Just a short thought from the Episcopal address, taken from the UM News report:
"[Illinois Area Bishop Sharon Brown Christopher] attributed some of the membership decline in U.S. churches to 'ruptures in our United Methodist relationships. Left or right, conservative or liberal, we treat our baptized brothers and sisters as if they are our enemies' and seek to destroy those who have a different viewpoint or perspective, she said.
"'Our fervent pursuit of being right takes priority over right relationship,' she said. The disarray of the table, the fractured and ruptured United Methodist relationships, and 'carefully calculated formulas of theology' make church members unable to hear and listen to the cries of a neighbor. 'Our own need deafens us to the needs of others,' she said."
I don't think this is a disease contained only in our Methodist population. It seems to have infected most of Western (and maybe more) Christianity. Not the first time it's been said...but it needs to be repeated.
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