The United Methodist Church’s top court released nine rulings March 1 related to a church law that governs how congregations can leave the denomination with property.
The eight decisions and memorandum from the United Methodist Judicial Council all stem from questions raised about the Book of Discipline’s new Paragraph 2553 — approved by the 2019 Special General Conference in St. Louis.
The church law essentially offers a limited way for congregations to gain release from The United Methodist Church’s centuries-old trust clause, which states that church property is held in trust for the benefit of the entire denomination.
In upholding the church law, the Judicial Council spelled out that any disaffiliation must include:
- Approval for disaffiliation by at least a two-thirds majority of a church’s professing members present at the vote.
- Establishment of terms and conditions between the exiting local church and its annual conference’s board of trustees.
- Ratification of a church’s disaffiliation by a simple majority at an annual conference session.
Read more at this link.
No comments:
Post a Comment