IMPORTANT NOTIFICATION
During the Transitional Meeting on Sunday, March 12th, the discussion surrounding the decision to move to an Independent vs. Global structure resulted in a recommendation for a straw vote (unofficial vote). The straw poll indicated the opinion of the majority of those present was for the Transitional Committee to move forward with the next steps to obtain our Independent status.
However, the committee recognizes that several people were not able to attend this meeting and although the vote was well represented and will allow the committee to focus their research going forward, the vote was not clearly announced prior to the meeting and did not give everyone the opportunity to voice their opinion. It’s important that this be a church-wide decision!
We will call a church-wide meeting for a more formal vote to be announced at a later date. Our committee will continue to keep you up to date as we gather more information. If there are any thoughts or concerns, please contact the Transitional Committee. We appreciate everyone’s input as we chart this course together!
However, the committee recognizes that several people were not able to attend this meeting and although the vote was well represented and will allow the committee to focus their research going forward, the vote was not clearly announced prior to the meeting and did not give everyone the opportunity to voice their opinion. It’s important that this be a church-wide decision!
We will call a church-wide meeting for a more formal vote to be announced at a later date. Our committee will continue to keep you up to date as we gather more information. If there are any thoughts or concerns, please contact the Transitional Committee. We appreciate everyone’s input as we chart this course together!
Church Transitional Meeting Minutes - March 12, 2023
Vicki Miller welcomed everyone and opened the meeting with prayer.
She introduced the Transitional Committee members and explained that their purpose was “to create a transitional bridge to lead us forward” through the disaffiliation from the United Methodist Church.
We are working with our lawyer Randall Holcomb to understand any legal responsibilities in these final steps. We are under time constraints to make important decisions.
One of our goals is to connect with those individuals who are serving on current committees to see who would be willing to serve on a mirrored committee for the new church body and operate under the guidance of the Transitional Committee. Sandy Johnson will be reaching out to our committee members to determine what capacity they will serve. The current committee and transitional committees will co-exist until the final Charge Conference when we officially exit the United Methodist Church.
The transitional committee understands the importance of communication and we will share updates using email, Rehobeth.org/resources and mailing information to those that do not have electronic access.
We will begin receiving donations to our “Disaffiliation Fund” that has been established. The costs for disaffiliation from the UMC is $168,094; however, we have apportionments budgeted for January -June of $17,185. The remaining $150,909 will be raised through donations and fundraisers by July 2023.
Vicki presented information on pros and cons of The Global Methodist Church vs. Independent. There were numerous thoughts, questions and comments about each structure from the congregation. The discussion surrounding the decision to move to an Independent vs. Global structure resulted in a motion for a straw vote (unofficial vote). Those present were handed ballots to mark their choice of either Global Methodist or Independent. The ballots were tallied, with 80 votes for Independent and 0 for Global Methodist. The straw poll indicated that the opinion of the majority of those present was for the Transition Committee to move forward with the next steps to obtain our Independent status. It was decided that the minutes would reflect this decision and ask those were not in attendance or feel differently to please get in touch with Transitional Committee member.
Jerry Clark shared information about our new legal church name and the church name that we will go by. He shared that we have been Rehobeth on this corner for over 200 years and will continue to be Rehobeth. We must have decision regarding our new legal name by April 1. The two church names can be different. There were several suggestions for our new church name.
After much conversation, we felt we could determine our legal name and have further discussion on what name we would call ourselves for the new church. Jerry Clark suggested our legal name be Rehobeth Church of Guilford County. This was agreed to by those in attendance.
The Transitional Committee wanted everyone to know they are available for any questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to contact them.
Ben Shepherd closed meeting with prayer.
She introduced the Transitional Committee members and explained that their purpose was “to create a transitional bridge to lead us forward” through the disaffiliation from the United Methodist Church.
We are working with our lawyer Randall Holcomb to understand any legal responsibilities in these final steps. We are under time constraints to make important decisions.
One of our goals is to connect with those individuals who are serving on current committees to see who would be willing to serve on a mirrored committee for the new church body and operate under the guidance of the Transitional Committee. Sandy Johnson will be reaching out to our committee members to determine what capacity they will serve. The current committee and transitional committees will co-exist until the final Charge Conference when we officially exit the United Methodist Church.
The transitional committee understands the importance of communication and we will share updates using email, Rehobeth.org/resources and mailing information to those that do not have electronic access.
We will begin receiving donations to our “Disaffiliation Fund” that has been established. The costs for disaffiliation from the UMC is $168,094; however, we have apportionments budgeted for January -June of $17,185. The remaining $150,909 will be raised through donations and fundraisers by July 2023.
