Our sister site, The MethoBlog, has created a new section for featured bloggers at the 2026 General Conference in Portland called GC2016 Conversations, and Dr. Rebekah Miles of the Perkins School of Theology in SMU offered the first post on why she is supporting Plan UMC Revised:
Four years ago this week, I joined 566 other General Conference delegates in Tampa and voted for Plan UMC. The sixty percent of us on the yea side were not dancing a gig and rejoicing over all parts of the proposal. It was a compromise proposal that grew out of many years of consultations with multiple agencies, agency heads, Bishops, and other leaders of our church, an official Connectional Table proposal, a host of alternate proposals, and a load of compromises both before and during General Conference. The final compromise proposal, though not perfect, gained the approval of a supermajority (almost 60%) of delegates. Was I thrilled with it? No! Was there room for improvement? Absolutely! Was it good enough to pass overwhelmingly? Yes!
Sadly, it was not good enough for the Judicial Council. Plan UMC Revised takes up where Plan UMC left off with one difference: it takes into account the criticisms leveled by the Judicial Council. Plan UMC Revised, is, I believe, constitutional. I support Plan UMC Revised today because the General Conference supported its predecessor four years ago after a multi-year series of conversations, consultations, and compromise. (If the Judicial Council rules the revision of the 2012 plan to be unconstitutional, it will surely give clear reasons why, so that delegates can fix the problems; it would be unconscionable not to do so.)
Click here to read the full post.
Plans, plans and more plans. We have reorganization plans, a plan to create an American only conference and various unity plans to deal with the 500 pound gorilla. This is insanity. Our delegates are going to suffer from plan overload which is more than likely to push them to the default of status quo. Perhaps they should invoke rule 44 for discussing plans.