Bishop’s church trial: Questions and answers

The United Methodist Church faces something unprecedented in its and its Methodist predecessors’ history: the church trial of one of its bishops.

The trial of Bishop Minerva G. Carcaño — who has been under suspension for 18 months — is scheduled to begin Sept. 19 at the offices of Wespath Benefits and Investments in Glenview, Illinois, a Chicago suburb.

United Methodist News plans to cover the trial and post updates at www.umnews.org. In another first in the denomination’s history, the trial will be livestreamed. People can sign up to watch the proceedings. Most of the trial is open to the public, with the exception of jury deliberations.

The Book of Discipline, the denomination’s law book, holds out the possibility of a just resolution being reached at any time before or even during the trial process. So there is no guarantee that the trial will move forward as scheduled.

However, with the church trial set to begin in less than a week, here is a look at some frequently asked questions about the denomination’s judicial complaint process.  

Read more at this link.