The United Methodist Church is preparing to divide into two fundamentally new denominations: the Global Methodist Church, which will lose most of the denominational bureaucracy but maintain the historic, official doctrinal and moral values of United Methodism, and the post-separation United Methodist Church (psUMC), which will take most of the bureaucracy but liberalize the values. Shortly before the North Central Jurisdiction (NCJ) had its recent virtual session, a key leader of the United Methodist Centrist Movement from that region publicly declared his apparent determination to prevent the ordination of Asbury Theological Seminary graduates in the psUMC!
This was a helpfully clarifying remark. As we prepare for this big change, there has been much questioning and discussion about how much tolerance the psUMC will have for traditionalists, those who support United Methodist’s current official doctrine and morals. Some liberal bishops and district superintendents have been energetically marketing the psUMC as a supposedly “big tent” while being curiously vague on details on how traditionalists could be concretely respected, or what contributions they really want from traditionalists beyond taking our property and offering-plate money. Even the North Central Jurisdiction’s recently adopted “progressive incompatibilist” vision has now faced questions about what its words really, concretely mean.
But vowing to block the ordination of any new Asbury graduates in the psUMC is effectively a plan for the denomination to adopt an ethos resulting in conservative congregations who choose to go with the psUMC, even if they are largely “left alone” for a few years, becoming unlikely to find an evangelical or theological traditionalist pastor after their current pastor retires.
Pastor Bryan Bucher of the West Ohio Conference, a key and pioneering “centrist” leader, made his comments on social media, to an audience of some 12,000 people in “The New Methodists” Facebook group. As of this writing, the discussion thread in which he made his remarks is publicly viewable on some browsers even to people who are not members of this Facebook group.
The immediate context was a discussion about Asbury Theological Seminary, a bastion of evangelical Methodism. While it is independent of any single denomination, Asbury has a history of training more American United Methodist clergy than any of our denomination’s 13 official U.S. seminaries. The seminary has an official communal “Ethos” which outlines key doctrinal and moral values for its faculty, staff, trustees, and students, including abstaining from such behaviors as cheating, lying, and “engaging in sexual relations outside the bonds of marriage (including but not limited to premarital sex, adultery, and same-sex sexual behavior),” among other things. I am told that when students first apply, they are required to promise to live within the Ethos’s moral boundaries as long as they are at the school, even if they personally disagree with some of the values.
So students who, for example, don’t personally agree with the sexual-morality standards in their beliefs are still asked to not cross those boundaries in their own personal behavior.
In the discussion about Asbury, Bucher vowed, “We won’t take a one of them after the split if I have any say about it. Anyone who signs on to a Blatantly discriminatory seminary’s ethos statement should be disqualified for candidacy out of the gate.”
He later clarified that he wanted this blocking of Asbury graduates in the psUMC to be enforced by the board of ordained ministry in his annual conference, the main body charged with screening ordination candidates in each area.
Bucher received considerable pushback, but did not back down. He invoked his own Asbury ties and expressed his preference for graduates of the seminaries of Boston University School of Theology, Candler School of Theology, Duke Divinity School, Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary, Perkins School of Theology, or Wesley Theological Seminary.
At one point, when someone pointed out that not all Asbury alumni are conservative, the centrist leader appeared uninterested in making an exception for liberal Asbury graduates in the psUMC. His reply was to say, “If you aren’t conservative, then make a better choice for your education.”
Here is a screenshot link:
No, Bryan Bucher is not the sole spokesman for the psUMC.
But Bucher’s voice is rather significant. He was a founding leader—together with Mike Slaughter, Douglas Damron, Candler School of Theology’s Don Saliers, and others—of the “United Methodist Centrist Movement” which began in late 2014 (see this screen capture from the group’s old website). But among the small group of founding fathers, Bucher seemed to be the primary leader. When this group first started, I reached out to them in a good-faith effort to give them a chance to show my suspicions were unfair and that they were genuine centrists with at least a remotely comparable amount of common ground and willingness to work together with conservative United Methodist groups like UMAction as with liberal caucuses. I was told then that Bucher was the person to talk to. Later, when a western Ohio news outlet published an article promoting the Centrist Movement, Bucher was the only representative of the group quoted.
