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BY MELISSA LAUBER
UMConnection Staff

By a vote of 392 to 352, members of the Baltimore-Washington Conference approved a resolution to create an environment to welcome all into membership without discriminating against persons regardless of race, color, national origin, economic condition, gender, marital status, sexual orientation, ability or disability, or any other status.

The resolution, which does not have the effect of church law, was voted on May 26 at the annual session in Baltimore. It was brought forth by the Baltimore-Washington Area Reconciling United Methodists (B-WARM) and endorsed by 12 churches.

The resolution was in response to Decision #1032 of the Judicial Council of The United Methodist Church, which supported a Virginia pastor?s refusal of membership to a person because the aspiring member is gay.

The resolution called upon Baltimore-Washington Conference to declare Decision #1032 'inconsistent with Christian teaching' and to 'expect and encourage' its congregations to 'abide by the principle: Membership in any local church in the Baltimore-Washington Annual Conference shall not be denied on the basis of race.'

Three people spoke in favor of the resolution and three spoke against.

Those in favor urged members to remember that Jesus consistently preached that the kingdom of God is open to everyone and that grace should be extended through the church to everyone. The church, they said, should not be gatekeepers of God?s love.

Those opposed to the amendment stressed that it was redundant, that area churches are already open to all, and expressed concern that the amendment was inconsistent with the United Methodist Book of Discipline, or church law, which refers to homosexuality as 'incompatible with Christian teaching.'

Following the vote, Bishop John R. Schol led the conference in prayer. 'Sweet Jesus, continue to lead us, continue to gbwc_superusere us, continue to forgive us, continue to believe in us,' he prayed. 'We want nothing but the best for our church.'

In other legislative issues, members approved the nomination report, electing 12 people who will serve on the Discipleship Council, which will evaluate progress toward the conference?s vision, develop strategy, direct resources and set policy.

Those serving on the Discipleship Council include: Mary Baldridge, Thomas Close, Jennifer Ihlo, Maricela Moreno, Delores Oden, Gladys Pace, and the Revs. Wayne Chung, James Farmer, Donald Matthew Poole, Robert Slade, Victoria Starnes and Adrienne Terry.

The majority of legislative items were on the consent calendar and approved without debate.

Among them was a report by the Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Dialogue Team, which was created by a mandate of the 2005 annual conference and which has met over the past year for dialogue on LGBT issues as they relate to the church. (See commentary from Chris Owens on pg 9).

The nine-member team developed a process, a DVD and other resources that will be made available to local churches who wish to enter into conversation around homosexuality and other contentious issues.

In addition, conference members called upon local churches to set aside special Sundays throughout the year for a variety of ministries. They include: Volunteers in Mission Awareness on the third Sunday of September and Mental Illness Awareness Week in October and Mental Health Month in May.

Congregations are also encouraged to enter or maintain a covenant relationship with a missionary and continue to study the gbwc_superusere 'Steps Towards Wholeness,' which addresses inclusiveness.