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A megachurch in Oklahoma has dropped “United Methodist” from its name and started fully disaffiliating from America’s second-largest Protestant denomination due to what it describes as the United Methodist Church’s “slow and steady drift” from its historic Christian mission.
Asbury United Methodist Church in south Tulsa is now officially called Asbury Church, the megachurch says in a statement on its website, adding they “have begun the process of disaffiliating from the denomination.”
“We do not know where or when we will affiliate with a new denomination,” the church continues. “Currently, our main focus is protecting the assets and interests of Asbury and fully disaffiliating from the UMC.”
Asbury Church’s announcement comes weeks after the UMC delayed its General Conference meeting for a third time earlier this month, citing the COVID-19 pandemic.
Postponed to 2024, the General Conference is expected to be contentious as delegates negotiate a denominational split over theological differences, including the full inclusion of LGBT members into the denomination and the ordination of ministers in same-sex relationships.
On Jan. 30, Frazer United Methodist Church, a congregation of about 4,000 members in Montgomery, Alabama, disaffiliated from the mainline Protestant denomination, saying in a statement to The Christian Post that the congregation intends to join the Free Methodist Church: “[W]e believe that the Free Methodist Church is a better fit for our present identity and future fruitfulness.”
The Rev. Tom Harrison, Asbury Church’s senior pastor, said the split had been inevitable for some time, according to Tulsa World .
“There isn’t one issue driving this separation; rather, after years of operating under vastly different approaches to theology, ministry and Christology, it was determined by the leadership of the Church, in conjunction with the pastoral staff, that these approaches are irreconcilable and no longer sustainable,” Harrison explained. “As Asbury Church, we will continue to pursue our mission […]
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