A Word from Pastor Lisa: North Central Jurisdiction Conference Update
One of my ecclesial extra-curriculars is to serve as a delegate to General and Jurisdictional conferences of The United Methodist Church. A jurisdiction is a regional body made up of annual conferences, and its primary responsibility is to elect new bishops. The North Central Jurisdiction (NCJ) has 10 annual conferences in the upper Midwest.
On Nov. 10 and 11, the NCJ met virtually for a special session. The Indiana Conference sent 32 delegates, half laity and half clergy. We asked the bishops of our area to call this meeting so we could engage in holy conversation and create a covenant statement about who we’re going to be in our denomination’s future.
We spent Wednesday in plenary session and small groups. The morning focused on anti-racism work, and the afternoon looked at the episcopacy and our future priorities for the jurisdiction. That evening, a writing team used our pre-work and the notes from our small group conversations to craft a covenant on how we will live together in our region.
On Thursday, 81% of the delegates passed a “Covenant to Build Beloved Community,” which is posted here. This document, which is shaped around our baptismal vows, includes our commitment as a jurisdiction toward the following:
· Repentance of racism, colonialism, classism, sexism, and heterosexism
· A call to action around anti-racism, specifically white supremacy and Christian nationalism
· Budget funds dedicated to anti-racism work and accountability for anti-racism strategies
· An inclusive church that avoids charges for LGBTQIA+ clergy and same-gender weddings
· No restrictions on God’s calling based on a ministry candidate’s sexual orientation or gender identity
· A future plan for episcopal elections
· Encouragement for local churches and clergy who want to leave the denomination to use existing provisions
· A regional denominational structure that would allow specific parts of the global church to create their own contextual decisions
In addition, we passed three more motions:
1. A decision to limit the number of bishops to 8 in the NCJ at our next elections, hopefully in 2022. We used to have 9 bishops.
2. An affirmation of a statement about the Continuing United Methodist Church from the Council of Bishops.
3. An affirmation of A Call to Grace, which urges bishops and annual conferences to find amicable ways for clergy and churches to leave the denomination if General Conference 2022 is postponed again due to the pandemic.
Why is this important? As followers of Jesus, who is the Word-made-flesh, we believe our words matter. We want to be the church we want to see legislated. While this covenant does not change the Book of Discipline or General Conference, it is a strong statement for those of us in the NCJ to create beloved community. It is an opportunity for us to work together to be an open, welcoming church that is committed to anti-racism and LGBTQIA+ inclusion.
What can you do? Please continue to pray for The United Methodist Church and First Methodist, as we discern who we’re called to be. The Vision Team and Governing Board will be working on our own statements that we’ll share with the congregation early next year. Pray that we will be faithful in shaping Christ’s beloved community: Beloved, let us love one another, because love is from God; everyone who loves is born of God and knows God (1 John 4:7, NRSV).
Want to know more? Join me at 10:45 a.m. on Sunday, Nov. 21 in Great Hall for “Ask Pastor Lisa” questions about the future of our denomination.