PlainSpoken

The disaffiliation process in the North Georgia Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church has been "put on hold" until the 2024 General Conference due to claims of misinformation being circulated to the local churches. It seems one of these documents was obtained by the Annual Conference and what was perceived as misinformation or half truths was corrected. In this video Pastor Jeffrey will go through each of these updates to see what the Annual Conference considers misinformation and if these claims are fair, accurate, or valid critiques of what is being told to local congregations concerning disaffiliation from the United Methodist Church.Show Notes:Presentation Corrected By The North Georgia Annual Conference:https://www.ngumc.org/files/websites/ngumc/CFUMC+Long+Range+Planning+Study+Affiliation+Issues+(Final+Edits+0524).pdfOriginal Tweet Linking To Document:https://twitter.com/eastohiodcm/status/1615868611243159554?s=42&t=cbY-spkh-8ZCiGvbFj_V0gGlenn UMC Wedding Website:https://www.glennumc.org/weddingsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit jeffreyrickman.substack.com Get full access to PlainSpoken at plainspokenpod.substack.com/subscribe

The North Georgia Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church chose to "pause" the process of disaffiliation from the denomination at the end of 2022. In a press release the outgoing Bishop, Sue Haupert-Johnson, sites instances of "misleading, defamatory, and false statements and materials" being disseminated throughout the conference. In this episode we look into those claims to see how well they stand up to scrutiny.Show Notes:Conference Sues For Control Article: https://www.umnews.org/en/news/confer...Disaffiliation Pause Press Release:https://www.ngumc.org/newsdetail/nort...Thomas Lambrecht Article on Blocking of Disafilation:https://goodnewsmag.org/north-georgia...FireBrand Article on Fundamentalists & Modernists:https://firebrandmag.com/articles/met...The North Georgia Throwdown Article:https://www.wcaofil.org/northern-illi...Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit jeffreyrickman.substack.com Get full access to PlainSpoken at plainspokenpod.substack.com/subscribe

In November the Arkansas Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church failed to ratify the disafilation requests of three local congregations. This has resulted in the split of one of the churches and lawsuits being filed in the others. In this video we take a deeper look at what is going on in Arkansas.Show Notes:Ready to Harvest Video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VjydU...3 Church Disaffiliations Blocked Article:https://www.umnews.org/en/news/3-chur...Bishop Gary E Mueller Statement:https://arumc.org/2022/12/information...12 Judges Recuse Themselves Article:https://www.christianpost.com/news/12...Cabot United Methodist Gift Article:https://arumc.org/2023/01/cabot-unite....Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit jeffreyrickman.substack.com Get full access to PlainSpoken at plainspokenpod.substack.com/subscribe

Odell Horne, Jr. has been a thought leader in The United Methodist Church for some time, particularly through United Methodist Men. He is a member of the North Georgia Annual Conference. He is particularly concerned with issues of racism, multiculturalism, neocolonialism, and ethnocentricism. He is a free thinker and has a passion for truth. I had been wanting his perspective on a number of things for some time, so this interview is more spread out than my usual ones. Enjoy taking some time to learn from a great mind (his, not mine)!Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit jeffreyrickman.substack.com Get full access to PlainSpoken at plainspokenpod.substack.com/subscribe

Odell Horne, Jr. has been a thought leader in The United Methodist Church for some time, particularly through United Methodist Men. He is a member of the North Georgia Annual Conference. He is particularly concerned with issues of racism, multiculturalism, neocolonialism, and ethnocentricism. He is a free thinker and has a passion for truth. I had been wanting his perspective on a number of things for some time, so this interview is more spread out than my usual ones. Enjoy taking some time to learn from a great mind (his, not mine)!** At around 1:21:30 Odell wants the audience to be aware that he misspoke by saying that Hitler came back with Churchill to defeat Mussolini, when what he meant to say was that Haile Selassie came back with Churchill.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit jeffreyrickman.substack.com Get full access to PlainSpoken at plainspokenpod.substack.com/subscribe

Rev. Dr. Vilanculos is the Rector of the United Methodist University in Mozambique. He has worked closely with denominational authorities for some time, and is one of the minds behind the Christmas Covenant. Over the course of two different conversations, he and I explore the dynamics at play in southeastern Africa in the UMC and how it is that a better future might be leveraged in the present for the denomination as a whole.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit jeffreyrickman.substack.com Get full access to PlainSpoken at plainspokenpod.substack.com/subscribe

Collins as a missionary for the General Board of Global Ministries (GBGM) of The United Methodist Church. He is from Cameroon, but he serves within the Democratic Republic of Congo alongside area bishops to serve local populations in the name of Jesus. He is educated in many fields, and his perspective is one informed by academia and work within the institution of the UMC. Take some time to learn from this man who has given his life in service of the United Methodist denomination.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit jeffreyrickman.substack.com Get full access to PlainSpoken at plainspokenpod.substack.com/subscribe

So far, the series has focused on official caucus group leaders. Absalom is our first average pastor to offer his thoughts about the dynamics in Africa, specifically in Nigeria, and how it is that the particularity of his context fits into the larger picture of the United Methodist denomination. Absalom is a plainspoken gentleman who was a great joy to visit with. Consider his insights.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit jeffreyrickman.substack.com Get full access to PlainSpoken at plainspokenpod.substack.com/subscribe

The third resolution deals directly with the dynamics of sexually nonconforming persons in the UMC. It seeks to undo the "harmful" language of 2019 and instantiate a western liberal sexual ethic in our jurisdiction despite the clear language of the General Conference. This episode examines the text and presents the different ideologies undergirding it. I talk about integrity, Cultural Marxism, identity, and other fun stuff like that. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit jeffreyrickman.substack.com Get full access to PlainSpoken at plainspokenpod.substack.com/subscribe

This one has implications regarding the ending or reinstitution of racism in the UMC, depending on how you look at it. It also deals with the phenomenon of using nice language to cover over a not-nice goal. I spend some time explaining the Connectional Table and the Christmas Covenant, as both of those bodies are referenced several times in the document. Enjoy!Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit jeffreyrickman.substack.com Get full access to PlainSpoken at plainspokenpod.substack.com/subscribe