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Let’s connect some dots
by James V. Heidinger II

This issue of Good News gives you a good snap-shot of real church unity and authentic ecumenism. More than 650 persons from 33 states and Canada representing 12 mainline denominations gathered in Indianapolis in October for the “Confessing the Faith” Conference sponsored by the Association for Church Renewal.

This was a deeply moving experience, even historic, as the evangelical constituencies from the various mainline denominations gathered to worship, enjoy fellowship, establish networks, and to reclaim (by faith) the historic Christian faith for their struggling denominations.

Attendees heard a pastoral letter, “Be Steadfast: A Letter to Confessing Christians,” which urged evangelicals not to withdraw from their churches but to stay and encourage one another in the struggle for renewal. The pastoral was written by the Confessing Theologians Commission, a group of 18 evangelical theologians from mainline Protestant denominations, chaired by United Methodist theologian, Dr. Tom Oden.

On the conference’s last day, participants affirmed by acclamation a “Response” to the pastoral letter, saying in part, “We do not believe this is a time to abandon our churches to theologies and ideologies that have given us more than thirty years of mainline decline. Rather, we commend ourselves and our churches to a renewed commitment to the classic Christian faith made known in history and attested to by the prophets, the apostles and the martyrs.” Note that the commitment is to “the classic Christian faith.”

In a Christianity Today news story on the event, Michael Cromartie, vice president of the Ethics and Public Policy Center in Washington, D.C., pointed out that “People aren’t clinging to Episcopalianism [or United Methodism] as much as they are clinging to classical Christianity.” That was true for the 650 who came to “Confessing the Faith.” We were united around Jesus as Lord and the authoritative Word of God. Denominational tags seemed insignificant.

Isn’t it time we connected some dots about what has happened in our United Methodist Church? A retired UM pastor told me recently of an annual conference that just 35 years ago had 80 churches with memberships of more than 1,000. Now, only 10 churches in that conference have more than 1,000 members. He told me of several annual conferences that are nearly bankrupt, one unable to assist its retired pastors with their medical insurance. We talked about once-great flagship churches in the denomination that are now only shadows of what they once were. I recalled one former flagship church in Illinois with a membership of well over 3,000. It now has just 682 members with a reported average attendance of only 373.

Is continued decline inevitable? No. But we must get realistic about what our problem is. I refuse to attribute our 2.6 million member loss during the past 30 years to matters of demographics only. United Methodist churches that have a strong Christology and acknowledge the full authority of Scripture, are usually vital, growing churches. More than 20 years ago a pastor was sent to Wheatland-Salem UM Church in Naperville, Illinois, with the thought it would probably have to close. After more than 20 years, it has relocated, built a brand new facility and its attendance is one of the highest in the Northern Illinois Conference. It’s a thoroughly evangelical congregation. Members know what they believe about Jesus

George Mitrovich’s assessment of our church’s problem (see November/ December, Good News, p. 25) is on target: “We are a church confused about our message.” The bishops speak with one unshaking voice about dealing with Iraq, but they cannot do the same thing about the virgin birth or the bodily resurrection of our Lord. Mitrovich is right in citing our “overwhelmingly liberal clergy who seek to mask their true beliefs—a denial of that great body of Christian doctrine that’s marked 2,000 years of church history.” The fact is, in recent months, that great body of doctrine has not just been masked, it’s been boldly denied.

If United Methodist laity perceive their church leadership is unsure about Jesus, about his birth, atoning death, and bodily resurrection, and if they hear from those leaders that homosexual practice is no different than heterosexual, they will continue departing quietly to other churches where they can “cling to classic Christianity.” And our financial woes will deepen.

Anglican Bishop John Jewel wrote timely words in his famous Apology (1562), saying, “It is not our doctrine that we bring you this day; we wrote it not, we found it not out, we are not the inventors of it; we bring you nothing but what the old fathers of the church, what the apostles, what Christ our Saviour himself hath brought before us.”

That is the kind of faith to which United Methodists will “cling.” And they deserve nothing less.



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