Amidst a season of cultural wars, remnants of COVID-19, and
disaffiliations, it was a joy to share, virtually, with my home conference, the
Baltimore-Washington Conference. We are so thankful for new technology that
allows us to go home without leaving our house. It was a wonderful annual
conference, superbly conducted by Bishop LaTrelle Easterling, who is not only
an outstanding preacher, but a very capable presiding officer. The Bible study
was extraordinary, led by my colleague, Bishop Peter Weaver, on the Book of
Acts, in which he recalled the story of the actions of the first apostles. His
insights set the tone of an upbeat conference, which amidst much business,
ordination, special recognitions, and difficult decisions, set aside much of
one day to be saturated in mission in schools in the Baltimore area.
Alas, during these sessions on disaffiliations, I felt deeply
wounded when I witnessed 23 churches disaffiliate. Although it is a small
percentage, (less than ten percent), a loss of any part of the body is still a
loss. My personal pain was an existential one, for three reasons. First, out of
26 years of ordained ministry in the BWC, and 20 years residing in the bounds
of the conference during retirement, this is my home. Secondly, 12 of those
active years were in positions of leadership in the conference, where I often
visited and ministered some of these churches, from Baltimore to West Virginia,
and Washington D.C. to southern Maryland. Thirdly, this conference is the place
where Methodism began in 1784, at Lovely Lane Chapel in Baltimore. For these
reasons and more, I had great pain. Yet, I can only imagine what it must be
like for conferences experiencing losses in the hundreds. St. Paul says it best
in 1 Corinthians 12:12–13, "For as the body is one and has many
members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so
also is Christ.” And so, we ask: “Can these bones live?"
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