S5E32 Two Ken’s - The United Methodist Church and the State of the Union

Laura Bullard on Vox, suggests that the UMC tells us something about America. Recently, the denomination voted, by policy, to be fully inclusive of the LGBTQ+ community, eliminating any and all restrictions regarding membership, leadership in the church and ordination for clergy roles. The vote tallied in at 479 to 203 in favor of the historic change. Bullard posits that in America, most of the population would agree - and yet, in conservative Christian churches and denominations, there remains clear and stubborn opposition - often rooted in a reference to “Biblical Authority.” The two Kens - Ken Fong and Ken Kemp, reflect on their own journey - a change of mind and heart. They celebrate with the majority of the UMC - but recognize the new “Mason Dixon Line” that, like slavery and the Civil War, has triggered an exodus from liberal “mainline” churches. They have flocked to conservative “evangelical” churches that stake their claim on their myopic understanding of their 2,000-year-old sacred text that has created a crushing polarization - at a monstrous cost. This “controversy” has taken an enormous toll in broken lives, broken families, and split churches - not to mention the heavy cost of legal battles, raging denominational splits, massive wasted expenditures and endless arguments over real estate. Ken and Ken share their lament; but also their hope - that folks will take time to think again. The rewards are many. SHOW NOTES

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