Report to WJLT on WMJM Zepher Point Retreat
Report of Western Methodist Justice Movement to the Western Jurisdiction Leadership Team
January, 2015
The Western Methodist Justice Movement came into existence shortly after the 2012 gathering of the Western Jurisdictional Conference of The United Methodist Church. It was founded to form a venue where progressive United Methodist laity and clergy throughout the Western Jurisdiction could continue to work on significant issues of justice and peace in between the Jurisdictional Conference’s quadrennial gatherings. Bishop Grant Hagiya’s encouragement to take authority to do the work of the church became this movement’s rallying cry.
Since the Western Jurisdiction leadership last gathered, the WMJM has been actively involved to call the church to faithfulness in areas of critical concern both to the church and to the wider society.
Through our Action Network on Biblical Obedience, we have continued to advocate for the full inclusion of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender persons in the life and leadership of The United Methodist Church. To this end, we applaud the just resolution of the complaints brought by the Council of Bishops against Bishop Melvin Talbert because of his decision to preside over a wedding service for Bobby Prince and Joe Openshaw in Birmingham, Alabama. We hope that this act of just resolution will move the church closer to a day when it really will open its hearts, minds and doors to all of God’s children.
Over the Labor Day weekend, the WMJM hosted a retreat entitled “Stepping Out in Faith” at the Zephyr Point Presbyterian Conference Center at Lake Tahoe. This retreat, which brought together more than 100 United Methodists (mostly from the Western Jurisdiction), featured keynote speakers from across the global United Methodist Community: Lloyd Nyarota, Tazvionepe Nyarota, Liberato Bautista, and Dorothee Benz. Spirited worship featured liturgies developed by Karen Nelson and Chett Pritchett, music by Jim and Jean Strathdee and Dan Damon, and sermons by Frank Wulf and Karen Oliveto. Workshops on a wide range of justice oriented topics engaged participants in prayer, study and practical planning for how to build a better world. Workshop topics included: 1) The Struggles of Indigenous Peoples, 2) Choices at the Beginning and End of Life; 3) Biblical Obedience; 4) Globalization; 5) Disabilities; and 6) Tools for Organizing for Justice. And, of course, there were plenty of opportunities for fellowship, fun and relaxation.
A letter was produced and signed during the retreat that called upon the Council of Bishops as a body to provide leadership in three key issues confronting our national and world community: 1) mass incarceration and the militarization of polices forces in the US; 2) the crisis related to the surge of unaccompanied minors migrating to the United States from Central America; and 3) the violence that had erupted in Gaza, leading to the deaths of far too many people, many of whom were children, and to the destruction of schools, hospitals and homes. While the Council of Bishops did not respond directly to this letter, the Council’s President, Bishop Warner Brown, did speak publicly about the difficulty of the Council’s responding to such matters in a timely fashion, given the fact that the Bishops only met in Council once a year. He also indicated that many of the Bishops had individually spoken out on these and other matters.
The WMJM is looking forward to engaging with the people called Methodists as we move forward toward the 2016 General Conference. It is our hope and dream that a strong alliance can be built between the official structures of the Western Jurisdiction and this movement of committed individuals. Together, in the power of the Holy Spirit, we can build a stronger and more faithful church that does the work of the gospel and moves us ever closer to that beloved community that God has always envisioned for us.
--Rev. Frank Wulf