I have grown from having Beth as our pastor.
08 Dec 2004
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Reflection from Nancy Tkacs of First United Methodist Church of Germantown |
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Cut your losses?
05 Dec 2004
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A sermon by Rev. Jim McIntire, Bala United Methodist Church
Jim was Beth's predecessor at First United Methodist Church of Germantown. Beth is a pastor to Jim's children. Jim is pastor to Beth's parents. |
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Our job is to try to walk in the footsteps of Christ.
05 Dec 2004
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A reflection by Michael C. Mahan, from First United Methodist Church of Germantown |
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There were no winners today.
04 Dec 2004
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Bishop John Schol writes to the Baltimore-Washington Conference |
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Grace was abundant.
04 Dec 2004
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Pastoral Letter from Bishop Marcus Matthews regarding the Beth Stroud Trial
December 3, 2004 |
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An effective ministry was killed on December 2nd, by the United
04 Dec 2004
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An effective ministry was killed on December 2nd, by the United Methodist Church.
Church Within A Church Movement Responds to Guilty Verdict of Rev. Beth Stroud
December 3, 2004
An effective ministry was killed on December 2nd, by the United Methodist Church.
All sides agreed that Rev. Beth Stroud was a qualified, effective, grace-filled preacher and minister. Yesterday the policy of "Don't ask, Don't tell" was confirmed and closet doors were slammed shut all across the denomination.
The tragic-comedy of United Methodism at this moment in history is visible in so many places: A 12-1 guilty verdict, then a 7-6 verdict to "take" Beth's ministerial credentials. It was obvious that 6 persons on the jury felt that possibly because of Beth's "truth-telling" she ought to keep her ministerial orders.
They did not have to defrock Beth Stroud. There is no prescribed penalty and we clearly saw leaders in this denomination deliberately choose legalism over grace.
"We don't worship at the altar of legalism," states Church Within A Church Co-Convener, Rev. Gil Caldwell, "legalism brings death not life." The denomination has been given over to the god of legalism instead of the God of grace and justice.
The verdict in the Rev. Beth Stroud's trial is clear evidence that if there had been no Church Within A Church Movement, it would have been necessary to organize one.
As a ministry is killed, Church Within A Church offers a witness to the power of resurrection.
Church Within A Church calls upon every Progressive congregation to start new churches. It is only through new birth that we will move from a legislative, legalistic Church, to one that stands for credible ministry that celebrates the sacred worth of all persons and of the rest of creation.
The blastphemous dehumanization and invalidation of the call to ministry that Beth and others have experienced within the United Methodist Church, compels the "raising up" of a response. Church Within A Church has a vision and strategies for ordaining those that have been mis-treated and cast aside.
"The institutional church always stands before the call of Jesus Christ to be the true Church," states Rev. Gregory Dell, Co-Convenor of the Church Within A Church movement, "and when the Church fails its call, individuals and congregations must rise up for faithfulness."
Organized in February of 2002, Church Within A Church is a grass roots response to actions of the United Methodist Church General Conference. Refusing to commit itself to remaining within the United Methodist denomination or leaving it, the progressive movement declares its mission: "To BE Church in a fully inclusive way." An 11-member coordinating team, which meets twice a year, guides the group.
Contact Information: Cathy Knight, Marketing/Development Director, Church Within A Church. 3344 N. Broadway Chicago, IL 60657. Phone: 773.348.2679. Email: cknight72@aol.com |
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