Simon Mafunda has been active in The United Methodist Church for much of his adult life. He has capably and conscientiously served. Recent developments in Africa leave him concerned about the institution he has given so much of his life to. In this talk, we address concerns around African bishops who seem to have lost loyalty to their constituents, especially Muyombo and Wandabula. We also look at the somewhat overt efforts to exclude the African voice from denominational discourse, whether that be by ‘regionalization,’ or by simply not getting invitation letters to them quickly enough to make it through the visa application process. Finally, we discuss examples of overt power being used to exclude people from the UMC in Africa who do not toe the line and quietly let themselves be taken advantage of.

Africa needs to be understood. If you are invested in the UMC maintaining any semblance of righteousness, then you need to learn about what is happening and work to mitigate the damage. Otherwise, next year’s General Conference is going to look so racist that all will walk away in shame.

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So many people are starting off with the Global Methodist Church without knowing what it stands for or how it operates. Given that so much misery was caused by the ignorance of doctrine and discipline in The United Methodist Church, the moral obligation of people now, if the GMC is to get off on the right foot, is to know and protect our new covenant body.

For that reason, TJ and I have been walking through the Transitional Book of Doctrines & Discipline, which spells out how we are going to live together. In particular, this segment deals with ¶329 - ¶335. These sections deal with church membership, which turns off many people. It shouldn’t. Lack of discipline around church membership is what caused such misery when it came time to take a membership vote to disaffiliate from the UMC. Moreover, there is a lot of important theology about the nature and work of the church, as well as the nature of the relationship of individuals to their church, that bears some thought.

We do the thinking and talking; we urge you to take the time and energy to go along with us as we cover this ground. We hope that this is a blessing to you and your church!

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Steve Blakemore is the Professor of Christian Thought at Wesley Biblical Seminary. He is the author of the recently released book Recovering the Soul (https://a.co/d/5CQ8mRB)and is the author of many scholarly essays, as well as popular level articles on philosophical and theological topics of contemporary concern.  His areas of specialization include Moral Theology (Christian Ethics), Systematic and Philosophical theology, as well as the contemporary problems of progressive Christianity and postmodern ideology.Steve served as a United Methodist pastor for 25 years before affiliating with the Association of Independent Methodists, in which he now serves a small rural church in Mississippi. He can be reached at [email protected].

Isaac Blakemore graduated from Wesley Biblical Seminary with a Master’s in Apologetics. He is the co-founder and Executive Director of the John & Charles Wesley Center for Christian Thought and Apologetics; an ordained minister; sought after speaker; husband and father. Isaac's research focuses on the interface of science, philosophy, and religion. To learn more about Isaac and his content visit: isaacblakemore.com. He can be reached at [email protected].

For growing in apologetics knowledge and skill, Steve recommends a podcast on Rumble called “Thinking is Good for You.” He also recommends the book 'Heresies: Heresy and Orthodoxy in the History of the Church' (https://a.co/d/2HKhlwD).

Isaac recommends a book called 'The Fathers Know Best: Your Essential Guide to the Teachings of the Early Church' (https://a.co/d/dq5BH0I), as well as his organization’s website: https://jcwcenter.org.

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I do a live stream show every Friday at 4:00 PM CDT. Some of it is talking to supporters and audience friends, but a lot of it is offering what I hope is helpful commentary on current affairs in the church and in the world. I clipped these portions up and have published them separately on YouTube, but I put them all together here for your listening pleasure!

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Do you know what is in the primary covenant document of the Global Methodist Church? We don't. That's why TJ and I are making our way through it together. Given how covenant disobedience is what took The United Methodist Church down, we want to be a part of building the GMC up. That means familiarizing ourselves and others with our shared governing documents.

The portion this episode deals with is still in Section 3 - The Community of God's People. It will cover ¶316-¶323, which deals with local church membership vows, expectations of pastors, confirmands, all members, how inactive members are removed, how prospective members can overrule a pastor standing in the way, and how someone can join the GMC without being part of a local church, among other things. We explore the nature of the church, the purpose of membership, postulate as to the likelihood that many churches or clergy will even read or implement these things, and TJ even volunteers to fill a new function in the local church.

