The General Conference of The United Methodist Church is scheduled to convene this coming April. There has already been an organized and concerted push from institutional entities to make “regionalization” the centerpiece of the work to be accomplished. This is sure to be a primary area of deliberation.

Yet there are also many other meaningful items coming to the assembly for its two-week conference. Given that the official list has not yet been published, it is difficult to confidently predict what all of them will be. Some presumptions are safer than others.

In this series, these four United Methodist veterans of conference structure and protocol will do their best to anticipate the items that will come before the body. The hope is that they will help delegates to prepare to make informed and conscientious decisions when they come together, having already thought a great deal about the key proposals.

As a host, I will work simply to create the space and the platform for the discussion to be had in earnest. If it is the will of the assembled body that they should adopt regionalization, liberalize the theology of sex and gender of the church, adopt new Social Principles, or do anything that stands against my convictions, then I want to defend their right to do so. I only advocate for them to do it with eyes wide open, which I hope this series serves to aid.

Each of these four men of faith has a background that entitles them to consideration from United Methodist leadership. Their voices are ignored to the detriment of the denomination.

I would invite you to consider them, their insights, their concerns, their hopes as you pray for The United Methodist Church. If you agree that this is a worthy effort, then make sure to subscribe and tune in over the coming weeks as we try to shed light without creating any more heat. Make sure to pray for us, too!

This episode was filmed only to introduce viewers/listeners to the panel. Future episodes will have much more meaty content. Stay tuned!

Links

Conversation with Odell Horne

Conversation with Joe DiPaolo

Conversation with Simon Mafunda

Conversation with Lonnie Brooks

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