The influence of Bucher’s “Centrist Movement” rippled far beyond its original context of the West Ohio Annual Conference.
If you have ever wondered how the term “centrist” suddenly became widely used in American United Methodism’s national politics in the last half-dozen years, Bucher’s group probably deserves a lot of the credit.
People in the UMC, as in any other context of disagreement, have long talked about those who are “moderate,” “middle-of-the-road,” or other such terms. But the widespread use of the particular term, “centrist,” in United Methodist discourse had a rather specific beginning. A Google site search of the official United Methodist News Service website lists many dozens of articles using that word. But not one of these articles was posted before 2015. It appears that the term “centrist” only came into widespread circulation in United Methodist politics as Bucher’s “Centrist Movement” gained more momentum and attention.
While the group no longer has an active website or Facebook page that I could find, its influence has spread far beyond any organizational structure. Key leaders from the United Methodist Centrist Movement joined with United Methodist Church of the Resurrection Pastor Adam Hamilton and others to launch a nationwide centrist caucus called “Uniting Methodists.”
By the time we were approaching the 2019 General Conference, it was clear that such self-described “centrists” had taken the driver’s seat of liberal efforts in our denomination’s internal struggles.
Earlier, I extensively critiqued how such “centrists” are not really centrist in any meaningful sense of the term, but the use of this word seemed to be more a matter of liberals (including some former evangelicals) rebranding themselves in ways that seemed more politically marketable. In my observation, all United Methodist groups and all leaders with at least the prominence of a General Conference delegate who tout the “centrist” label for themselves are actually institutionalist liberals rather than part of the genuine American Methodist middle (a distinction I explained here).
Bucher’s no-room-at-the-inn stance against Asbury graduates in the psUMC was probably always the inevitable endpoint of the so-called “One Church Plan” such groups championed at the 2019 General Conference.
But for the record, I am not mad at Bucher as if he said some outrageous, horrible thing. Amidst all the marketeering, misinformation, and incredibly vague platitudes of other partisans of the psUMC, he refreshingly showed the courage, honesty, and principled conviction to state clearly how he intends to work to shape the psUMC after the split.
After all, the Covenant endorsed with virtually no dissent from any NCJ delegates who were not elected with conservative-caucus support actually identifies the official values of the UMC and Asbury Theological Seminary with “evil powers.” For his part, the Rev. Bucher, in response to some of the pushback, expressed his wanting “pastors that aren’t perpetuating the bigotry and disdain that is propelling evangelicalism toward irrelevance, and becoming a weight the rest of us must carry,” which is a “weight of hypocrisy, bad exegesis, and a lack of concern for those suffering on the margins.”
If you truly have such a negative view of evangelical values and evangelical ministers, then it is just logical to not want to invite such “evil” into positions of spiritual authority in your new denomination.
Within the U.S., Asbury has long been a main source of theologically orthodox United Methodist pastors. To the extent that Bucher and like-minded leaders prevent the ordination of new Asbury graduates in the psUMC, it remains to be seen whether this will be achieved via formal policy (like removing Asbury from the official list of approved schools for United Methodist seminarians) or an escalation of the hazing Asbury graduates already get from some liberal gatekeepers in the UMC to the de facto point that no more are approved.
In any case, in a denomination that goes down such a road, it can be expected that discrimination against other evangelical seminaries will worsen. Even graduates of liberal seminaries will face a hard time getting approved for ordination if they are openly evangelical.