Seriously, we hope you enjoy this time. It isn't always fun to do this stuff on your own. We hope doing it with us makes all this more interesting, engaging, and meaningful for you. Make sure to share your thoughts with us at [email protected]. If you want to support work like this being done for the upbuilding of the GMC and Methodism more broadly, head over to plainspoken.locals.com and become one of our supporters today!

To download a copy of the Transitional Book of Doctrines & Discipline for free, go to https://globalmethodist.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Transitional-Discipline.20231016v2.pdf

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What is to be said when a major publication associated with The United Methodist Church publishes an article that compares, in all seriousness, people and churches who want to disaffiliate from the UMC with Hamas terrorists? Is this something that should be ignored? Can it be? If things like this are publicly said, if bishops allow their clergy to malign their peers this way, then what kind of conferences can the UMC expect in the future? 

Links:

“We Are All Hostages Now” by Richard Bryant - https://um-insight.net/perspectives/we-are-all-hostages-now/

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Fifty local churches are involved in a lawsuit against the Eastern Pennsylvania Annual Conference of The United Methodist Church, represented by the National Center for Life and Liberty. Similar cases are being litigated around the country. Some places like Georgia have seen limited victories for churches seeking to sever times from the UMC. Other locations like Oklahoma have seen courts refusing to get involved against conferences that abuse their authority. In Pennsylvania, 11 of the churches are seeking to drop out of the lawsuit and instead disaffiliate under the unfavorable terms afforded by their conference. The conference leadership has told them that it is now too late for them to seek exit, so they are filing suit against the conference in order to have the state compel them to abide by Paragraph 2553 and allow them to exit before the provision expires. To the surprise of many, the proceedings in Pennsylvania took two days and hours of witness testimony, including that of Bishop Schol. Rev. Joe DiPaolo was in attendance, taking inscrutable notes. He was kind enough to join me to give a report and some analysis.

Links:

Lloyd Lunceford (Church Law) Interview - https://youtu.be/hxaB8FFGsk0

Rev. Joe DiPaolo Interview - https://youtu.be/UPnVdakG6og

3-Part Series on Eastern Pennsylvania Conference - https://youtu.be/cqUFs0j57wg

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Matt joined me once already to talk about an engaging list he published, enumerating twelve doctrinal distinctives that the Global Methodist Church should, to his mind, champion. We were able to get through the first 7 last time. In this second segment, we cover the last 5. This will not disappoint you. Doctrine matters. Matt has a sharp mind and a warm heart for his Methodist faith. You should care about the Methodist tradition, as well. Take some time to learn some history, think about meaningful things, and benefit generally from his wisdom. And enjoy!

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The Association of Independent Methodists is another group, not quite a denomination, necessarily, that seeks to bring out the best of the Wesleyan tradition in its constituent local churches while not exercising any coercion over them. In the context of this season of disaffiliation from The United Methodist Church, many local churches would surely be interested in their culture and polity. Adam Godbold and Marshall Daigre were both kind to spend time with me to help me understand the history and function of today's AIM. I enjoyed my visit with them very much and hope that local churches benefit from knowledge of them and their tradition.

Contact Information:

The Association of Independent Methodists

aim2020.com

601-362-1301

Marshall Daigre

Church Health & Multiplication, AIM

Senior Pastor of Harvest Pointe Methodist Church in Madison AL

harvestpointe.com

[email protected]

Adam Godbold

Pastor-Parish Relations Chair, AIM

Pastor of Faith Methodist Church in Dallas GA

faithmethodistchurch.org

[email protected]

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Rev. Rob Renfroe, newly retired clergy from the Texas Annual Conference of The United Methodist Church and continuing President of Good News, took time to visit with me about the dynamics of neocolonialism in the church generally and The United Methodist Church specifically. We cover some important history for understanding our present moment with respect to African United Methodists participating in next year's General Conference, as well as frustrations more broadly with misunderstandings around how we have navigated the culture war's imposition onto shared ecclesiastical life. Rev. Renfroe explains the reason why he has chosen to remain within the UMC and what his hopes for the future are with respect to Methodism, especially as it pertains to the majority world (not the United States of America).

If you would like to learn more about Good News, which has carried the banner of authentic Wesleyanism for decades, consider visiting their website: https://goodnewsmag.org

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