UMC recently dismissed pastors of Korean American Methodist churches in the Los Angeles area who are leaving due to the denomination’s stance on same-sex marriage. However, this decision has stirred controversy.
According to the Colorado Springs Korean American United Methodist Church, 38 churches, including the Korean United Methodist Church of Colorado Springs, affiliated with the conference, have opted to leave the denomination. The primary reason cited is the UMC’s policies on matters related to sexuality, which are deemed unacceptable.
The exodus continues, with three churches in the Northern Illinois Conference – First Korean United Methodist Church, Naperville Korean United Methodist Church, and Korean United Methodist Church of South Suburban Chicago – recently deciding to depart.
The situation resembles that of Los Angeles. When First United Methodist Church of Chicago, the largest Korean American church in Illinois, decided to leave the denomination in April, the UMC removed Senior Pastor Kwangtae Kim from his position.
The UMC, as the owner of the properties, continues to charge Korean American churches that have opted to leave the denomination.
First Korean United Methodist Church has been billed $3.6 million, including the remaining balance of its building mortgage, while Naperville Korean United Methodist Church faces a withdrawal fee of $1.92 million. Korean United Methodist Church of South Suburban Chicago has been informed that it must pay $2 million to the denomination as a condition for withdrawal.
On the other hand, some churches have voted against leaving the denomination.
Honolulu Area Christ United Methodist Church, led by Senior Pastor Uijun Han, recently held a special congregational meeting to discuss disaffiliation, but the proposal was rejected as it did not secure the required two-thirds majority of baptized members. Likewise, the proposal to leave the denomination was rejected in a recent congregational vote at Los Angeles United Methodist Church.
“With the disaffiliation proposal being rejected, approximately 20 church members who disagree with the decision now worship separately,” stated Elder Seongju Ahn, who attends the church.
According to the UMC, a total of 5,321 churches have decided to leave the denomination since 2022, when the controversy over the denomination’s stance on matters related to sexuality intensified.
This trend is accelerating, considering that fewer than 200 churches left the denomination in 2019 (16), 2020 (48), and 2021 (114).
Many within the church view this as a “second Presbyterian Church crisis,” akin to the one that occurred in 2014. At the time, the PCUSA, the largest Presbyterian denomination in the country, faced controversy as numerous churches, including Korean churches, departed from the denomination due to its acceptance of same-sex marriages.
The issue extends beyond LGBTQ+ policies to potential legal disputes concerning property rights to church buildings. Similar to the PCUSA, the UMC owns the property. In order to leave, a church would require denominational approval or relinquish ownership of the property. Further complicating matters, the UMC has varying disaffiliation rules for different local conferences.
“They’re not leaving Methodism,” said Pastor John Lomperis of the Indiana conference. “They’re just trying to continue traditional Methodism.” Lomperis stated that so far, 6,000 congregations out of over 35,000 have left the United Methodist Church, and more departures are anticipated before the year concludes.
BY YEOL JANG [support@koreadaily.com]