To be fair, Bucher’s social-media comments are not the same as an irrevocably established policy. But at least he is a liberal leader willing to actually say how he wants to shape such concrete questions as whether or not Asbury graduates could be ordained in the psUMC. This is a refreshing contrast to how some psUMC marketeers offer only the vaguest slogans about supposedly wanting to “include everybody” or dishonestly deny that much will change in the psUMC, while consistently avoiding such rubber-meets-the-road details. For our expectations about the psUMC, we should put a lot more trust in statements like Bucher’s than the vague rhetoric of bishops and their representatives.
For traditionalist-leaning congregations, perhaps the best they can expect in the psUMC is: The denomination will happily take their apportionment money and greedily eye their property. They may be allowed to keep doing ministry as they believe is most faithful, quietly, without too much interference. They may be excluded from meaningful positions of conference and denominational leadership, but can be begrudgingly tolerated, for a time, to live off in their own isolated world. But after their current pastor eventually retires or otherwise moves on, there is an excellent chance that they will suddenly find that there is no approved orthodox/traditionalist pastor available to lead them. Too few new ones have been interested in or allowed into the psUMC’s ordination pipeline. Then this congregation, as one of the last remaining little outposts of traditionalist faith within the psUMC will be spiritually taken over, and never have another non-liberal pastor again.
A little research and advance planning can avoid a lot of heartache down the road.
Comment by Reynolds on December 21, 2021 at 7:32 am
They are playing to win. Again, I don’t believe there will be a vote to separate because they will lose a lot of money. The 80/20 rule states that 80% of your money comes from 20% of your people. Most liberals understand they are not part of that 20%. They aren’t going to let the 20% to go freely without making them pay or just walking away at which point they will sell the property. I am not sure when the WCA will wake-up and understand this.
Comment by David S. on December 21, 2021 at 9:06 am
As former members of other mainline denominations, who comment on these pages can attest, that will be the end goal. Oh, depending upon the denomination’s polity, the theological left may give lip-service to diversity of opinion and thought, but on the whole, they know they are lying that they don’t believe that part of the polity.
So, traditionalists should be glad that someone is finally being truthful. But, in so pointing this out, traditionalists should also take cue from the scene in the 2003 “Luther” film, where Prince Frederick tells Spalatin regarding Rome’s demands to hand over Luther that first you must be polite and say, “No.”, hoping they will go away. Then try one more time but in a more firm manner, hoping for a similar result. If they still don’t get the message, “then you must resolve to fight, and in so doing, you must resolve to win”. The dialogue then follows with, “No, I will not send my monk to Rome. They will only kill him.”
This is the tact that these people have taken, so traditionalists have no choice but to do so in kind. And in so doing, must resolve to show that if these people are attempting to exploit the pandemic to prevent a concrete vote as some have suggested, then do so as explicitly as possible to reveal them for their true colors, which certain bishops with their “alternative”, interim plans and bad faith efforts to rig the vote and transition, have already done.
Comment by Dan W on December 21, 2021 at 10:00 am
From the second screenshot – Robert Reeves reply “give me pastors who are passionate about Jesus Christ, who are filled and directed by the Holy Spirit…” is a great message for this Advent season!
Bryan Bucher’s response “give me pastors that aren’t perpetuating the bigotry and disdain that is propelling evangelicalism toward irrelevance…” tells me he has lost his way.
Reeves last sentence “And by the way, I didn’t go to Asbury, I went to Candler!” I hope reminds us great pastors can come from liberal and conservative schools, or from local pastor programs.
Comment by Loren J Golden on December 21, 2021 at 10:02 am
“Give me pastors that aren’t perpetuating the bigotry and disdain that is propelling evangelicalism toward irrelevance, and becoming a weight the rest of us must carry. The weight of hypocrisy, bad exegesis, and a lack of concern for those suffering on the margins.”
Instead, he wants pastors who perpetuate the bigotry and disdain toward Evangelicals, Evangelicalism, and sound, Biblical exegesis that have already propelled Mainline Protestantism into irrelevance, and which continue propelling it toward self-annihilation. I suggest that Rev. Bucher take the log out of his own eye before he presumes to take the speck out Evangelicalism’s collective eye.
