April 2020 - Westminster UMC's Crossroad Christian Preschool Chapel

March 25 PM in the pm

March 20 , PM in the PM

March 18 - PM in the pm

March 16 PM (Pastor Malcolm) in the PM

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UM Rogue Company Man

I would classify myself as a company man.  I have worked in a variety of fields from private industry, government and now the church.  In every venue of employment, I believe that I have faithfully worked to the satisfaction of my employers while learning and growing and responding to new and sometimes challenging opportunities.  I believe that I am a faithful husband, father and now grandfather and have provided a stable environment for those I love to thrive. 

I am currently serving as a company man of the United Methodist Church.  In our denomination, we itinerate to the appointment (faith community) which our bishop feels most appropriately fits the local church’s need and our gifts.  I have never once turned down a request to move.  Asked to go, I went.  Which, as a good company man, meant that our family was uprooted, children moved to new schools and spouse to a new job.  Each of our children were baptized, confirmed and now they are getting married in different local congregations.  Where ever possible, I have served faithful in a variety of positions in the local, district and annual conference.  And I believe that I have been an asset to our denomination and for the local churches I have served.  

  

I have always been proud to be a company man for the United Methodist Church.  When I was baptized at the age of 21, I was attending St John’s United Methodist/Presbyterian USA Church in the Wilde Lake Interfaith Center.  I was told that when I joined St John’s I needed to state which membership roll would I be listed on – the United Methodist or the Presbyterian USA.  I asked the resident pastor, “I like what you say, what are you?” He replied, “United Methodist!”  My response, “Then I am United Methodist!” 

I fell in love with Methodist way of life while living in Harrogate, England.  We attended a small British Methodist Church in town while supporting the Methodist preacher on the Base Protestant Chapel.  Whenever and wherever possible our vacations took us to places where John Wesley was known to have rode/preached/served and we made a point of checking them out.  It was upon our return to the United States and our settling in the United Methodist Church on Main Street Westminster, MD that I started to sense God’s call.  I left my professionalized career with the Federal Government to attend seminary and serve in my first appointment as a student local pastor.

As a company man, I have honored the company’s rules and regulations contained in the Book of Discipline of the United Methodist Church.  Recently, some have affirmed the pending changes to the Book of Discipline because they will now be able to weld the Discipline like a sword, turning this book into a book of consequences and punitive measures, while the original English meaning of the word ‘Discipline” is more closely aligned to “structure” and “order.”   The Book of Discipline is intended to  order the polity of our denomination; it doesn’t gag the people of the church to remain silent in regards to its contents.  As a good company man, I can freely speak for or against anything the Book of Discipline contains as long as I state the stance of our denomination. 

As a company man in the United Methodist Church, I have come to appreciate the breadth and depth of our common life together.   With pride I would exclaim we are the church of Hillary Clinton and George Bush!  While not all United Methodist think alike, I have endeavored to say yes to Mr. Wesley’s questions, “Can we not all love alike?”

This company man has been on the payroll for nearly a quarter of a century. I sense that what was once a broad tent where evil, injustice and the “-ism”s of the world were denounced and the diversity of the church was celebrated has been set aside.  We have turned inward and we now call each other evil, unjust and all the while we permit the “-ism’s” to thrive in the church.  We have taken the broad tent and affirmed through legislation that in order to remain recognized as a representative of the company one only needs to check a small box. 

This company man has a confession.  I have never liked boundaries and I certainly don’t like to check boxes which makes one part of an exclusive club.  I never was successful at drawing in the lines in my children’s coloring books and frankly a check box is just an invitation to leave unchecked and to draw outside of it.  This may have at times meant I have been in favor and out of favor with management.  I will also say that I am not a good person—my sin is ever before me.  I know this to be true because what goes on inside my head (that thankfully for the most part stay there and are not vocalized) about things that are blatantly being affirmed by our denomination are of “an equal measure of evil” that surely cannot be of God.  I acknowledge that at times I have pushed the intent of our denominational rule book in favor of my understanding of God’s rule book.  And as a broken, sinful person I am sure that many would disagree with my understanding of God’s rule book; so I have simplified it down to Jesus’ command, “Love God and Love Others!”  And Jesus second rule, “Do not judge!” but this one is so much harder to follow than the first and keeps me in my sinful state before the throne of God.  I have always pushed to just the point where it was not quite considered denominational heresy.  I have made it clear and honored the boundaries in which our denominational rule book has defined this company man’s territory to officiate at a wedding where two people love each other.  I have also made it clear that I believe that as an Elder in this company, I can go anywhere and serve in any capacity on behalf of the company even if the company says otherwise—it just means that there may be ramifications in serving as Christ’s representative over the company’s.

This company man is at a “Y” intersection in his professional life with the company.  To check the small box and buy into the company’s small box culture or dust off the dirt from his soles (soul) and move on.  Which is exactly what the “small box culture” would rather this veteran of the church to do. Frankly, I resent being forced into a decision at this stage of life because it is both worrisome and scary.  The denomination which I love and have faithfully served has put me in this conundrum. Those who have advocated for this new system are pushing good company people out and refusing to see those who God has placed before us as a new generation of company people because they cannot check the box.  And at this point in time, I mentally gaze down two “no good” paths:  one leads to complicity of the small box culture and the other leads to resentment for the loss of professional life that I have given a quarter of my life to serve. 

