A Loving Note From
Rev. Dr. Nancy Wilson and Rev. Vickie Miller
United Methodists Fail Their Membership
and Their Origins, say Local Senior Co-Pastors of
SunCoast Metropolitan Community Church (MCC)
When John and Charles Wesley started the Methodist Church, they reached out to those who were marginalized by the established church of the day – the poor, those who were struggling with addiction, who had been excluded. They offered a gospel of unconditional love, took the side of abolitionists, addressed social evils of their time.
Today, the “United” Methodist Church, out of step with other mainstream churches in the US, took a step backwards, and shut the door on LGBTQ people and their families and allies in the church. They missed the great opportunity to embrace their own members and ministers with justice and inclusion, to make room for those who are still stigmatized in the wider culture.
“As a former Methodist myself, I am grateful today for the opportunities Metropolitan Community Church has offered me for more than four decades,” said Rev. Nancy Wilson, who is also the former global Moderator of the denomination. “I grieve for my friends, colleagues and family who are devastated by this decision.”
Rev. Vickie Miller commented, “Raised as an evangelical and a former Southern Baptist, I have always loved the Church, and it is painful to continue to see large Protestant Churches in the U.S. misrepresent God and the Bible
,
to be on the wrong side of history once again, further deepening a wedge.
Because of open and affirming churches, such as Metropolitan Community Church, I learned the other side of the story of God’s love for us all. No vote from any church will obstruct God’s all-inclusive, affirming love!”
As the oldest church in the world that was founded to serve the LGBT community, open to all people, we at SunCoast MCC offer our prayers and love to all United Methodists who are broken-hearted today, who have felt the doors slam shut. We pray for God to speak to them about their future – about carrying on the true meaning of that early Methodist movement. All are welcome, without exception at any Metropolitan Community Church near you.
