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Letter to Members
Dear Members of Beulah UMC,
I felt the need to address some of the happenings in the United Methodist Church that you may have read or heard about in recent days. One of the most concerning is the election of an openly gay person as Bishop in the Western Jurisdiction of the United States. This was and is an open act of defiance against the United Methodist Church, its leadership and our Book of Discipline which forbids such action. I have copied a letter sent out to the Church in South Carolina by our Bishop, Bishop L. Jonathan Holston. In it he explains the situation and the Council of Bishop’s action regarding the election. Basically he and the Council view this election as disruptive and divisive to the Church, and in turn have given the matter over to Judicial Council of the United Methodist Church. I ask you to pray that the members of the Council follow the guidance of the Holy Spirit in this matter. Personally I condemn this election in the strongest terms. It demonstrates blatant disregard and disrespect for the Council of Bishops, the General Conference of the United Methodist Church, the laws and practices of the United Methodist Church and the Holy Scriptures.
What I request from all of you is that you pray for the United Methodist Church and specifically for those individuals in the uppermost levels of leadership, such as our Bishop. We are in the midst of a difficult struggle between orthodoxy and progressivism, the results of which will determine the future of the United Methodist Church.
That being said, I contend that the Lord above and His Word have not and will not change. So pray hard for our beloved Church, but don’t be discouraged. We are promised in that Word that God Almighty is our Rock and Fortress and that the true Church of Jesus Christ cannot be defeated.
Love,
Pastor Tony
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
During this past week, United Methodists around the nation gathered in five jurisdictional conferences to elect new episcopal leaders. The Western Jurisdiction yesterday elected Rev. Dr. Karen Oliveto, a self-avowed, practicing homosexual, to the episcopacy. The South Central Jurisdiction was still in session when this occurred and has asked the Judicial Council to rule on this election. The Council of Bishops has issued a statement regarding this election that you can read in full below.
At the beginning of the Southeastern Jurisdictional Conference, the Southeastern College of Bishops issued a pastoral letter that included these words:
“We the Southeastern Jurisdiction College of Bishop’s grieve over the deep divisions in our beloved United Methodist Church. We recognize the pain felt both by those advocating for and those opposing change. We also view the acts of nonconformity as a violation of our covenant and as divisive and disruptive. As a College of Bishops, we are fully committed to keeping the promises we made at our ordinations and consecrations, including:
• shepherding all persons committed to our care;
• leading our areas in mission, witness and service;
• ordering the church, including administering processes for handling complaints about violations of our Book of Discipline that occur within our episcopal areas;
• and seeking unity in Christ, including the work the General Conference requested the Council of Bishops do in relation to the Commission on Human Sexuality.
We invite you to join us in prayer as we strive to faithfully and compassionately fulfill our covenant with God, the church and one another. We also encourage you to stay the course in your covenant relationship with God, The United Methodist Church and each other.”
As United Methodists in South Carolina and around the world move into an uncertain future, I ask you to continue in prayer for Bishops, Judicial Council members and others giving leadership at this critical time. I encourage you to be leaders in compassionate listening, gentle speech, and prayerful discernment as you engage your communities in the faithful and life-giving ministry of making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world. Let us remember that God is with us in the midst of our deep divisions and will guide and direct us into a preferred future as we earnestly seek God’s will for God’s church going forward.
Grace and Peace.
L. Jonathan Holston
I felt the need to address some of the happenings in the United Methodist Church that you may have read or heard about in recent days. One of the most concerning is the election of an openly gay person as Bishop in the Western Jurisdiction of the United States. This was and is an open act of defiance against the United Methodist Church, its leadership and our Book of Discipline which forbids such action. I have copied a letter sent out to the Church in South Carolina by our Bishop, Bishop L. Jonathan Holston. In it he explains the situation and the Council of Bishop’s action regarding the election. Basically he and the Council view this election as disruptive and divisive to the Church, and in turn have given the matter over to Judicial Council of the United Methodist Church. I ask you to pray that the members of the Council follow the guidance of the Holy Spirit in this matter. Personally I condemn this election in the strongest terms. It demonstrates blatant disregard and disrespect for the Council of Bishops, the General Conference of the United Methodist Church, the laws and practices of the United Methodist Church and the Holy Scriptures.
What I request from all of you is that you pray for the United Methodist Church and specifically for those individuals in the uppermost levels of leadership, such as our Bishop. We are in the midst of a difficult struggle between orthodoxy and progressivism, the results of which will determine the future of the United Methodist Church.
That being said, I contend that the Lord above and His Word have not and will not change. So pray hard for our beloved Church, but don’t be discouraged. We are promised in that Word that God Almighty is our Rock and Fortress and that the true Church of Jesus Christ cannot be defeated.
Love,
Pastor Tony
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
During this past week, United Methodists around the nation gathered in five jurisdictional conferences to elect new episcopal leaders. The Western Jurisdiction yesterday elected Rev. Dr. Karen Oliveto, a self-avowed, practicing homosexual, to the episcopacy. The South Central Jurisdiction was still in session when this occurred and has asked the Judicial Council to rule on this election. The Council of Bishops has issued a statement regarding this election that you can read in full below.
At the beginning of the Southeastern Jurisdictional Conference, the Southeastern College of Bishops issued a pastoral letter that included these words:
“We the Southeastern Jurisdiction College of Bishop’s grieve over the deep divisions in our beloved United Methodist Church. We recognize the pain felt both by those advocating for and those opposing change. We also view the acts of nonconformity as a violation of our covenant and as divisive and disruptive. As a College of Bishops, we are fully committed to keeping the promises we made at our ordinations and consecrations, including:
• shepherding all persons committed to our care;
• leading our areas in mission, witness and service;
• ordering the church, including administering processes for handling complaints about violations of our Book of Discipline that occur within our episcopal areas;
• and seeking unity in Christ, including the work the General Conference requested the Council of Bishops do in relation to the Commission on Human Sexuality.
We invite you to join us in prayer as we strive to faithfully and compassionately fulfill our covenant with God, the church and one another. We also encourage you to stay the course in your covenant relationship with God, The United Methodist Church and each other.”
As United Methodists in South Carolina and around the world move into an uncertain future, I ask you to continue in prayer for Bishops, Judicial Council members and others giving leadership at this critical time. I encourage you to be leaders in compassionate listening, gentle speech, and prayerful discernment as you engage your communities in the faithful and life-giving ministry of making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world. Let us remember that God is with us in the midst of our deep divisions and will guide and direct us into a preferred future as we earnestly seek God’s will for God’s church going forward.
Grace and Peace.
L. Jonathan Holston
Altar Flowers
The 2016 altar flower calendar is on the bulletin board in the vestibule. If you would like a date, please put your name beside that date. If your name is beside a date you do not want, please strike through it and choose the one you would like.