Asbury United Methodist Church has announced their process for disaffiliation with the United Methodist Church (UMC) started due to the "slow and steady drift" of the former denomination from their historic Christian mission.
In a statement posted on their website, their church changed its name to "Asbury Church" and said its "main focus was protecting the assets and interests of Asbury, and fully disaffiliating from the UMC."
It wasn't confirmed yet if the Church would be affiliating with a new denomination though they consider joining Global Methodist Church, a more conservative Methodist denomination.
"One likely future will be as part of a renewed Methodist movement in a future denomination known as the Global Methodist Church. This future denomination will be made up of former United Methodists from North America, Africa, Europe, and elsewhere who uphold the authority of Scripture. The formation of this new denomination has been delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic," Asbury Church wrote in a statement.
According to The Christian Post, this announcement was released after UMC delayed its General Meeting for the third time due to the COVID-19 restrictions.
Asbury Church senior pastor Rev. Tom Harrison told Tulsa World, "There isn't one issue driving this separation; rather, after years of operating under vastly different approaches to theology, ministry, and Christology, it was determined by the leadership of the Church, in conjunction with the pastoral staff, that these approaches are irreconcilable and no longer sustainable. As Asbury Church, we will continue to pursue our mission of helping others follow Jesus."
Based on the report, the UMC violated its stance on sexuality and the ordination of non-celibate homosexuals. "We discern each candidate based on their fitness for ministry. Sexual orientation and identity are not part of the evaluation by the Board of Ordained Ministry." Rev. John Bell, chair of the Northern Illinois BOOM told The Christian Post. As a result, more conservative churches decided to leave the denomination.
The Global Methodist Church was set to launch this May 2022 with a 17-member Transitional Leadership Council, according to GMC's statement. "Thousands of Methodist clergy and laity from around the world have worked together for over three years to lay the groundwork for a new, theologically conservative Methodist denomination steeped in the great ecumenical and evangelical confessions of the Christian faith. They envision a church fired by a warm-hearted, Wesleyan expression of that faith that is dedicated to sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ in word and deed," GMC stated.
According to the Chairman of the Transitional Leadership Council Rev. Keith Boyette, many theologically conservative UM churches wanted to be "free of divisive and destructive debates and to have the freedom to move forward together." The new denomination was expected to increase in number, said Rev. Boyette, as many existing congregations will join them over the next few years.
"It is anticipated that some theologically conservative local churches will find annual conferences willing to negotiate fair and just exit provisions, while others will, unfortunately, face obstacles placed in their paths," the denomination said in a statement.