Vicki presented information on pros and cons of The Global Methodist Church vs. Independent. There were numerous thoughts, questions and comments about each structure from the congregation. The discussion surrounding the decision to move to an Independent vs. Global structure resulted in a motion for a straw vote (unofficial vote). Those present were handed ballots to mark their choice of either Global Methodist or Independent. The ballots were tallied, with 80 votes for Independent and 0 for Global Methodist. The straw poll indicated that the opinion of the majority of those present was for the Transition Committee to move forward with the next steps to obtain our Independent status. It was decided that the minutes would reflect this decision and ask those were not in attendance or feel differently to please get in touch with Transitional Committee member.
Jerry Clark shared information about our new legal church name and the church name that we will go by. He shared that we have been Rehobeth on this corner for over 200 years and will continue to be Rehobeth. We must have decision regarding our new legal name by April 1. The two church names can be different. There were several suggestions for our new church name.
After much conversation, we felt we could determine our legal name and have further discussion on what name we would call ourselves for the new church. Jerry Clark suggested our legal name be Rehobeth Church of Guilford County. This was agreed to by those in attendance.
The Transitional Committee wanted everyone to know they are available for any questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to contact them.
Ben Shepherd closed meeting with prayer.
The Transition Team
A transition team has been established to help lead us through our final phases in the disaffiliation process. This group will gather information to present to our church this Sunday as we discuss the benefits of going with the Global Methodist, or moving forward as an Independent Church. We will also look at possibilities of our new church name.
Please know that our only purpose thus far was to get us to the vote. There have been no decisions yet on what happens after – we will do that as a church. With that, we need to get through these next steps, build our church up and grow our ministries together!
Please know that our only purpose thus far was to get us to the vote. There have been no decisions yet on what happens after – we will do that as a church. With that, we need to get through these next steps, build our church up and grow our ministries together!
The transition team consist of the following members:
Joan Landreth
Greg Thompson
Wally Forrest
Jennifer Moser
Carl Jobe
Vicki Miller
Dino Hackett
Sandy Johnson
Jerry Clark
Andrew Allen
Joan Landreth
Greg Thompson
Wally Forrest
Jennifer Moser
Carl Jobe
Vicki Miller
Dino Hackett
Sandy Johnson
Jerry Clark
Andrew Allen
Global Methodist vs. Independent
There are Pros and Cons to consider going Global or Independent. Here are a few thoughts to consider as you do your research on each option - please look over and let me know if there are any other considerations.
Global Pros
Independent Pros
Independent Cons
Global Pros
- Similar to UMC
- Same basic theology
- Same rules as current UMC Book of Discipline (BOD) regarding Sexuality
- Same structure (committees) that we are used to with more flexibility
- connectivity with other churches and mission/building teams More accountability for Leaders to follow BOD
- Pastors are vetted by the Global
- We will have more involvement with selection of pastor
- We will be given names of several pastors to interview and we make the selection
- Much lower apportionments than UMC – approx ⅓
- Eventually more leadership training sponsored by Global
- We would eventually have access to program materials
- No restrictions to leave Global and go Independent if desired – would involve some costs, bank accounts, accounting system, changing name and signage, etc.
- No trust clause or loss of property
- Global Methodist church is in its infancy – we would be a part of the beginning.
- This is a new organization which is still being organized and many hurdles to consider as they get established.
- If we find a pastor we like that is not Global then that person would need to be vetted by Global and join Global within a year
- Apportionment would be approx $10,000 + per year
- More involved definition of sexuality could alienate people
- A complicated BOD with much that does not apply directly to our church and can’t be changed
- We would be required to pay Global Health Insurance on pastor
- We would be required to pay Global Retirement on pastor
- We would be encouraged to follow Global guidelines on salary based on the pastor’s previous salary or minimums
- Expectation of some “push” from Global Leadership
- Required Leadership Training
- Pool of pastors to select from is limited
Independent Pros
- Total freedom to:
- specify theology and practice
- design structure and operation
- express our social views
- select pastor of our choice (expanded pool to choose from)
- determine all pastor compensation issues
- No apportionments
- No one telling us what we can and can’t do
- Support available from other independent churches
- No restrictions to leave independent and go Global if desired – would involve some costs, bank accounts, accounting system, changing name and signage, etc.
- No trust clause or loss of property
- No direct focus on sexuality which has been in the spotlight with Methodist
Independent Cons
- It will take time, effort, and wisdom to develop our theology, structure, etc. (we can use other independent church info to help with this
- We will have to do vetting/selection of potential pastors. This can be exhaustive and may lead to descension.
- No connectivity – although we could join with other independents for projects, mission work, etc.
- We would need to find our resources for programs, studies, etc.