Un-Tied Methodism

In the next installment of our special General Conference series of “Un-Tied Methodism” episodes, we discuss regionalization. Few may realize that as soon as John Wesley’s Methodist movement expanded out of the U.K. to Ireland, Scotland, the Caribbean and North America, the conversation about regionalization began. More than 270 years later, a petition outlining an official regionalization plan for The UMC is headed to General Conference. Dr. Ashley Boggan D. welcomes guests the Rev. Dr. Betty Kazadi Musau, Dr. David Scott and the Rev. Dr. Israel Alvaran to discuss this important topic and why regionalization offers opportunities to rethink the church and consider possibilities for both The UMC and for the ecumenical church worldwide.

To learn more and/or purchase “Methodism and American Empire: Reflections on Decolonizing the Church,” edited by Dr. David William Scott and Filipe Fernandes R. Maia, visit Cokesbury.com.

Explore the United Methodist General Commission on Archives and History at ResourceUMC.org/ArchivesandHistory.

Interested in a deep dive into the earliest stories of Methodism? Sign up for a free, online, four-module history course titled “Radicle Methodism: Back to our Roots” at ResourceUMC.org/ArchivesandHistory/Radicle-Methodism.

In the next installment of our special General Conference series, Dr. Ashley Boggan D. welcomes Dawn Wiggins Hare, the General Commission on the Status and Role of Women’s general secretary, and the Rev. Jane Ellen Nickell, an ordained elder in The UMC’s West Virginia Conference, to discuss the role of women through the years at the denomination’s quadrennial legislative gathering. The trio discusses how women have and have not been affirmed, the ongoing need for expansive language in legislation and how sexism remains in The UMC.

Explore the United Methodist General Commission on Archives and History at ResourceUMC.org/ArchivesandHistory.

Interested in a deep dive into the earliest stories of Methodism? Sign up for a free, online, four-module history course titled “Radicle Methodism: Back to our Roots” at ResourceUMC.org/ArchivesandHistory/Radicle-Methodism.

When thinking about the earliest founders of Methodism, most likely a number of men come to mind: John Wesley, Charles Wesley, Francis Asbury, Philip Otterbein, to name a few. In addition to these men, however, are women who, in a spirit of “holy boldness,” were vital to the formation and spread of Methodism around the world. Host Dr. Ashley Boggan D., General Commission on Archives and History’s general secretary, welcomes the Rev. Dr. Donna Fowler-Marchant, in a  special episode to commemorate Women’s History Month, to discuss a few of the fearless and faithful women who are key to our denomination’s spiritual DNA.

Fowler-Marchant is the author of “Mothers in Israel: Methodist Beginnings through the Eyes of Women.” Learn more and/or purchase a copy at Cokesbury.com.

When the Methodist Church was instituted in the U.S., it wasn’t an institution. It was a church on the move, says the Rev. Dr. Theon Johnson III, today’s guest on “Un-Tied Methodism.” Join Dr. Ashley Boggan D., general secretary of the General Commission on Archives and History, and Johnson, pastor at Downs Memorial UMC in Oakland, Calif., for a thoughtful and lively conversation about The UMC’s history of faith in action and how we reclaim our role as a church on the move.

Explore the United Methodist General Commission on Archives and History at ResourceUMC.org/ArchivesandHistory.

Interested in a deep dive into the earliest stories of Methodism? Sign up for a free, online, four-module history course titled “Radicle Methodism: Back to our Roots” at ResourceUMC.org/ArchivesandHistory/Radicle-Methodism.

Just in time for Lent, Dr. Ashley Boggan D. is joined by the Rev. Dr. Steven Manskar to discuss his new book, “Lent & Easter with John & Charles Wesley.” Incorporating John Wesley’s sermons and Charles Wesley’s hymns, Manskar explains how, through the daily devotional guide, readers will prepare to reaffirm the baptismal covenant on Easter Sunday, all while better understanding the doctrinal standards of Wesley’s Methodism.

Learn more and/or purchase “Lent & Easter with John & Charles Wesley” at this link.

Learn more United Methodist history by visiting umhistoryhub.teachable.com.

Explore the United Methodist General Commission on Archives and History at ResourceUMC.org/archivesandhistory.

The United Methodist Church has a legacy of social witness. Join Dr. Ashley Boggan D. with guests the Rev. Dr. Darryl Stephens and John Hill, interim chief executive of the The UMC’s General Board of Church and Society, to discuss the history of the Social Principles and the new Revised Social Principles coming before General Conference 2020 to be held in April 2024.

Learn more or purchase the Revised Social Principles at this link. 

The Rev. Dr. Darryl Stephens is a noted author and speaker. To pre-order Stephens’ upcoming book, Reckoning Methodism: Mission and Division in the Public Church (Eugene, OR: Cascade, out in March 2024, go to this link.

Learn more United Methodist history by visiting umhistoryhub.teachable.com.

Explore the United Methodist General Commission on Archives and History at ResourceUMC.org/archivesandhistory.

Dr. Ashley Boggan D., general secretary of the General Commission on Archives and History, welcomes her guest, the Rev. Dr. Paul Chilcote, renowned Wesley scholar, to discuss his new book, “Multiplying Love: A Vision of United Methodist Life Together.” During the conversation, Chilcote asserts that in a world that is radically divided, we don’t need a bold witness, but, rather, a gracious witness that is centered on holiness connected to love and not law.

Learn more or purchase “Multipyling Love: A Vision of United Methodist Life Together” at Cokesbury.com.

Learn more United Methodist history by visiting umhistoryhub.teachable.com.

Explore the United Methodist General Commission on Archives and History at ResourceUMC.org/archivesandhistory.

The historic Christmas Conference in 1784 is the official beginning of the Methodist Episcopal Church in America, but the seeds of Methodism were first planted in America almost two decades earlier in New York City. Dr. Ashley Boggan D. welcomes United Methodist pastor Stefanie Bennett, who shares the history that dates back to 1766 and resulted in the establishment of John Street UMC, the oldest Methodist U.S. congregation.

Learn more United Methodist history by visiting umhistoryhub.teachable.com.

Explore the United Methodist General Commission on Archives and History at ResourceUMC.org/archivesandhistory.

Bishop David Wilson, the first Native American person elected to serve as as United Methodist bishop, joins Dr. Ashley Boggan D. to discuss the history of Methodism and indigenous nations, including the role the denomination played with mission schools and decolonizing Native Peoples.

To learn more about the books mentioned in today’s episode, visit these links:

“Massacre at Sand Creek” by Gary L. Roberts

Learn more United Methodist history by visiting umhistoryhub.teachable.com.

Explore the United Methodist General Commission on Archives and History at ResourceUMC.org/archivesandhistory.

In his newly-released graphic novel titled “Incompatible,” the Rev. Charlie Baber explores the history of events that led to The UMC’s current divide on the subject of LGBTQ+ inclusion. Dr. Ashley Boggan D. and Baber, a United Methodist pastor and creator of the Wesley Bros. animated characters, discuss the church’s current struggle and how the full inclusion of LBGTQ+ Christians is a faithful witness to the work of the Holy Spirit.

To learn more about today’s guest, go to CharlieBaber.com.

Learn more United Methodist history by visiting umhistoryhub.teachable.com.

Explore the United Methodist General Commission on Archives and History at ResourceUMC.org/archivesandhistory.