Current Issues

Download previous statements:

• District Statement (11th June 2020)
• District Statement (4 January 2021)

1.  Prayer

Please pray for one another, and for our church in this process of discernment and decision making.  The Methodist website provides some prayer resources for each day of the week here.

2.  Provisional Legislation

The Methodist Conference 2019 voted for provisional legislation which would change our approach to marriage and relationships.  This was through a report called: God in Love Unites Us.  As a result we are now consulting across the District in preparation for a vote at our Synod on 25^th April 2020.

The vote will be on five resolutions as set out in this document.

Our votes and responses will then go forward to Methodist Conference 2020 for a final decision.

3.  Conversations

Our conversations will seek to achieve two things:

• a full open conversation between people coming from different perspectives;
• to inform the District Synod of the range of views within the District.

We have trained a number of people to facilitate these conversations.  You can access various documents and study guides below.

• Find the full report here: God in Love Unites Us
• Or in large print here: God in Love Unites Us (Large Print)
• And here is the official Methodist Church study guide: God in Love Unites Us Study Guide
• Cumbria District have produced an extended study guide which includes some helpful resources for looking at what Biblical sources about marriage and relationships have to say.  Find their study guide here.
• Methodist Evangelicals Together provide resources from a traditional perspective.  Find their website here.
• Dignity and Worth provide resources from a perspective which looks for change in our current practice.  Find their website here.
• Other resources are available from the Methodist Church in Britain website here: Marriage and Relationships resources