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By James V. Heidinger II, GOOD NEWS PERSPECTIVE – No. 20, April 26, 2008 Welcome to this special General Conference issue of Perspective sent from Fort Worth, Texas. We hope you find it helpful and informative. Please feel free to forward it to family, friends, or persons in your local church who might be interested in receiving General Conference updates. To subscribe, send your e-mail address to: perspective@goodnewsmag.org. E-mail addresses will not be sold or shared. General Conference 2008: Our apologies for getting yesterday's update out so late. It was on our server, but we failed to get the process running before we went on to other things. “Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or vain conceit…let this mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus.” (Phil. 2:3-5) The General Conference schedule has been altered, removing any Sabbath rest tomorrow, Sunday. Pray for rest and refreshment for the Renewal and Reform coalition as they labor long hours and attempt to exercise wise judgment with grace. This weekend marks the end of the legislative committee work and the transition on Monday to plenary sessions. Please intercede for committees as they conclude their work and for delegates as they navigate multiple votes and decisions.
Sometimes a cell phone is just a cell phone The article reports charges made by some United Methodist leaders alleging that the phones were being used coercively for the purpose of “vote-buying” and “bribery.” The article quotes three General Conference delegates who received a cell phone and eight church leaders who had no first-hand knowledge of the give-away. A careful reading of the article reveals that the quoted delegates were unanimous that there were “no strings attached” to the gift. The church leaders, on the other hand, were unanimous in condemning the Coalition’s gesture. One bishop claimed that it “violates the very essence of what it means to be a Christian community.” A monitoring team claimed the give-away “is inappropriate behavior and it destroys community” and gives the “appearance of paternalism, manipulation, exploitation, and of course, racism.” The article reports that another top executive claimed that the early colonialists used the same sort of tactics. “I hope they would not willingly engage in any sort of behavior that would undermine the humanity of people of color,” she said, “whether they are in the United States or other countries.” Amazingly enough, all of this condemnation was expressed by persons who were not present when the phones were given away, nor did they speak to any of the Coalition leaders before they leveled their charges to the media. “What’s particularly sad and disappointing about these comments,” said the Rev. Rob Renfroe, president of The Confessing Movement, “is that they were made in the midst of a General Conference that was asked to commit itself to holy conferencing. The immediate response of those quoted in the article was publicly to impugn the motives of brothers and sisters in Christ without ever having spoken to them.” Those United Methodist leaders quoted in the news article might have done well to have followed the charitable example of Bishop Roy I. Sano, executive secretary of the Council of Bishops. His concerns about this very issue led him to initiate a face-to-face conversation with Coalition leaders to inquire about the distribution of the phones. We were grateful to Bishop Sano for his gracious spirit in seeking further information about the issue. It’s amazing how much mutual understanding and respect can be gained when a church leader takes the time to talk and listen. In the article, responding to the charge that gift giving is “nothing but vote-buying,” Renfroe said, “it is demeaning to the African delegates to think that a gift of a cell phone would change their vote. They are highly educated, aware of the issues and supremely principled in their beliefs; and to think that the gift of a cell phone would change their view is demeaning to them.” Knowing that virtually all U.S. delegates would come to Fort Worth with personal cell phones, the Coalition determined that it would be helpful to provide a phone for Central Conference delegates while they were in the United States. “We were particularly interested in helping delegates who would find it challenging to purchase a phone while they were in Fort Worth,” said the Rev. James V. Heidinger II, president and publisher of Good News. “We believe that equal access to technology helps create a more just and equitable playing field.” “The cell phones are available to all Central Conference delegates — not just persons of color,” said the Rev. Tom Lambrecht, chair of the Renewal and Reform Coalition. “They were given with no expectation on our part. No questions were asked on our part, and we find no difference between our giving of these gifts and the gifts that are given by general boards and agencies and other groups to the delegates of General Conference.” As to fears expressed in the article, “We have no intention of undermining the democratic process,” said Renfroe. “Like all other concerned United Methodists, we offer our perspective and recommendations and trust delegates to make up their own minds.” We had come to Fort Worth with high hopes that this General Conference might promote an atmosphere where United Methodists would not assume the very worse about those with whom they disagree. Unfortunately, that was not to be the case. A reminder about Holy Conferencing If delegates come across the article, we encourage them to read it with the following guidelines in mind. Power of the Holy Spirit The church still has a theology of the Holy Spirit but it has no living consciousness of his presence and power. No doctrine of the Christian faith has been so neglected. The blunders and disasters of the church are largely, if not entirely, accounted for by neglect of the Spirit’s ministry and mission. The church is helpless without the power and presence of the Spirit. The lust for talk about work increases as the power for work declines. Conferences multiply when work fails. We see that the church has lost the note of authority, the secret of wisdom and the gift of power through persistent and willful neglect of the Holy Spirit of God. Confusion and impotence are inevitable when the wisdom and resources of the world are substituted for the presence and power of the Spirit. The church that is man-managed instead of God-governed is doomed to failure. A ministry that is college-trained but not Spirit-filled works no miracles. The church that multiplies committees and neglects prayer may be fussy, noisy, and enterprising, but it labors in vain and spends its strength for nothing. It is possible to excel in mechanics and fail in dynamic. There is a superabundance of machinery; what is lacking is power. To run an organization needs no God. Man can supply the energy, enterprise and enthusiasm for things human. The real work of a church depends upon the power of the Spirit. Certainly the energy of the flesh can run bazaars, organize amusements, and raise millions of dollars; but it is the presence of the Holy Spirit that makes a temple of the Living God. Things will get no better until we get back to the realized presence and power of the Holy Spirit. Samuel Chadwick was the principal of Cliff College, a British Methodist school for training young evangelists. He was also a president of the Methodist conference and author of The Way of Pentecost and Pioneers of Revival. Reclaiming the Wesleyan Social Witness: Offering Christ Renew Network Luncheon Mrs. Faye Short, Dr. James Heidinger II, Mrs. Kathryn Kiser, and Dr. Tom Thomas will discuss the new book, Reclaiming the Wesleyan Social Witness: Offering Christ (Providence House Publishers). Copies of the book were distributed to all General Conference delegates. The book, endorsed by two United Methodist bishops, explores our Wesleyan tradition, addresses the current state of the church, and challenges United Methodists to reclaim the Wesleyan message of personal and social holiness for the 21st century. In keeping with Methodism’s Church of England heritage, and the Wesleyan model of personal salvation and social action, Renew guests will be Bishop Jack Iker of the Fort Worth Diocese of the Episcopal Church and Major Mark Brown, Area Commander of the DFW Metroplex Command of the Salvation Army. ____________________________________________________________ |
Become a Good News Partner today! Make a generous
Become a Good News Partner today! Make a generous investment for renewal and reform in
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