Revitalization of a Denomination
For revitalization to take place within the United Methodist Church I believe that there will need to be changes that take place from top down and bottom up. I was alerted to the article "Global nature task force proposes a U.S. central conference" by RevFife via the methoblog. Some of the first paragraphs in the article are:
The proposal introduced to the United Methodist Council of Bishops on Nov. 3 would end the current system that splits the United States from the central conferences that govern the church outside the United States and would revise the United Methodist Book of Discipline into a "truly general book of doctrine, mission and discipline, deleting all portions that apply only to the United States." The existing U.S. jurisdictional conferences would exist within a U.S. Central Conference.The proposal would group all five U.S. jurisdictions into one central conference, putting it on par with the central conferences already in existence. If approved, the changes would take effect in 2012 (A UMNS Report by Linda Green).My perception is that this proposal addresses the issue, among others, that change in the denominational structure may be necessary for revitalization within the United Methodist Church. In addition, it is imporant for the United Methodist Church to continue to move toward self-understanding and acting in mission as a global denomination.
What do you think...
- For the revitalization of the United Methodist Church, are changes more effective at the denominational level or the local level?
- Does your faith community operate as a local incarnation of a global movement?
- Does this proposal help fulfill the mission of the Church - to make disciples of Jesus Christ?
