{"id":2312,"date":"2012-10-15T12:53:40","date_gmt":"2012-10-15T19:53:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.pnwumc.org\/gc2012\/?p=2312"},"modified":"2013-11-08T10:08:50","modified_gmt":"2013-11-08T18:08:50","slug":"bishop-faults-jurisdictions-gay-issue-stand","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pnwumc.org\/news\/bishop-faults-jurisdictions-gay-issue-stand\/","title":{"rendered":"Bishop faults jurisdiction\u2019s gay issue stand"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><em>Indiana Conference Bishop Mike Coyner.\u00a0A UMNS photo by Erma Metzler, Indiana Conference.<\/em><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><em><strong>A UMNS Report\u00a0by Heather Hahn*<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<p>Indiana Area Bishop Michael J. Coyner on Oct. 15 published his criticisms of the Western Jurisdiction\u2019s stand against The United Methodist Church\u2019s teaching on homosexuality.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.umc.org\/site\/apps\/nlnet\/content3.aspx?c=lwL4KnN1LtH&amp;b=5259669&amp;ct=12064967\">Delegates to the Western Jurisdiction\u2019s meeting July 18-21<\/a>\u00a0adopted a\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.pnwumc.org\/gc2012\/what-does-a-statement-of-gospel-obedience-mean-for-the-church\/\">\u201cStatement of Gospel Obedience\u201d<\/a>\u00a0that says the denomination is in error in its stance that the practice of homosexuality \u201cis incompatible with Christian teaching.\u201d The jurisdiction\u2019s statement also urged United Methodists to operate as if that stance in<a href=\"http:\/\/www.umc.org\/site\/apps\/nlnet\/content.aspx?c=lwL4KnN1LtH&amp;b=5066287&amp;ct=6467529\">Paragraph 161F of the Book of Discipline<\/a>, the denomination\u2019s law book, \u201cdoes not exist, creating a church where all people are truly welcome.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/inumc.org\/epistles\/detail\/43572\">In his Oct. 15 E-pistle to the Indiana Annual (regional) Conference<\/a>, Coyner faulted the Western Jurisdiction\u2019s actions in three ways.<\/p>\n<p>He said the statement:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Comes across as a kind of \u201cneo-colonialism,\u201d distrusting the actions of the global church\u2019s General Conference, which increasingly includes delegates from outside the United States, particularly Africa<\/li>\n<li>Is a \u201cvery poor substitute for the honorable practice of civil disobedience as expressed clearly by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>Does not \u201coffer the church any way forward on this difficult issue\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>\u201cWhat if the Western Jurisdiction, which has a proud history of diversity, tolerance, and openness to new models of ministry, had offered some suggestions for our United Methodist Church to move forward on this issue?\u201d Coyner wrote. \u201cInstead, the actions and statements of the Western Jurisdiction seem to conclude that \u2018we are right and everyone else is wrong.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>Responses from\u00a0Western Jurisdiction bishops<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Los Angeles Area Bishop Minerva Carca\u00f1o, who leads the California-Pacific Annual (regional) Conference, and Pheonix Area Bishop Robert T. Hoshibata, who leads the Desert Southwest Conference, took issue with Coyner\u2019s appraisal of the jurisdiction\u2019s statement.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere is a rather large jump from the statement agreed upon at the WJ Conference and neo-colonialism,\u201d Carca\u00f1o said. \u201cNeo-colonialism is a complex socio-economic, political and historical reality that in my opinion is not appropriately used in this\u00a0\u00a0situation.\u00a0 It does, however, add gravitas to Bishop Coyner\u2019s statement and elevates a church situation to a level it does not\u00a0deserve.\u00a0It does, though, add to the barriers that we continue to erect among ourselves that do not allow us to have the\u00a0conversation we need to have about not only this issue, but a number of other issues pertaining to the social, moral and ethical fiber of our church and our witness to the world, or lack thereof.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She added that delegates from the Western Jurisdiction were seeking change to the denomination\u2019s stance on homosexuality long before the increase in African delegates that was apparent at the 2012 General Conference in Tampa, Fla.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat I read in the jurisdiction\u2019s statement is not that we know better than everybody else but that we know differently,\u201d Hoshibata said. \u201cWhat we taught centuries ago and called it the Gospel of Jesus Christ has changed with the world and with culture.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The bishops also said the Western Jurisdiction stands in the tradition of King\u2019s practice of civil disobedience during the U.S. civil rights movement.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhenever there is any injustice \u2014 an injustice against one person, one group or one community \u2014 I think those are opportunities to speak out and share our thoughts and\u00a0our concerns,\u201d Hoshibata said. \u201cIt\u2019s also an opportunity for us to demonstrate what we feel Christ has called us to do when he calls us to justice. This is precisely the Christ-like response I think Martin Luther King would have been supportive of.