Comment by Jeff on December 21, 2021 at 11:06 am
Thanks, John. Two comments:
1) Asbury with Dr. Tennent at the helm is the only Methodist seminary with any claim to fidelity to their mission at all. IMHO
2) “Reverend” Bucher is indeed a poster child for the concept that there IS NO SUCH THING as a “centrist”. The Sword of the Spirit, the WORD of GOD, doesn’t cleave into sixteen parts, or four, or even three: it cleaves into exactly TWO. Good or evil? Righteous or unrighteous? Wheat or weeds? Sheep or goats? Kingdom of Light, or kingdom of darkness? The sooner that the WCA and others who claim to lead the GMC recognize this truth, and stop treating the UMC division as some kind of silly “mitosis” into groups of separate but equal righteousness, the better the chance they’ll actually succeed in their mission to reform the GMC as a bondservant to the LORD in the Wesleyan tradition.
Comment by Nothing New, yawn on December 21, 2021 at 12:40 pm
This is par for the course in this annual conference, I am amazed that people are surprised by this. There is no tolerance in the conference and jurisdiction of anything but the political and social left, and that has been reality for generations now.
Church leaders should be prepared and prepare their church people to leave the denomination one way or the other. In a short time they will either be allowed to leave or they will be thrown out. Hopefully their parishioners will leave with them.
Comment by Anthony on December 21, 2021 at 12:41 pm
Jeff,
Traditionalist are reluctant to go in the gutter with these people. And, the UMC liberals (there’s no such thing as a centrists) are employing secular contemporary-political gutter tactics that have become the usual and customary in American society. We are in a very strange time. But, I do believe that traditionalists leaders will need to speak more forcefully, demand open conversations, demand that both sides of this theological divide be presented in every UMC conference, and aggressively present, with rock solid resolve, the TRUTHFUL, unifying message in their possession — the BIBLE. It is a challenge that all of us must stand up and deliver on from the leaders of the Global Methodist Church and all its sponsoring organizations to the single layperson aspiring to be a member of that denomination. The TRUTH must be boldly told, including the full exposure of the GREAT LIE that traditionalists will have a home in this psUMC.
Comment by Steve on December 21, 2021 at 12:56 pm
Is the GMC going to ordain graduates from Garrett, Duke, Candler, and other UMC endorsed seminaries that teach courses on gay theology and liberation theology? The UMC endorsed seminaries are what, in part, gave us this problem the denomination has today. Is the GMC going to bring those problems into the new Methodist denomination?
Comment by Sky McCracken on December 21, 2021 at 1:10 pm
Compared to the 12,000 members that belong to that group (12.1k is listed), there were only 57 comments. I think picking out one voice and lumping them with all centrists is beyond a stretch.
Who is Bryan Bucher? He may be a nice guy or a hellion… but I don’t think I’ve ever heard of him. (?)
Comment by Star Tripper on December 21, 2021 at 1:48 pm
When crisis happens the side that realizes ordinary methods and norms are out the window the fastest will win. It happens in muggings and it has happened to the UMC. Talking about centrists is a whining last plea to go back to the normalcy of discussion and debate and conclaves. It won’t work and it wastes time. Prepare to engage the enemy or get off the field.
Comment by Anthony on December 21, 2021 at 4:52 pm
Sky,
There is no such thing as a centrist in this schism. They ALWAYS come down on the side of the liberals when the rubber meets the road. The term is nothing but a ploy, a deception, a lie to try and fool as many traditionalists as possible into staying put in a progressive psUMC with the Great Lie that they’ll have a home there and these centrists will look out for them — actually look past them to their checkbooks-credit cards-greenbacks. There’s no reason to try and fool liberals with this ploy because it is liberals who are using this deception as they look at each other with a wink and a nod.
