DALLAS — The regional governing bodies of the United Methodist Church are called annual conferences. They typically meet once a year to conduct church business. But two of those Texas conferences will meet this weekend in special sessions to approve the withdrawal of potentially hundreds of churches from the UMC.
After a controversial stance against same sex marriages and LGBTQ clergy members was upheld by a slim majority in 2019, congregations across the country are seeking to leave the denomination through a meticulous process called disaffiliation. Although the two conferences meeting this weekend do not cover the Dallas-Fort Worth area, up to 439 churches across Texas could be granted approval to leave the denomination along with their properties.
In this process, the UMC is allowing churches to leave the denomination while retaining their properties and assets as long as certain steps are taken before the end of 2023. Church congregations must first reach a 2/3 majority vote in favor before being approved by their annual conference.
