I have been here for four days. I already can’t remember what day of the week it is. I have fully entered the time-warp called General Conference where there is no date or day, just yesterday, today or tomorrow.
Today is actually day one of General Conference and everyone is finally here! Or most everyone. We were told this afternoon that 751 delegates have arrived and registered out of the 862 delegates apportioned to the annual conferences. That’s 86%. By contrast, in 2016, 91% of delegates had arrived by the opening session. A few folks might be in transit but we won’t climb too much higher in total attendance. David Livingston, a member of the Great Plains Annual Conference, brought forth a resolution which had far too many “Whereas”es and “Therefore”s for my taste but it was well received. It expressed lament for the 97 missing Central Conference delegates, asked for a printed report of the numbers, a clear printed explanation of what went wrong, and ideas of what could be done to prevent such problems in the future. It asked that we listen closely to central conference delegates since we know they are under represented. The resolution passed by 95% or so. Helpful to name those things out-loud, though there is not anything more to be done at this point.
We had a surprising amount of stern instructions today about which escalators we are allowed and not allowed to use according to our status. I’m thinking the Charlotte Convention Center mostly holds “expos” not legislative meetings. But we will figure it out.
The most remarkable thing we did all day was pass the rules. I know. It doesn’t sound like that should be remarkable. But as General Conference has grown increasingly toxic over the last 30 years, the rules became a place to fight about how to fight about the things we wanted to fight about. In 2016 it took us something like three days to pass the rules. IT WAS AWFUL. The fact that we did it in a hour or so today is astounding. Another sign that we really might be in a different era.
Bishop Bickerton, current president of the Council of Bishops, preached opening worship and it was wonderful. I’d recommend finding it online to watch. Most impactful for me was how he acknowledged where we have been without being stuck in lament. He made it clear we are going to be a church where “all means all.” He said clearly that if there are people around who are not ready to move forward with a positive narrative about the UMC, if they aren’t ready to work for the future of this church, they might be in the wrong place. He invited them to leave us alone and let us do our business. The Council of Bishops was the first to rise to their feet with applause.
Since official General Conference has started, the swag has also arrived. We got two bags, which is great because we need them to carry all the other stuff they gave us. If anyone wants a copy of “The Means of Grace Bible” let me know. I seriously have enough Bibles already.
A week or so ago I shared how we didn’t know how many members of Judicial Council we needed to elect since the term of all 9 has expired due to pandemic complications. The Council of Bishops asked the Judicial Council to decide how to proceed. Today they declined to do so and said it was General Conferences job. This might sound like passing the buck but it’s actually important clarification that however GC legislates this, it will stand. No one need challenge it to the Judicial Council later. I suggest we elect four people to 4 year terms and 5 people to 8 year terms this one time and then all will be well. We will see what happens!
Overall the mood continues to be cautiously optimistic. We know how hard it is to do complex things in this body. We know our governance system was not built for our world-wide diversity. But so far there is reason to hope the forces bent on destruction, obstruction, and “winning at all costs” are gone. In his sermon Bishop Bickerton also invited us all to let go of the tactics of the past and move forward together into a new day. As I got to my hotel room, the Charlotte sunset seemed to say, “Amen.”
Thanks again for reading. See you tomorrow!
Thank you for keeping us posted. Your reporting is upbeat...glad to see that!
Your reports gives me hope for my church and my life!