General Conference Postponed
Dear Friends:
As many of you will recall, the General Conference of The United Methodist Church that originally had been scheduled for May 2020 was rescheduled due to COVID to late August/early September of 2021. A little over a week ago, a decision was announced to further postpone the General Conference until August 29 through September 6, 2022. This decision was made because the COVID pandemic, although improving, still makes the logistics of bringing thousands of United Methodists together from all over the world practically impossible.
The Commission responsible for planning General Conference looked at the possibilities of holding the General Conference online. Given the importance of the issues concerning human sexuality that are on the agenda, it was felt that it is important to meet in person to ensure that the Methodist practice of Holy Conferencing was followed in making such important decisions on the future of our denomination.
You may see references to an upcoming “Special General Conference” that will be held online this May. This Special General Conference will be held do deal with administrative issues that require action at this time.
This means that some important questions will remain unresolved for at least another year. Some people will find it uncomfortable to continue to live with these questions for another year. I respect those feelings. But I also recognize that our calling to be agents of Christ’s love continues without interruption. Thankfully, God offers us the grace to live with uncertainty and to love without condition. Thanks be to God!
Grace and peace,
Pastor Tom