There is a third option.  I can remain and be a thorn in the flesh of those who advocate for the small box culture and all the while refuse to check the box.  This would make a me a company man gone rogue.  A rogue, company man!   An oxymoron at its best!  Yet, it is a title that seems fitting at least until the denomination comes to its senses or Jesus Comes back and sets us all straight!   

My First, EVER, Disclaimer Regarding Joining the United Methodist Church

For the first time ever, I had to offer a disclaimer to some youth who chose to confirm their faith in worship on April 28, 2019. 

Today, April 28, 2019, through vows that they are going to asked to affirm they will become members of Christ Universal Church:   

• In the first vow they are asked, "Do you renounce the spiritual forces of wickedness and reject the evil power of the world and repent of their sin.  In other words, do they turn away from anything that would distract them from loving and serving God. 
• They are then asked, "Do you accept the freedom and power God gives (we don't have to depend upon our own resources, God provides) them to resist evil, injustice and oppression in whatever forms they present themselves"--and I encourage them to remember their answer to this vow.) 
• Then they are asked, “Do you accept Jesus as your Savior and promise to serve him as your Lord in union with the church which Christ has opened to people of all ages, nations and races?”  
• And finally, they're asked, “Will you remain faithful members of Christ’ holy church and serve as Christ Representatives in this world?”

These ancient vows are asked of every follower of Christ, and as they affirm them they become part of the church universal.    

Next, together with the people gathered we will reaffirmed our faith as contained in the Old and New Testament by reciting the Apostles' Creed.  While our denomination isn't creedal (meaning we do not have to sign on to specific statement of beliefs into order to be a member of our denomination) we do use the Apostles' Creed as a statement of faith in our hymnal and occasionally in our worship services.

The highlight of the service is when we invite the youth to be confirmed to come forward and we (pastors, families and mentors) will lay hands upon them and pray that, "The Holy Spirit to rest upon them that, having been born through water and the spirit, they will be faithful disciples of Jesus Christ."  I celebrated that at this moment there will be “Amens” and clapping as we welcome these newly confirmed into Christ’s Church.  

Everything up to this point has focused on Christ, Christ's Universal Church and their commitment to this new direction in their life!  I then explained that at the end of the confirmation rite, they, as members of Christ Universal Church will be asked two more questions. 

Now, back in the day, we were asked ,“As members of Christ’s universal church will you remain loyal to the UMC and do all in your power to strengthen its ministries.”

Full disclosure now!  I am glad that we no longer ask this question in this format.  Over this last year, we have had conversations that our UMC is undergoing a particularly difficult season.  None of us know what the UMC will look a year from now when I will stand before a new set of confirmands.  For you see, we have people who disagree how some interpret scripture, doctrine and understand God’s grace, openness and inclusion of all persons to enter in the full of opportunities including marriage and ordination in the UMC.  Specifically, we are excluding LGBTQAI persons from these opportunities.

      

Now we ask, “As members of Christ universal church will you be loyal to Christ through the UMC and do all in your power to strengthen its ministries.” 

The difference is subtle but important.  We are asking if they will be ”loyal to Christ through the UMC”, and not “loyal to the UMC.”   We aren’t encouraging them to be disloyal to the UMC but to understand that when we are loyal to Christ that sometimes it is necessary to disagree with the denomination in order to strengthen the ministries of the Church.      

This is not without precedence, At one time the people called Methodist supported slavery.  And it was nearly a century after the civil war ended, in 1968, when the Methodist Church merged with the Evangelical United Brethren that resulted in the merging of the Central Conference into the Jurisdictional conferences in the United States which abolished a previously racially segregated conference structure.  And while women were awarded the right to vote in the United States in 1920, the Methodist Church didn’t ordain its first clergy woman until 1956 and the consecrate the first female bishop until 1980.  Today, one quarter of ordained clergy are female and nearly one quarter of the active bishops are also female.

As you can see, it takes a long time for change to take place in the church. And it takes people a long time to bring about change even when society has made the move in that direction and the church lags behind.  Therefore, I want you to understand that your loyalty, our loyalty is first and foremost to Christ and the universal church and that where there remains injustice and oppression of a people (which you said you would resist in the second vow of joining Christ Universal Church) in the denomination our loyalty to Christ trumps our loyalty to our denomination.  We need to understand that just because something is “the way it is now” doesn’t mean that “it will stay that way forever.”  It takes time for change to happen but when people put their hearts and minds and trust in God to guide them on the way that change will come and the ministries of the church will be strengthened. 

My friend, our newly confirmed sisters (we only had young ladies this year) in Christ, this is why it is so vital for you to say, “I will “ to this vow.  Your voice matters!  You can't change the structure and dynamics of the church if you choose to remain outside of the membership.  Therefore, having made this full disclosure, I hope that you will say yes to being Loyal to Christ through the UMC and together we can continue to strengthen the ministries of the church.