North Texans for One Church--Please Sign the Covenant!
http://northtexansonechurch.org
The United Methodist Church’s move toward strengthening its exclusion of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender + believers is contrary to the tradition of resting autonomy in the Annual Conferences. As Grace discerns how best to be church to all, Grace’s pastors encourage folks to sign the North Texans for One Church Covenant.
“The One Church Plan provides a generous unity that gives conferences, churches, and pastors the flexibility to uniquely reach their missional context without disbanding the connectional nature of The United Methodist Church.
“In the One Church Plan, no annual conferences, bishops, congregations, or pastors are compelled to act contrary to their convictions.
“The plan grants space for traditionalists to continue to offer ministry as they have in the past; space for progressives to exercise freely a more complete ministry with LGBTQ persons; and space for all United Methodists to continue to coexist without disrupting their ministries.
“The One Church Plan removes the language from The Book of Discipline used in the United States that restricts pastors and churches from conducting same-sex weddings and annual conferences from ordaining self-avowed practicing homosexual persons. It adds language that intentionally protects the religious freedom of pastors and churches who choose not to perform or host same-sex weddings and Boards of Ordained Ministry and bishops who choose not to credential or ordain self-avowed practicing homosexual persons.”