PAYNESVILLE – Tensions are escalating throughout a number of United Methodist Church congregations because of an inside dispute over church properties, a battle that many attribute to the denomination’s resolution to acknowledge same-sex marriage.
By Gerald C. Koinyeneh, [email protected]
At the 72nd United Methodist Church in Paynesville, Rev. Dr. Jerry Kulah and a number of other dissenting members have been arrested and briefly detained by native police. Dr. Kulah, is a founding member of the Global Methodist Church, has been a vocal critic of regional management. Following his launch, he acknowledged that the top of the UMC couldn’t be trusted after failing to interrupt away from the common United Methodist Church following its resolution to acknowledge same-sex marriage.
In addition to the disturbance in Paynesville, clashes have been reported in Buchanan, whereas in Nimba County, police have been deployed on the Miller McAllister United Methodist Church in Ganta. The dispute in Ganta facilities on possession of church properties: the Global Methodist Church—an offshoot that cut up from the United Methodist Church—is claiming possession of a number of properties, thereby impeding the United Methodist Church’s common actions on the facility.
These conflicts come on the heels of the Liberia Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church’s 192nd Annual Session, throughout which two important resolutions have been unanimously adopted:
Marriage Resolution and Traditional Values
The first decision reaffirms the Church’s dedication to the normal definition of marriage, aligning with each Biblical ideas and Liberia’s civil legal guidelines. This stance follows an modification to The Book of Discipline (2020/2024), authorised by the West Africa Central Conference (WACC), which mandates that marriage inside the United Methodist Church in West Africa shall be between a person and a lady in accordance with nationwide, state, and native legal guidelines.
Protecting Church Properties
The second decision is geared toward defending church property from unauthorized encroachment, conversion, or misuse. It empowers the Board of Trustees to take vital authorized actions to safe and get better all properties held in belief for the Church. According to The Book of Discipline (2020/2024) and a previous decision (No. 014/LAC/UMC) adopted on the a hundred and ninetieth Annual Session, the Board of Trustees holds fiduciary duty for these property. The Church has dedicated to scrupulously safeguarding its properties not solely inside Liberia’s 15 counties and 20 church districts, but additionally any property held overseas.
Internal Disputes and Wider Context
The adoption of those resolutions comes amid ongoing inside disputes inside the United Methodist Church over its evolving stance on LGBTQ+ points. In 2024, the Church’s rulebook was amended—eradicating a provision that acknowledged homosexuality was incompatible with Christian instructing, eliminating penalties for ministers who officiate same-sex weddings, and broadening the definition of marriage to incorporate any two consenting adults. These modifications have sparked important backlash throughout Africa, together with Liberia.
Despite reassurances from LAC management, led by Bishop Samuel Jerome Quire, Jr., that the Church doesn’t assist same-sex marriage, dissenters have referred to as for an emergency convention to make clear its official place. While the reaffirmation of marriage as a union between a person and a lady was anticipated to ease tensions, divisions persist, with a number of branches—significantly in Montserrado, Margibi, and Nimba Counties—persevering with to expertise unrest.
As the United Methodist Church experiences these turbulent points, each doctrinal disputes and property battles threaten to additional divide its congregations throughout Liberia.