GC 2020 – The UMCNext Proposal, Chasing the Red Dot and Bishop Alsted
Frank Holbrook 0 GC 2020
Yesterday, UMCNext released its proposal suggesting the way forward for the United Methodist Church. You can read the group’s press release here and the entire proposal here.
As I read the proposal I began mentally comparing it to other plans or proposals that have been made public. These include the Bard Jones Plan, the Draft Indianapolis Plan and my own modest proposal I called the Plain Grace Plan. The plans have some commonalities, the main one being that each plan recognizes the need for some form of increased separation for the persons who presently comprise the United Methodist Church.
If one’s only data point is the raw number of plans being floated, then it’s easy to assume that there is a groundswell building for separation. Reaching that conclusion based on the raw number of plans ignores the reality that no one will ever float the “Status Quo Plan”, much less multiple competing versions of the Status Quo Plan. No one has to propose a plan for keeping things as they are. Consequently, one shouldn’t jump to the conclusion that just because a number of plans are emerging this indicates a sea change in the collective sentiment of the delegates to General Conference 2020.
I suspect that the countervailing check to a separation groundswell (if one exists) will be the number of delegates that view their election as primarily an assignment to maintain or change the existing BOD. That possibility is enhanced by the large number of first time delegates, of whom I am one. If enough delegates possess the conviction that they were sent on a mission to repeal or strengthen the Traditional Plan and are unwilling to veer from their perceived assignment, then GC 2020 will be a repeat of GC 2019. That’s merely my opinion; so, take it for what it’s worth. But that is the primary reason I suggested that GC 2020 should decide, as an initial matter, whether it is going to focus on separation. You can read that post here.
I believe the main reason one sees a number of plans/proposals being publicly circulated is that we are about one month away from the September 18 deadline for submitting GC petitions. In about a month, the dialogue will change from “What’s Possible?” to “What’s possible given the petitions that are on file?” The conversations will continue, but the potential to think outside the box will be more constrained, if not eliminated. The petitions will form the box that GC 2020 has to think inside.
As I mentioned earlier, as I read the UMCNext proposal I immediately began thinking about critiquing and comparing the existing plans. For some unknown reason, this old internet meme came to mind:
That meme made me realize that today isn’t the day I catch the United Methodist Church separation red dot. Maybe it was the Holy Spirit at work or maybe it was just random synapses firing off in my brain. As for me, I’m going with the Holy Spirit. In fact, that meme made me realize that I’m exactly like a lot of people; we get so focused on the red dot of the plans we don’t take time to reflect on and remember the mission.
With that reminder to remember the mission, I highly commend the post by Bishop Christian Alsted entitled Remembering the Mission During Disagreements – A Reading of Acts 15 and 16 found here. As I read the Bishop’s post it reminded me that the mission should always be foremost. His post is not merely a reminder, it also is an inspired reflection on a portion of the Book of Acts that explores spreading the Good News of Jesus Christ in different cultural contexts. The Bishop doesn’t extrapolate from the text to offer “the” answer, but he thoughtfully poses critical questions in a way that is an outstanding example of Virtual Holy Conferencing. If you do nothing else today, I pray you’ll take the time to read and reflect on the Bishop’s post; you will be enriched by doing so.
In his pastoral letter following GC 2019 Bishop Alsted reminded his flock “This is a time to care for each other and to be careful with each other. This is a time for prayer, fellowship and conversation. I encourage all us to think carefully before we make a comment or an update on social media, and to avoid saying anything that may be offensive or polarizing.” Hopefully, all sides in the ongoing debate will heed the Bishop’s advice.
I’ll be writing Sunday’s post today. Once again it will not focus on GC 2020; this is my new norm. In fact, any norm I create on this site is a new norm because it is a new site. Sunday’s will be a short reflection and an invitation to turn one’s attention from the present to the eternal.
If you made it this far, thanks for reading. For those that didn’t make it this far, I’m still thankful for you.
Come Holy Spirit.
