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Commentary
COMMENTARY: Why not use United Methodist name? Clayton Childers, Dec 2, 2008
Clayton Childers
By Clayton Childers Special Contributor
One of our General Board of Church & Society interns recently came across a perplexing situation and asked me about it. And I had to admit the answer is hard for me to understand.
The intern was compiling information about large membership churches in United Methodism. To obtain current information about each congregation’s current staff, he searched the Internet for their Web sites.
He was surprised that a dozen or so of these churches made little or no mention about being United Methodist. Though still a part of the connection, these large congregations have evidently chosen to “disconnect” by not claiming the name.
The intern’s question, which I have been wrestling with ever since, is: “What is it about United Methodism that is so troubling pastors and congregations would no longer want the name?”
From an outreach standpoint, it is hard to explain, let alone justify. People who do branding studies have found that United Methodist is one of the top two religious “brands” in the U.S. It has also been determined that our denomination’s logo, the cross and flame, is one of the most readily recognized symbols.
Furthermore, the positive response to our “Open Hearts, Open Minds, Open Doors” advertising is paying dividends. People are identifying the church with the positive, hopeful message portrayed in the ads.
So I cannot believe that the name United Methodist is itself the problem.
Could it be some church leaders simply do not feel comfortable identifying with United Methodism, and do not want to give their hearts and lives to the development of a United Methodist congregation? For whatever reason, they want to step away from the connection.
I am not one who can claim a long Methodist pedigree. For all intents and purposes, I am a Methodist immigrant. I was raised by faithful Christian parents who were active church members in another denomination. I was even ordained in that denomination and served for eight years as one of its clergy members before transferring in 1990 into the United Methodist South Carolina Conference.
Simply put, I came to a point where I realized I no longer fit. I didn’t believe the same things that denomination espoused. I wanted to be part of a denomination I could be proud of.
I began to read about other denominations—their history, doctrine, theology, practices and beliefs. I talked to pastor friends. I talked to friends at the hospital where I was working as a Clinical Pastoral Education resident. I thought about my own theological leanings and social commitments.
Eventually, I determined that the United Methodist Church was where I wanted to be. I know United Methodists do not always live up to our slogan, but I do believe it is an accurate reflection of who we aspire to be. That is the kind of person I want to be as well: a person of gracious hospitality and generous orthodoxy.
Two experiences stood out for me in making my transition. In 1988 the Southeastern Jurisdiction elected as bishop the Rev. Joseph Bethea, an African-American from North Carolina. He was assigned to the Columbia, S.C., area—a significant appointment in a state where the Confederate Battle flag still flew on its capital building. This act was a witness by the denomination against bigotry and for racial justice, and this one prophetic action left a mark on me.
I was also touched by the witness of a United Methodist nurse who supervised a critical care unit. On her bulletin board she had a picture from a summer service mission trip, on which her church’s youth had helped a family in need have a better home to live in. I remember being impressed by her commitment, the picture of youths she worked with, the vitality and sincerity of her faith. I remember thinking that those United Methodists don’t mind rolling up their sleeves.
I love our cross and flame logo. It says so much in its simplicity. When I see it, I see a church centered on the love of Christ expressed supremely on the cross and the living power of the Spirit expressed in the flame. I’ve seen that Spirit alive in United Methodist churches in so many memorable settings.
In my general agency position, I have been blessed to meet so many United Methodists touring Washington, D.C., who want to see our “UM Building on the Hill.” One particularly memorable experience began with a somewhat frantic call from our building’s receptionist: “The President of Macedonia is downstairs in the rotunda and he wants to talk with somebody.” General Secretary Jim Winkler was in North Carolina. Assistant General Secretary Neal Christie was traveling as well. I was it.
Very quickly, I found myself showing President Boris Trajkovski, an active United Methodist and a lay leader in his church, around the United Methodist Building on Capitol Hill. I was so impressed. Here was a man so proud of his denomination that he made a point to visit the United Methodist Building while he was visiting President Bush and other leaders in our nation’s capital.
Last year, I visited Zimbabwe. I saw the pride of connection the people there have. Zimbabwe is struggling, but the church people I met there love to claim the name United Methodist. They proudly display the cross and flame.
I attended a funeral service in Zimbabwe and was struck by the number of tombstones that displayed the cross and flame. Many people in Zimbabwe wear clergy shirts and wraparound dresses decorated with the cross and flame, showing visible pride in being part of our global connection.
I was also blessed last winter to visit churches in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Leadership there is young. Many of the pastors are 35 and younger. Their worship services are casual with a lot of lively singing, often led with guitar.
The faith is alive there, and their eagerness to learn more about our Wesleyan heritage is evident. I was impressed by the vitality of the worship and a commitment to being a witness for Christ through addressing the needs of youths. In the second most atheistic country in the world, this denomination is alive and growing.
I was a member of a team that trained pastors in the Philippines. One afternoon, church leaders took us on a trip to a huge squatter village of 30,000 people at the edge of Manila. Houses were made of tin and straw and bamboo, and anything else they could find. As we drove down a dusty road, we came upon a rugged structure comprising nothing but poles and a thatched roof. It was an open-air sanctuary with the United Methodist cross and flame prominently displayed on the front.
This is the United Methodist Church. Even here in the severely oppressed area, the church is alive.
I do not intend to say that God’s spirit is not working in many other congregations in settings throughout the world. And I would not say that I agree with every position or action this denomination takes. Who does?
But I am very aware that many of us do not know of the good things God is doing in and through the United Methodist Church.
I am not offering this reflection as a blind celebration of the United Methodist Church. It is offered more as a celebration of the Spirit of God at work. God is using United Methodist Christians bound together in an amazing web of connection to accomplish great and beautiful things. We all can and should feel honored to be part of that marvelous work.
The Rev. Childers is director of conference relations, General Board of Church and Society.
Clayton Childers
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I attended a funeral service in Zimbabwe and was struck by the number of tombstones that displayed the cross and flame. Many people in Zimbabwe wear clergy shirts and wraparound dresses decorated with the cross and flame, showing visible pride in being part of our global connection.