Comment by Wayne on December 21, 2021 at 10:58 pm
I have been a part of several UMC churches throughout my life, before I finally left a few years ago for a more theologically conservative denomination. I experienced a few Asbury pastors vs. Wesley Seminary/Duke grads. IMO, the Asbury grads consistently were better preachers and had a certain style that the Wesley/Duke grads lacked. One local Asbury pastor made good progress at growing his church with more evangelical programs, etc. Sadly, he got divorced and he moved on. I don’t know if his successor will keep up the momentum or not. Another Asbury grad was more of a centrist, although he gave mostly good sermons, with a little pooh-poohing of apologist websites as divisive. So, YMMV with these grads. It is very clear that Bucher is quite intentional in his feelings toward present and future Asbury grads. The sooner this split happens, the better!
Comment by Palamas on December 22, 2021 at 9:20 am
I served in the North Carolina Conference from 1983-1992. I was the first graduate of Southeastern Baptist Seminary to be be ordained deacon the first year I was eligible. By 1991, I was already able to see the writing on the wall for evangelicals in the UMC. Yes, I could have stayed many more years and been productive in ministry, but I would have spent at least part of my time looking over my shoulder and wondering when the ax would fall. When I departed, I left behind an already dysfunctional denomination. I have never regretted that move.
Comment by Loren J Golden on December 22, 2021 at 11:36 am
I was raised in the United Methodist Church, active in UMYF and my church’s youth choir, and my family had been Methodists for several generations. (One of my great-great-great-grandfathers had been a minister in the Methodist Episcopal Church in the early Nineteenth Century.) Following graduation from high school, my attendance was less than sporadic for about three years, and then in my early- to mid-twenties, I attended College Hill United Methodist Church in Wichita, Kansas, where I had been baptized as an infant. The pastor at the time (George Gardner) was very engaging and enjoyable to listen to, but the longer I attended, the more and more dissatisfied I became at how the Scriptures were being handled from the pulpit. The pastor would set his own context, into which the associate pastor would read the morning text, and then after the choir sang the anthem, the pastor would proceed to preach on whatever topic he wanted to speak on, irrespective of what the text actually said.
Then on May 5, 1991, I attended an Evangelical congregation (Eastminster in Wichita) affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA) (now affiliated with the Evangelical Presbyterian Church), and I was impressed by how the pastor (Dr. Frank Kik at the time) handled the Scriptures: He read the text and then proceeded to expound on it in such a way that it was clear that he believed and respected what it said.
The rest, as they say, is history, and I have never regretted the switch.
Comment by Mike on December 24, 2021 at 4:04 pm
I agree with Reynolds. The PMS-UMC has no intention of signing off on the Protocol. The “left” as we know it is at war with the evangelical-traditionalist segment of Methodism. By the way, I attended DUKE Divinity School from 1977-1980. I entered that school as an evangelical and a member of the Wesleyan Church, and graduated in 1980 and was still evangelical and conservative. Faculty like Dr,. Thomas Langford made it possible to receive a high quality theological education without leaving the bounds of orthodoxy. Of course, its not that way today. But I am certain Mr. Bucher would never want this Duke grad in one of his churches! I wish the GMC would find the outrage and courage to demand that both Asbury and Duke Divinity be ceded to the new GMC! But again, I have very serious doubt that the separation will occur as presently composed. Good luck with all of this conservatives. I wish you all the best. Let me know when the shooting starts.
Comment by Donald on December 25, 2021 at 8:25 am
To my Methodist Global colleagues: the time has come to “throw away the scabbard” and expose the Darkness that is now revealing itself for what it truly is.
Christus Victor!
Comment by John on December 29, 2021 at 7:40 pm
My father before retiring was an pastor in the Northwest Texas Conference for 30 years and came in from Asbury. He told me the person that was assigned to him to help get acclimated within the UMC told him that no one from Asbury had any business being in the UMC and he was going to make it his business to make sure he was run out of the UMC. Doesn’t surprise me this line of thought is in that wing of the church still.