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>United Methodists in the jurisdiction have been in prayerful reflection on the matter of inclusivity for\u00a0a long time, Carca\u00f1o said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u00a0is our collective conclusion that God leads us in a\u00a0different direction and that we can longer remain silent,\u201d she said. \u201cWe are aware of the disciplinary consequences and believe that faithfulness to God is more important than staying in the ranks and file of the church and continuing to do what we United Methodists have done\u00a0for too long. We have spoken and lived in contradictory ways; we have said that persons of homosexual orientation are of sacred worth but not worthy of fully being a part of the church.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The Western Jurisdiction encompasses Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington, Wyoming, Guam and other U.S. territory in the Pacific Ocean.<\/p>\n<p><strong>A personal response<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>At the beginning of his response to the Western Jurisdiction, Coyner stressed that he was writing only his personal opinion as a bishop. He noted that his comments do not reflect the official position of the Indiana Conference, the North Central Jurisdiction or the Council of Bishops.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLots of people here in Indiana have been asking me for my personal response, and so rather than having thousands of conversations, it seemed easier to send out one statement for anyone to read who is interested,\u201d he told the United Methodist News Service.<\/p>\n<p>He added that he hoped his response would \u201cencourage further conversation\u201d among United Methodists.<\/p>\n<p>Coyner described himself as a member of the \u201cgreat middle\u201d of The United Methodist Church where he believes many church members find themselves.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cRight now, it feels like people are \u2018talking past one another\u2019 rather than having conversations with one another,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Divisions evident at General Conference<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The Western Jurisdiction\u2019s actions followed the defeat at General Conference, the denomination\u2019s top-lawmaking body, of a\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.umc.org\/site\/apps\/nlnet\/content3.aspx?c=lwL4KnN1LtH&amp;b=8079049&amp;ct=11740419&amp;notoc=1\">proposal to say the church was in disagreement about homosexuality<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>During General Conference, bishops take turns presiding during the plenary sessions, and Coyner was presiding at the morning session May 3 when delegates rejected proposals to change the denomination\u2019s stance on homosexuality.<\/p>\n<p>After those petitions failed,\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.umc.org\/site\/apps\/nlnet\/content3.aspx?c=lwL4KnN1LtH&amp;b=8057745&amp;ct=11740597&amp;notoc=1\">dozens of protesters gathered on the plenary floor after the break, singing \u2018What Does the Lord Require of You?\u2019<\/a>\u00a0Coyner asked the demonstrators to stop, and when they did not, he recessed the session for an early lunch. \u201cI think you\u2019re actually hurting your point,\u201d he told the group.<\/p>\n<p>The protesters stayed on the plenary floor through the lunch break, and representatives from the Council of Bishops negotiated with leaders of the demonstration and found a solution to the impasse. Germany\u2019s Bishop Rosemarie Wenner, then the new president of the Council of Bishops, opened the session with a statement crafted by the bishops. The Rev. Frank Wulf, a California-Pacific Conference delegate, prayed. And the demonstrators left the floor peacefully.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat particular protest moved toward being unhelpful when they disrupted times of worship and when their protest came without any advance discussion of their goals,\u201d Coyner told the United Methodist News Service on Oct. 15. \u201cHaving the General Conference go into recess allowed various leaders of the groups and General Conference leaders to work out a resolution \u2014 which I believe was appropriate and fair.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>A way forward?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>In his E-pistle, Coyner suggested that General Conference might one day modify its various statements on human sexuality \u201cfirst to affirm Christians of good will are in disagreement on these issues, and second to adopt a more moderate and holistic approach to these issues.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>However, he said, such changes should come with \u201cprayer, theological reflection, humility, listening to God and listening to one another.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The Western Jurisdiction, he said, was not providing a helpful way forward.