Church Members Of United Methodist Church Votes To Leave Amid Homosexuality Schism

As homosexuality keeps on being a huge burden for many churches to deal with, the United Methodist Church (UMC) is scrambling to maintain peace and unity among members —despite the intense debate about whether to allow priests to bless gay marriages or not.

The Texas megachurch has voted to disassociate from The United Methodist Church. It has been reported that over 200 churches in the Lone Star State are putting this in place to ensure successful disaffiliation because of the homosexuality saga rising in the Church.

As mainline Protestant denomination teachings about homosexuality intensify, the Woodlands Methodist Church which boasts of about 14,200 members located in Woodlands, Texas on Sunday 7th August 2022 voted to leave the UMC Texas Annual Conference.

The church officially announced that —about 3,000 members gathered at the church on Sunday. Out of this, 2,678 members —being 96.3% of those voting supported disaffiliation. This is a massive number indicating a lot of the church members are displeased about inculcating homosexual ideas into the Church’s doctrines that contravene what the Bible teaches.

Despite, the voting results with overwhelming support against homosexuality ideas in the United Methodist Church, Senior Pastor Mark Sorensen shared a video on the church’s website agreeing to the fact that the vote affirmed that there is unity still prevailing among all members.

“We are united in one vision and one clear mission.”

In his defense, he stated that the church still has a high level of unity and peace.

Sorensen said:

“We are ready to move on past the division and the differences that have been an ongoing distraction in our denomination for far too long,” “Remember, we are changing to stay the same. With this vote, we are preserving the ministry that we know and love.”

Sorensen “offered a blessing” to those who wanted to remain in the UMC, suggesting it is “time to bless one another, even as we go our separate ways.”

“In this, there is no victory, in this there is no winner or loser,” he added. “We are called to pray for and lift up others in whatever ministry God has calling us to now and in the future.”

Sources say there would be a special session conference on Dec. 3 in Houston. This will help to officially recognize the departure of churches that have taken the necessary steps toward disaffiliation.

It is believed that the disaffiliation is just an initial step that comes along with other clarifications.

Woodlands is not the only congregation to disaffiliate from the Texas Conference on Sunday. The 1,300-member Faithbridge of Spring, Texas also massively endorsed disaffiliation when all available 549 members voted in support of leaving the church.

This is a serious issue that many Christians around the world are talking about. The divisions could clearly be seen.

The church is trying hard to make changes to the original doctrines and disciplines to make it gay-friendly.  However, this debate and its consequences seem not to be over yet.

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