Day of Prayer

Saturday was designated a Day of Prayer, and it was a very meaningful time for the church to gather and remember that human sexuality is not and should not, by any means, be the only thing for United Methodists to care about, pray about, or act on. Bishops from around the globe reminded us all that missional challenges exist throughout the word: people are hungry, families cross borders as refugees, violence and human trafficking claims lives. There is much going on in the world that needs a United Methodist witness.

Delegates pray together during the opening session of the Special Session of the General Conference of the UMC. Photo by Paul Jeffrey for United Methodist News Service.

Since I flew in today, I unfortunately missed a large part of the Prayer Service. However, the power of this service, and our true desire to keep Christ at the center of our gathering, was evident when I arrived at the Convention Center. I had to walk about a 1/4 mile from the Metro station to the entrance of the Convention Center. And all the time I was walking toward the entrance, I heard loud street preaching. The words were not a message of grace, but an angry demand for all to believe as this street preacher believes, with a strong threat of the fires of hell for those who don't. There were actually two stations of hell preaching, one at either end of the street next to the Convention Center. You couldn't escape the angry rhetoric.

Inside the Convention Center, it was very different. As I was looking for my section, I walked by a number of prayer stations, where Bishops were ready to serve Communion and offer blessings. Before I even made it to my seat, I received Communion from Bishop Lowry.

In the Convention Center arena, I found over a thousand United Methodists deep in prayer. The stillness in that space, which was filled with so many people, was far more powerful than the rantings of the street preachers. Truly, this Conference has been bathed in prayer!

In other news today, the Judicial Council ruled two (more) of the petitions submitted prior to the conference unconstitutional. The issue for both petitions had to do with the location of oversight authority. Decisions related to the character of clergy and their relationship to the annual conference currently reside with the annual conference, beginning with the clergy and lay members of the Conference Relations Committee. An attempt to move this authority to the General Conference and the College of Bishops was ruled unconstitutional. Another petition, which would create a global episcopacy committee to oversee the character and conduct of the bishops, was also ruled unconstitutional, as this authority currently rests with the episcopacy committees of the jurisdiction. 

Both of these petitions are part of the Modified Traditional Plan, which is seeking to tighten accountability for clergy, including bishops, who do not follow the UM Discipline. However, it appears that shifting responsibility for oversight of clergy and bishops is not in keeping with the rules of our constitution.

What will this mean for the Modified Traditional Plan? Perhaps we will find out tomorrow....

Tomorrow morning we begin with worship at 7:30, a half hour earlier than originally scheduled. We know there is much work ahead, and very little time in which to get it done.