United Methodist Reformers, Pro-Lifers Contend for UMC's Soul
by Jim Brown
May 6, 2004
(AgapePress) - The leader of an evangelical United Methodist ministry believes the renewal movement in the denomination is gaining momentum. Meanwhile, a group dedicated to protecting the sanctity of life warns that the UMC is backing a sectarian political activism group's pro-abortion agenda. Every morning before the UMC General Conference convenes, conservative delegates, bishops, and activists gather in a large convention room at the Westin Hotel to pray, sing, and plan strategy for the day. Dr. Jim Heidinger, CEO of Good News, says he and his staff of 50 hold the daily breakfast briefings to inform conservative Methodists of important resolutions to support or endorse and to encourage and advise them about how they can have an impact on votes at General Conference.
Good News Goes Forth
Heidinger recounts how the Good News briefings began as a General Conference ministry back in 1980 in Indianapolis. "That was the first time we took an organized team," he says, "and it was not a pleasant experience. We were a pretty small, beleaguered minority. All of our petitions went down in flames, but we gave it a good try, and then we slithered home feeling like we'd been hit by a truck. But we've been doing this since 1980, and we're beginning to get a good feel for how to do it."
The Good News ministry's leader says the daily briefings have been attracting up to 400 people or more this conference and indicate that a growing number of Methodists want to see their church return to its biblical roots. He compares attendance today with the past, noting that at one time, "we would have had perhaps 40 or 50 at a breakfast," and "Four years ago in Cleveland, I think our high was 240 or 250."
But Heidinger says the briefing was "overwhelmed" yesterday with 424 attendees at the breakfast. He says it was "an incredible roomful of people, and a major chunk were delegates. So we feel like we've got a lot of folks who are supportive and interested and excited about what we're doing here."
Good News has come a long way since its inception 24 years ago, the CEO says, but he notes that, in all his years of fighting for reform in the United Methodist Church, he has never once doubted God's calling in his life to carry out that mission.
But at the same time, some United Methodists have grave concerns about the direction the denomination has taken in recent years, and the path down which it still seems to be headed. The pro-life group Lifewatch is warning UMC members about the radical ideas being pushed by a sectarian political activism group that the denomination supports.
An Anti-Christian, Pro-Death Agenda
Cindy Evans of Lifewatch says the UMC-founded organization known as Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice, or RCRC, recently took part in a large abortion rally in Washington, DC, and directed hateful language against right-to-lifers. "Some of the activities were very anti-Christian," she says, noting that one of the flyers being handed out at the rally "had a picture of Christ with his loving arms outstretched, and above the picture it said 'Save lives," and below the picture it said, 'Abort Christ.'"
Evans says the RCRC was originally called the "Religious Coalition for Abortion Rights," but changed its name a couple of years ago. She feels strongly that the group should not be given a blank check to promote its agenda in the name of all United Methodists.
In fact, the Lifewatch spokeswoman says the UMC needs to drop all affiliation with RCRC. She contends that the so-called "pro-choice" group supports forcing Catholic hospitals to perform abortions. The pro-life advocate also notes that a recent RCRC publication condemns abstinence education programs for teens because they "attempt to stigmatize premarital sex as immoral and shameful."
