I’ve been reading some of the coverage of the recent General Conference in non-United Methodist News Outlets. Many of them are missing a key element in their stories. That missing element is the fact that much of what was passed by General Conference was ruled unconstitutional by the Judicial Council (the UMC’s version of the United States Supreme Court) before it was even adopted. What was ruled unconstitutional before it was approved will almost certainly be ruled unconstitutional when the Judicial Council meets again April 23-25, 2019. [1] That means we’ll have to wait until then to really know where things stand. I’ve also read several stories that assume those who affirm LGBTQ folks will leave the church. That has not happened in the past. In the past, it has been the non-affirming churches that have left. I may very well be wrong, but my guess is that past is prelude.

[1] Linda Bloom, “Wrap-up: Judicial Council at GC2019,” United Methodist News Service, February 27, 2019, http://bit.ly/2T5xn8T.