<\/p>\n<p>Carca\u00f1o disputed Coyner\u2019s assertion\u00a0that the jurisdiction\u2019s statement does not provide a way for the denomination to move into the furure.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe statement says that in the West we will live with integrity what we have said as United\u00a0Methodists\u00a0\u2014 that we are all of sacred worth and all welcomed,\u201d she said.\u00a0\u201dWe recognize that the WJ statement puts the WJ in tension with other parts of the church.\u00a0 Perhaps this tension will be just what we need to lead the entire denomination to a better place.\u00a0 I am hoping that it will help us create the kind of Christian conferencing we need to be having on all matters important to God; a holy and disciplined conversation that does not wait for General Conference, but that is a daily exercise in our efforts to be faithful to God.\u00a0 For the opportunity to reflect on this matter, I am grateful to Bishop Coyner.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Coyner also took issue with those who see the Western Jurisdiction\u2019s actions as a prelude to a schism in The United Methodist Church.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPerhaps, I have been overly optimistic or hopeful,\u201d he said. \u201cBut I do not believe our United Methodist Church will split. To me, it would be a sad commentary about our inability to \u2018conference together\u2019 if we allow an issue like sexuality to split us.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Hoshibata and Carca\u00f1o\u00a0also both expressed confidence in the church\u2019s continued unity.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t believe the will of most United Methodists I\u2019ve spoken to is to split on this matter,\u201d Hoshibata said. \u201cI believe it is the will of most United Methodists to say this is a place where we do not agree, that we would like to do more conversations and prayer to find common ground in this matter. But in order to move ahead as a denomination, we need to focus on the mission of making disciples, and that takes places in a variety of ways.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Wenner, the Council of Bishops president, said Coyner\u2019s statement \u201cindicates that we need to engage in holy conversation on the question of human sexuality \u2013 not only at General Conference, but throughout the quadrennium.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She said the Council of Bishops takes a lead on this.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe meet as colleagues from all regions of the church, and we hopefully will model that we are united in Christ and in responding to the call to make disciples even in our diversity.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The Council of Bishops will meet Nov. 4-9 for the first time with its new members.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><em>*Hahn is a multimedia reporter for United Methodist News Service.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>News media contact: Heather Hahn, Nashville, Tenn. (615) 742-5470 or<a href=\"mailto:newsdesk@umcom.org\">newsdesk@umcom.org<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Indiana Conference Bishop Mike Coyner.\u00a0A UMNS photo by Erma Metzler, Indiana Conference. A UMNS Report\u00a0by Heather Hahn* Indiana Area Bishop Michael J. Coyner on Oct. 15 published his criticisms of the Western Jurisdiction\u2019s stand against The United Methodist Church\u2019s teaching on homosexuality. Delegates to the Western Jurisdiction\u2019s meeting July 18-21\u00a0adopted a\u00a0\u201cStatement of Gospel Obedience\u201d\u00a0that says [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":51,"featured_media":2313,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[3],"tags":[116,14],"class_list":{"0":"post-2312","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-umns","8":"tag-mission","9":"tag-sexuality"},"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.pnwumc.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/umns_coyner.jpg?fit=600%2C402&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p2l75j-Bi","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pnwumc.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2312","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pnwumc.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pnwumc.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pnwumc.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/51"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pnwumc.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2312"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.pnwumc.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2312\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5715,"href":"https:\/\/www.pnwumc.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2312\/revisions\/5715"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pnwumc.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2313"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pnwumc.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2312"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pnwumc.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2312"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pnwumc.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2312"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}