The MCC and UMC on LGBTQ+ Inclusion

By Ginger Goodin and Melissa Jacks Dowdy

How welcoming and affirming is the MCC?

We heard from MCC representatives about their welcoming congregations, but we wanted to understand more about their ministries and services. In their presentation, the MCC asserted they are an LGBTQ+ welcoming church, so we researched the website of the MCC’s founding church, White’s Chapel, as well as the MCC presentation at Bethany, to see if there is clear evidence they indeed provide support to the LGBTQ+ community. 

Safe and Judgment Free?

White’s Chapel has an impressive counseling team to serve its members. However, they direct their LGBTQ+ members to contact an outside program if they are seeking “a safe, judgment-free space to talk.” Are their own church counselors not safe and judgment-free? 

We also viewed the Reconciling Ministries Network (RMN) website, which provides a listing of Methodist churches and small groups that have declared themselves LGBTQ+ affirming. This is a critical resource for the LGBTQ+ community when seeking safe, judgment-free Methodist churches and small groups. Is White’s Chapel listed? No, not one of their many adult Sunday School classes or support groups can be found on the RMN listing.

No Local Church Control on LGBTQ+

A local church entering the MCC will be required to adhere to the MCC Book of Doctrine, which states that marriage is between one man and one woman. When pressed during the Bethany Q&A session, representatives from the MCC said that they would not allow gay marriages to be performed, not even by local churches, and would not support gay clergy. 

While continuing these discriminatory practices, they invite same sex couples to “be transformed by Christ.” As Christians, we all hope to be transformed by Christ, and want the same for others. But in this context, the phrase is commonly used as a criticism of homosexuality, implying homosexuality is a choice and that by being faithful, they will somehow change who they were created by God to be. It is a common phrase used in “conversion therapy” programs, the harmful and discredited practice by religious organizations to try to change sexual orientation or gender identity.

The MCC’s responses, their doctrine prohibiting gay marriage, and the lack of hard evidence that they are supporting the LGBTQ+ community raise questions about how LGBTQ+ affirming the MCC really is.  

The UMC as Middle Ground

The UMC has always welcomed dialogue between people who don’t agree; this is the Wesleyan way. You are not forced to assume one Biblical interpretation. 

If the discriminatory language is someday removed from the Book of Discipline of the UMC, this will not automatically mean that every UMC church will become progressive. Here’s what it would do:

• Remove the barriers for full inclusion, perhaps allowing a church to approve a gay clergyperson, if they desired to do so. 
  
  
• Allow pastors who desire to perform gay weddings the ability to do so; those who would not wish to do so would not be required to. 
  
  
• Leave it up to churches to decide if their sanctuaries would hold these ceremonies or not. 

The UMC has always promoted the idea of a “big tent” church, where all are welcome to think and to debate, holding space for all viewpoints while continuing to remain grounded in traditional church doctrine and creeds. See the Rio Texas Conference’s Common Misconceptions about Disaffiliation. 

We don’t all agree, and we will not be expected to do so if we stay in the UMC; but in the future, we hope that our LGBTQ+ friends and family members will not be a point of debate, but instead be valued and included as full members in the life of the church.