Reconciling Ministries Network of Chicago, Illinois, United States for Tuesday, 24 October 2017 - Rev. David Meredith gets two complaints dropped "Staff Transition, Committee on Investigation Results, and this week's Judicial Council meeting"
Staff Transition: Rev. Lois McCullen Parr
Reflecting on her time at RMN, Lois says, “As a lay person, I started volunteering with the then Reconciling Congregations Program many years ago, but joining the staff of RMN has given me an opportunity to know the movement from its heart. I’m grateful for my staff colleagues and the many, many volunteers who lead annual conference team witness across the connection--they have taught me so much, and they have shown me what faithfulness and hope look like.”
RMN is incredibly thankful for the ministry of Lois, and having her on staff for the last two years has been a great joy. We know that though Lois is called in new directions, her passion and work for justice will continue, and she will remain an active part of the movement.
Lois explains, “While I will no longer be on staff, I’ll never be far from the movement--I’m an Elder in the United Methodist Queer Clergy Caucus and I’m committed to working for LGBTQ justice in the church that taught me about Jesus. I’ll be continuing to serve on Extension appointment in the anti-racism ministry that I’m called to--and I also know that I’ll be seeing the Reconciling family at the next Convo!”
In preparation for this transition, we have realized that our staffing needs to be restructured. Particularly in light of the upcoming back-to-back general conferences, the movement will require engagement and participation from every angle. RMN recognizes and has responded to the need to be strategically staffed during this crucial time by deciding to hire one Regional Organizer for the North Central Jurisdiction and another for the Northeastern Jurisdiction.
We are pleased to announce that we have recently hired Alex Shanks as the North Central Regional Organizer. We look forward to sharing more information about him with you soon, but in the meantime, we are thrilled to welcome him onto the team!.
In the coming weeks, we will make an announcement regarding the North Eastern Regional Organizer position. In the meantime, any questions may be directed to Interim Executive Director Jan Lawrence (jan@rmnetwork.org).
Two Charges Dismissed; One Remains
Predictably, complaints were filed immediately against Rev. Meredith. Over the last year and a half, the process has unfolded with no viable resolution.
On October 18, 2017, the Committee on Investigation shared with Rev. Meredith that two of the three complaints have been dismissed.
On May 7, 2016, Rev. David Meredith and Jim Schlachter were married at Broad St. United Methodist Church in Columbus, Ohio. A committed couple for over 30 years, Rev. Meredith and Mr. Schlachter invited the church to recognize–in their relationship, in Rev. Meredith’s ministry, and in the community that embraces them–love that transcends policies and prejudices. Their ceremony was a witness to all that the church can be–at its best–a place where relationships thrive, love is centric, and discrimination has no part.
Predictably, complaints were filed immediately against Rev. Meredith. Over the last year and a half, the process has unfolded with no viable resolution. Yesterday, the Committee on Investigation shared with Rev. Meredith that two of the three complaints have been dismissed. The remaining charge is for “disobedience to the order and Discipline of the church” based on paragraph 341.6 in the Book of Discipline which states that “Ceremonies that celebrate homosexual unions shall not be conducted by our ministers and shall not be conducted in our churches.”
Rev. David Meredith celebrated the dismissal of the two complaints regarding his sexuality as a clergy person and his relationship to his husband, noting that the work for justice continues–both in his complaint process moving forward and for the church at large.
On the heels of Judicial Council taking place next week where three cases relate to sexuality and discrimination in The United Methodist Church, the news from the Committee on Investigation is bittersweet.
There is celebration in the dismissal of two complaints that are rooted in nothing more than prejudice and discrimination, and at the same time, the continuation of the third charge is a painful example of the denomination’s willingness to continue enacting harm against its LGBTQ members.
Jan Lawrence, Interim Executive Director of RMN, spoke to the work that remains before us saying, “We give thanks for the witness of Rev. Meredith. He has and continues to face great consequences for his commitment to integrity, justice, and love. We hope the Network will continue to support him and keep him in prayer as the process moves forward. As we head toward Judicial Council next week and toward the special called General Conference in 2019, we are reminded today of the urgency of God’s call upon our lives. Every day the discriminatory policies of the denomination remain in place is a day too long.”
As long as the threat of a trial looms over any LGBTQ person or ally, the work of creating justice in the denomination presses upon us.
Like Rev. Meredith did in 2016, we are also invited to live and act according to our faith first–not in 2019, but now–today and everday. The opportunity to choose Love is given to each of us, despite the policies in the Book of Discipline. We remain committed to supporting every lay person, pastor, committee, and congregation who models Biblical Obedience by choosing Love, refusing to persecute any of God’s beloved children because of who they are, and modeling for the rest of the denomination what it really means to be church.
