As members of the ordination class of 2016 and new clergy leaders of the Baltimore-Washington Conference, we feel God calling us to speak in the midst of a historic moment in the life of our annual conference. We give thanks for the leadership of the Board of Ordained Ministry as it has chosen to base its decisions on the gifts, graces, readiness and fruitfulness of every candidate that comes before them for examination. We stand together today to affirm our sister in Christ, T.C. Morrow, for her tremendous courage to follow God’s call and for her ministry to the church and the world. Therefore, we grieve the decision of our clergy executive session to not approve T.C. for commissioning as a provisional deacon, and we mourn together for our church in light of this decision. Further, we call for our denomination to change the discriminatory policies in our Book of Discipline to reflect the sacred worth and divine callings of all people to join in ministry in The United Methodist Church.
We recognize that those gathered at annual conference do not all agree with one another theologically. Yet even as we experience conflict, judgment and division in our country and our world, we believe the church is called to model love, respect and unity in the midst of diversity. When we call for a change to the discrimination in our polity, we do so not seeking to deepen division but seeking to better embody our mission to “make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.” Even in our disagreement, we stand together ready to do the hard thing our calling requires of us: to remain in community, which is a beautiful and essential witness to the world even when it feels messy and frustrating. In doing so, we commit to listening, sharing our stories and loving one another as well as standing for justice in the face of oppression.
As the church has said “yes” to us in approving us for ordination, we now say “yes” to the church, knowing full well the hard work that lies ahead. Our dream for our church is that we will truly be a people who reflect the heart of Jesus to each other and the world by saying “yes” to all those who God calls into ordained ministry.
Rev. Tiffany Patterson Rev. Shannon Sullivan Rev. Beth Ludlum Rev. Dottie Yunger Rev. Adam Briddell Rev. Angela Flanagan Rev. Theresa Thames Rev. Braulio Torres Rev. Wendy van Vliet Rev. Michael Bynum Rev. Julie Wilson Rev. Bonnie McCubbin Rev. Lisa Jordan
