BONUS BLOG: what about all that wesleyan stuff?

With gratitude to Scott Moon for pointing me to this from Kim Mitchell – – –

If you begin to see certain articles that the United Methodist Church is no longer Wesleyan, I would ask you to follow the history coming out of our mother Church, the Methodist Church in Great Britain and into the Methodist movement into America.

We the people of the United Methodist Church are and remain to be:
-Wesleyan by nature. Still true.
-Theologically Christian. Never not true.
-Driven by historic creeds. Inviting the belief in a Triune God.
-Quadrilaterally thoughtful. Scripture is informed by tradition, reason, and experience.
-Structured by a liturgy that ushers the presence of Christ every step. Even as we are sent forth.

We are a church body that has ordained women for decades and now able to catch up with the Methodism movement of our English roots (the Wesley Brothers stomping grounds) and welcomes LGBTQ Brothers and Sisters in Christ fully into the fold to answer God’s call.

I am not sure why others take issue with this…but for the years of discord…and now we can trust in the work Christ is doing in reconciliation.

We are not without missteps along the way. We are human as were the Wesleys. Yet they taught us a lot.

We are following Jesus.
We are doing no harm.
We are doing all the good we can.
We are seeking to stay in love with God by following God’s ordinances, not mans.

We remain united through our differences because we are a people who see all of humanity worthy without asterisks. Unity is the work of all of us.

Be kind.
Be bold.
Speak truth.

Sincerely,
Rev. Kimberly A Mitchell
An Asbury Theological Seminary graduate who holds to the Wesleyan truth of God’s Grace in Christ, a grace that sustains me through adversity every day.

May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.