Tagged: denominations

Lay Itinerancy

When last I wrote about unity in The United Methodist Church, I suggested that connectionalism, or a web of relationships between pastors and members across churches, was the true source of denominational unity.  If one accepts that answer, then the question for those who want to promote denominational unity becomes how one can foster true […]

Connectionalism as basis for United Methodist unity

For the last several weeks, I’ve been taking a rather long detour from what had been my topic for much of the summer, the sources of unity in The United Methodist Church, to talk about a related but still somewhat tangential topic: the aggregate model of unity I’ve introduced.  Today, I’m finally going to connect […]

Networks and bridge-builders in the making of unity

For the last two weeks, I’ve been talking about something I’ve called the aggregate model of unity: a model of unity that depends not upon some characteristic shared by all as the basis of unity, but rather sees unity as being built up through a bunch of overlapping social circles.  Today, I want to talk […]

Unity without sameness?

In my past several blog posts, I’ve been examining various possible sources of unity for The United Methodist Church.  One assumption behind these posts so far has been that it may be possible to find something(s) that ties together all United Methodists and that unity in the denomination depends upon finding such thing(s).  I’ve certainly […]

“The world is our parish” as basis for United Methodist unity

One of John Wesley’s famous lines is “I look on all the world as my parish.”  A lot of Methodists like this phrase, but does it contain a potential source of United Methodist unity?  I’d like to argue that it does.  I think a “world as our parish” attitude has the potential to conceptually unite […]

Singing as basis for United Methodist unity

This week’s possibility for source of unity of United Methodism is singing.  Whereas I’ve pointed out problems with the three previous sources of unity I’ve examined (theology, history, and polity), I would like to suggest that singing is a potentially promising source of United Methodist unity (though not without its own problems as well). It’s […]

Polity as basis for United Methodist unity?

This week’s contender for possible source of unity for The United Methodist Church (or other denominations, with the appropriate caveats made) is polity.  Polity means the rules and structures that define the formal organization of the church.  It includes things like membership vows, definitions of ordained ministry (and the rules for becoming and remaining an […]

History as basis for United Methodist unity?

Last week, I began looking at the question of what constitutes the basis of unity for The United Methodist Church (and by extension, other denominations as well).  I examined whether theology could serve as a useful basis for unity and concluded it couldn’t.  This week, I’d like to examine another answer which serves better than […]

Theology as basis for United Methodist unity?

The last two weeks, I’ve written to raise the question of what the basis for Christian unity is.  I’ve talked about it mainly on a broad level, looking at Christianity as a whole, though I’ve indicated that this is a question for individual denominations as well.  Starting this week, and for the next several weeks, […]

Bind Us Together, Lord

In the old hymn, Christians petition God to “bind us together with cords that cannot be broken”.  The song then goes on to ask God to “bind us together with love”.  It is a worthwhile question for Christians to ask ourselves what the nature is of the cords that bind us together.  This question is […]