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For more information, visit Affirm Inclusion.
Judicial Council Meeting
Along with members of the Reconciling Ministries Network team, the United Methodist Queer Clergy Caucus will be present on the ground to bear witness to the injustice of having LGBTQ lives and loves ruled on once again. Read the press release about the witness planned by the caucus below and keep an eye out on social media to follow along.
LGBTQI+ Clergy Plan Witness in Los Angeles as Denomination’s Judicial Council Meets
Co-Convenors
Rev. Alex da Silva Souto <pastor.alex.souto@gmail.com> 415-706-5397
Rev. Lois McCullen Parr <gizhilois@yahoo.com> 224-436-0769
“The United Methodist Church’s ongoing policies and practices of excluding and discriminating against LGBTQ people are causing horrible harm to queer lives and loves, and also horrible harm to the wider church,” says Rev. Anna Blaedel, a member of the United Methodist Queer Clergy Caucus (UMQCC), United Methodists who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, queer, and intersex. The Caucus will bear witness to their ministries as the denomination’s Judicial Council gathers in Los Angeles October 24-27, 2017. The clergy will pray, celebrate Holy Communion, and remember the Saints of the justice movement during the week as the Church’s official judicial group’s docket includes cases that affect queer lives.
The group says they are often talked about as an issue, and that their presence is a reminder to those who are in legal deliberations “that we are real people – people created by and called by God to be in ministry in Christ’s Church,” says Rev. Frank Wulf. Wulf says that nearly 200 individuals are now a part of the Caucus, and that the Caucus Leadership Team will also hold a daylong meeting during the week.
The UMQCC is organizing its own leadership and operations for its public witness as the denomination anticipates two General Conferences in 2019 and 2020 (the global gathering of the denomination where polity and policy are determined). The 2019 specially-called General Conference is anticipated to be “about us,” says the Caucus: The UMC Council of Bishops established a ‘Commission on A Way Forward’ to set the course for the future of a church divided over its discrimination of LGBTQI people. “As the Commission continues its work, I pray that the Spirit may continue to empower the ministries of all the people called United Methodists for disciple making for the transformation of the world. My queer siblings and I continue to respond to God’s call on our lives and in doing so encourage others to do the same,” says T.C. Morrow.
The UMC’s official Book of Discipline names “the practice of homosexuality incompatible with Christian teaching,” and one of the Judicial Council’s cases will examine whether this phrase, added in 1972, is actually unconstitutional within the denomination’s structure and guidelines. Two other cases reflect Annual Conference matters where a lesbian’s candidacy for ordination and a queer Elder’s status have been called into question.
“Putting people on trial for being, loving, and being in vibrant ministry is incompatible with Jesus’ teachings,” says Blaedel. “This process is dehumanizing, divisive, and undermines our mission of making disciples and transforming the world. The way forward, if it is faithful, must be a way of justice and liberation, where the gifts, graces, lives, and loves of LGBTQ people are celebrated.”
“We will be present to remind the members of Judicial Council that we have been a part of The UMC and we are faithfully serving,” affirms Rev. Dr. Israel Alvaran. “We’re inviting those members to join us in prayer and in celebrating Holy Communion – we believe that the Table is Christ’s, and that all are called to it to celebrate our common story of salvation.”
UMQCC will focus their witness with a commitment to “resist evil, injustice, and oppression in whatever forms they present themselves,” using language from the liturgy of the Church’s Baptismal Covenant. “As long as injustice and oppression continue, resistance is faithfulness to our Baptism,” says Rev. Alex da Silva Souto.
UMQCC plans Holy Communion celebrations on Thursday and Friday, October 26 and 27, at noon on the Crowne Plaza Hotel grounds, 5985 W. Century Blvd., Los Angeles; a Remembrance of Saints will be held during Thursday morning’s Holy Communion service, and again in an evening vigil at 6:00 p.m. Local members of Methodist Federation for Social Action (MFSA), Affirmation, Western Methodist Justice Movement (WMJM), Love Your Neighbor Coalition (LYNC), and Reconciling Ministries Network (RMN) will be joining the UMQCC witness.
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United Methodist Queer Clergy Caucus (www.umqcc.org) is made up of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersex people who are called, commissioned, and ordained clergy in the United Methodist Church. The Caucus seeks to act in solidarity with one another and with others who have been marginalized in the church.
Copyright © 2017 Reconciling Ministries Network, All rights reserved.
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Reconciling Ministries Network
Copyright © 2017 Reconciling Ministries Network, All rights reserved.
Our mailing address is:
Reconciling Ministries Network
123 West Madison Street, Suite 2150
Chicago, Illinois 60602, United States
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