With the conclusion of the General Conference of the United Methodist Church held in Charlotte, North Carolina, April 23 to May 3, Leland Community United Methodist Church is proud to state that we have chosen to remain a United Methodist Church rather than choose another expression of our faith.
We affirm the direction of our General Conference for the full inclusion of all God’s children into the life of the church, including those persons of the LGBTQ+community.
Language that has been understood as discriminatory has been removed from both the United Methodist Discipline and the social Principles.
When the founder of the Methodist movement, John Wesley, stated over two centuries ago that as Christians we should do no harm, he meant that in both word and deed, we should offer kindness and love to all of God’s children.
With that understanding, we are thankful that the work of the General Conference included a revision of our United Methodist Book of Social Principles that clearly states the stance of the church regarding issues of daily life.
Leland Community United Methodist Church is a community of people who love God, grow in faith, share the Good News of the gospel of Jesus Christ and serve the community and our world in His love. Our vision is that we are a beacon of Christ’s unconditional love, by providing refuge, ministry, and service to each other; our community, and the world in which we live., We will continue to strengthen our outreach to the underserved, the young, the old, the marginalized communities, those experiencing housing and/or food insecurity and those experiencing the aftereffects of natural disasters.
We continue to seek to make disciples for Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world. With God’s help, may it be so.
Rev. Woycik is pastor of Leland Community United Methodist Church
