THE GREAT DIVORCE

 Methodism, like many organizations, has had many splits, fights, and mergers. 

It was a movement that was birthed to offset the lacks found in the contemporary British Church of John Wesley's day in the late 1700's.  He refused to form a new denomination and resisted until near his death when he organized the "Methodist Church."  The term had been an insult for the methodical, logical approach Wesley and his followers used as they lived lives of faith, of discipline, and of purpose. They turned it into a banner of pride...

In the 1800's the new Methodist Church used that methodical approach to plant churches in nearly every county in the growing nation. There were bumps and they usually were places where social values and Christian values came into conflict.

The conflict over the payment of dues to have a pew reserved.

The conflict over the participation of lay people in the decision making of the church.

The conflict over the "conference' rights of self-government and the move toward oversight by a national council of Bishops.  This reflected the struggle between state's rights and the rights of the Federal government in the issue of laws, slave ownership and the continuation of the colonial model of integration of churches (primarily in the North).

The conflict over the issue of slavery and the issue of abolition.

These all led to schisms and branches off the main Methodist tree to create the Methodist Protestant, The Methodist Episcopal, south and several other groups. 

In 1939, several groups merged to form one new Methodist Church. In 1969, Methodism and sister groups of the United Brethren Church and others formed The United Methodist Church. 

In less than thirty years, there were hairline cracks appearing over several issues. Many were theological in nature dealing with the role and authority of scripture in the light of what was known as "Higher Critical" theories of theology and Biblical interpretation. The "Modernist" theology of the 1920's that led to the Scopes Trial had found fertile breeding grounds in the higher institutions of learning and training feeding miniters into the Methodist church world. 

As the 1960's came, the focus shifted from spiritual foundations that provided impetus to social-justice actions, outreaches, and ministries to social-justice foundations replacing the spiritual foundations. There was token recognition of the historic and orthodox creeds and common beliefs of the historic Chirstian faith. Myth replaced belief in the truth of the Bible, metaphors and similes were the lens through which the Holy writ was read.  More and more the emphasis, guidance, and goals were drawn, not from the Bible, but from the denominations "social principles."

The 1960's were the last high point for attendance and church growth for the denomination. Once on that summit, the road forked dramatically, with one path leading toward a continued evolution to a liberal and progressive "post-modern" church and the other path continuing on in the rosy hued belief that the "Church" was moving on into a future filled with spiritual renewal, reinvigorated growth, and increasing meaningful rediscovery of the church Methodist. One was a polished slide that carried the church into the radicalism of socialist principles, deconstructionism, and the strong influences of current culture to define values, ethics, and purpose. 

As society changed, the balance of power, as it were, shifted.  Values long held as important were eroded and destroyed. Some of these were good changes: changes in the legal and social status of ethnic groups, of women, of working people, and a new appreciation of the value of taking care of our world. Others however, were holes in the dam holding back the untamed beasts of human nature and the new idol of the late 20th century was set upright. It was a stature of reflection; it was the great God of "Me" and its minions of greed, situational ethics, and all the darker angels of the human soul. 

If portrayed as fighters in a ring, in one corner would be a nearly powerless Methodist Church clinging to the "form of godliness but lacking the power" and in the other corner the Liberal/Modern/Progressive Organization that elevates social issues over spiritual development and replaces based Christ redemption with acts of social responsibility.  

It is crowded in the corner because behind them stand almost all of societies agencies, the schools, the media, the social influencers, and so many who are content to transform the world without bothering about God transforming the soul. There also stand those who "workers in darkness" and know that the lack of ethics, of love, or compassion and "costly grace" merely makes life easier for them and their pleasure driven, destructive and vampirish agendas.

It was all foretold in the Bible so marginalized, reinterpretated and mythologized   (" 1This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. 2For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, 4Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; 5Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away. 6For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts, 7Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. 8Now as Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses, so do these also resist the truth: men of corrupt minds, reprobate concerning the faith. 9But they shall proceed no further: for their folly shall be manifest unto all men, as theirs also was."2 Timothy 3).

Today the issue in the United Methodist Church is painted in slick propaganda speak as a conflict of the "HATERS" and the "LOVERS."  As those who want to stone and kill homosexuals and those who want to welcome them with open arms and no changes are required by God or anyone else. 

It is not that simple, however, because the issue of gender and orientation are the top layer of the deeper issue which is a minimization of the view of scripture as authoritative to modern life. The issue of rebel Bishops, pastors, churches and members who agreed to uphold the teachings of the Bible, the faith and the Methodist Church but who now have decided that the rules no longer apply. They lacked the ethical dignity to remove themselves from a system they could not support but instead played the role of dutiful servant by day and at night were like the "little foxes" that eat away the healthy grape vines and destroy the crop. The took vows they had no intention of keeping. They exercised their hubris by digging in their heels and staying to change (i.e. deconstruct) the historic faith structure instead of launching out, decades ago, to develop a denomination that suited their particular views and lifestyles. 

To some hearing such comments the screams of "hater" and of "bigot" would be hurled but, as if so often the case, the tolerance is short lived. Soon the harassed doubles down in revenge in return using the very tools they complained were used against them.

The cycle of abuse, and all the actions outlines in the scripture above, then come into full play.