In the Right Place

NOTE: I am blogging more frequently during the 2024 General Conference, as I did in 2019. These are only my reflections, and in no way are they comprehensive. To keep up with happenings of the UMC General Conference, I invite you to stay connected HERE.

General Conference opened today with all the pomp and circumstance expected of a gathering such as this. Opening worship included the grand procession of the Council of Bishops, and the opening worship service reminded us that we belong to a global communion.

At the outset of the General Conference, we heard from Bishop Thomas Bickerton (whom I have had the chance to see in several Zoom calls seeking to hold the church together through the recent schism), and his words were firm.

Bishop Bickerton began by asking some pointed questions and then challenging those who would continue to attack the denomination:

“Are you committed to the revitalization of the United Methodist Church? Are you here to work for a culture marked by compassion, courage, and companionship?” He then continued, “If you can’t agree to that, what are you doing here anyway? Maybe, just maybe, you’re in the wrong place.”

He went directly at our detractors by saying, “Don’t you tell us that we don’t believe in Scripture. Don’t you tell us that we don’t believe in the doctrine of the church. And Lord have mercy, don’t tell us that we don’t believe in the resurrection of Jesus Christ.”

He then issued the challenge to those in gathered for the General Conference: “We have got to rebuild the church and we’ve got to do it together.”

Bishop Bickerton spoke aloud what so many of us have thought during the past several years concerning people whose sole aim is to destroy the denomination I have spent my life serving. His statement aimed at the detractors still rings in my ears: “”Maybe you are in the wrong place!”

But for those of us who are working to bring renewal to the church … those who are working to build a radically inclusive church that has a place at the table for every single person … for those who are working toward a church that takes a frontline role in seeking justice for those who have been harmed by the church whether through exclusion and hate or whether through colonial marginalization … WE ARE IN THE RIGHT PLACE!

My prayer is that the decisions being made by the delegates from all around the globe will seek this unique kind of unity … a unity that builds up where others seek only to tear down … a unity that respects diversity and invites people into holy conversations around our differences … a unity that demonstrates to the world that we ARE the body of the living Christ in all that we do.

We are in the right place for Christ to rebuild the church, and that is my hope for this General Conference. Thank you, Bishop Bickerton, for being in the right place at the right time!