Lonnie Brooks is the first reserve lay delegate to the upcoming General Conference, representing the Alaska United Methodist Conference. In February, he published an op ed in UMNews, which projected a hostile takeover by progressives within The United Methodist Church in the coming years as traditionalists move to the periphery of denominational life. He has presented a number of legislative suggestions and amendments for consideration at General Conference next year, all of which aim to help the denomination to be more equitable and gracious.

In this conversation, Lonnie and I suss out where it is that he offers a voice of critique, as well as what affirmations he has, of his chosen denomination. To my surprise, there was a good deal of agreement between us, though it is clear that Lonnie and I still have some great differences. The conversation is very agreeable. I learned a good deal from him. I hope you do, too!

Links:

Lonnie’s Dropbox w/ Proposed Legislation for Next Year’s General Conference - https://app.box.com/s/dpni01me0x236mfu5nh180otjjiyz2b7/folder/215761447268

Lonnie’s UM News Op Ed - https://www.umnews.org/en/news/centrist-progressive-coalition-could-soon-unravel

Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit jeffreyrickman.substack.com

Get full access to PlainSpoken at plainspokenpod.substack.com/subscribe