A five-year-old dispute between Southern Methodist University in Dallas and a multi-state United Methodist Church body over the university’s ownership and governance will come before the Texas Supreme Court for oral arguments Jan. 15. According to a summary on the…
3 killed as Methodist violence flares in Nigeria
Three United Methodists were killed Dec. 15 when a United Methodist Church in northeast Nigeria was attacked allegedly by supporters of the breakaway Global Methodist Church. A few days prior to the attack, a dissident organization that has promoted the…
The new battleground for Methodists is in Africa
Hope and jubilation were palpable at the United Methodist General Conference in Spring 2024. Conservative forces that had hammered away at the denomination for more than half a century had decamped, unfortunately taking with them more than 7,600 local congregations,…
In North Carolina, a Methodist creation care community grows
Author and scholar Elaine Heath says the most challenging question ever put to her inquired, “What does care for the earth have to do with following Jesus?” Heath now uses the question as a reflection tool for her ministry as…
United Methodists stress values, character and duty as election looms
With the U.S. presidential election and down-ballot contests looming, United Methodists are making a final push to encourage their sibling Wesleyans to vote as a sacred duty, using Christian values and character traits as their guide. Officially, the denomination, its…
May your search for truth land on these sacred words: ‘I am enough’
My life, like so many others, is a journey of seemingly unrelated worlds merging in joyous, messy, difficult, lovely ways that defy easy explanations. My experience in the arena of professional clergy intersects with the domestic sphere as a wife…
How Mainline Protestant churches are addressing Christian nationalism
In this politically fraught time, communities of faith have a unique opportunity to speak truth into the chaos. This necessarily means addressing the religious nationalism that burst from the shadows into public view on January 6, 2021. Regardless the outcome…
Southern Baptists have voted heavily Republican in last four elections
Southern Baptists have voted consistently Republican in the last four presidential elections, researcher Ryan Burge says. In his analysis of 40 U.S. denominations, “the Southern Baptists and the independent Baptists are clearly the most Republican of the bunch,” he reported…
Online gatherings are the place to be for United Methodists
If the great global coronavirus pandemic accomplished anything good, its enforced quarantine taught The United Methodist Church how to use online gatherings more effectively. Hardly any local church or regional unit meeting lacks an online component, whether interactive webinars, livestreamed…