“NOW WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO?” is a question being posed by many clergy and laity in The United Methodist Church. There is enormous uncertainty in the denomination regarding matters that divide us. Some local churches are disaffiliating and departing. Clergy are deciding whether they are United Methodists, other Methodists, or not Methodists after all.
While the issue that has generated the most discussion in recent years is sexuality, that is not the only division in the church. In the United States, we still carry a legacy of racial segregation that defines Black and White relationships, and we are stymied in our efforts to be generationally and ethnically inclusive. Our local churches in America are so divided politically that some topics are considered off-limits for pastoral discussion and pulpit proclamation. More broadly, we struggle with what it means to be a global church.
Rev. Bill Lawrence will be our guest speaker during the 2022 Retreat slated for September 28 – 30, 2022 at Ft. Caswell Conference Center. This year’s theme is “NOW WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO? Reflections for Uncertain United Methodists.”