN CONTROVERSY
As United Methodists we recognize that we hold strong and diverse opinions which sometimes challenge our commitments to unity. In the midst of controversy, we affirm the necessity of respect for one another. We are all members of one church, doing our best to be faithful people of God, bringing our stories and experiences to God and each other.
We encourage respectful discussion and support continuing education and study. We believe that our discernment is improved when we study broadly, listen intently and value one another. Although we recognize with regret that some may chose to disfellowship themselves, we do not advocate that people be driven from our common body because of their faithfully held beliefs.
HONESTY IN PUBLICATIONS
The United Methodist Church is a denomination that embraces people of diverse opinions within its midst. We affirm that diversity of opinions is a blessing even as we struggle with the challenges that such diversity presents. While we commend honest disagreement, misrepresentations and published falsehoods tear our connectional fabric apart.
We therefore direct the United Methodist Communications [UMCOM] to monitor the problems of misrepresentation within official and unofficial United Methodist publications and to report findings of inaccuracy through their communications network.
TOGETHER AMIDST CONTROVERSY
No child of God is beyond God's love. Our ministry, by God's grace, is with all persons.
Amid controversy among his disciples about who was the greatest, Jesus asked them to stop bickering in order to attend to their own attitudes and actions (Luke 9:46-48). Jesus said, "When you welcome even a child because of me, you welcome me. And when you welcome me, you welcome the one who sent me." He called the disciples to be humble, loving and forgiving. He challenged them to proceed with God's mission in the world. He expected them to eat with sinners, associate with outcasts, and live with the poor. In the midst of early Methodist controversy, John Wesley reminded his hearers, "If we cannot think alike, may we not love alike." Amid our own controversy over sexual orientation, God calls us to attend to our own attitudes and actions; to be humble, loving, and forgiving. By God's grace, there are many ways to be in ministry, many ways to speak of our faith, many ways to serve and love.
We acknowledge with humility that although we do not have a common mind about same gender love, we celebrate that our community of faith can embrace difference. We reject words or actions that demonize or misrepresent members of our faith community. We resolve to live together as a people of faith in the midst of difference.
As an independent voice of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer people, Affirmation radically reclaims the compassionate and transforming gospel of Jesus Christ by relentlessly pursuing full inclusion in the Church as we journey with the Spirit in creating God's beloved community. We affirm a Gospel of respect, love, justice and mercy for all. Affirmation is an activist, all-volunteer, not-for-profit organization with no official ties to The United Methodist Church.
Copyright © 1998-2007 Affirmation: United Methodists for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer Concerns.