The United Methodist Church is expected to split this coming May into two factions, one of which will allow same-sex marriage, the Washington Post reported on Friday.
The church has long faced infighting over the issue of same-sex marriage and the ordination of LGBT clergymen. A conference of the church in February 2019 voted to penalize clergymen who perform same-sex marriage.
The vote exposed divisions between liberal members who favored a more relaxed LGBT policy and more traditional members, many of whom hail from countries outside the U.S., especially African nations.
Leading clergymen announced on Friday that they plan to split a traditionalist faction away from the United Methodist Church, while allowing the rest of the UMC to permit same-sex marriage and the ordination of LGBT clergymen.
The initiative represents “the best means to resolve our differences, allowing each part of the Church to remain true to its theological understanding, while recognizing the dignity, equality, integrity, and respect of every person,” the writers of the plan said. Local churches will be required to vote to join the traditionalist faction within a specific time frame.
A final church-wide vote on the plan will be held at the church’s 2020 General Conference, to be held in May in Minneapolis, Minn.
Methodists form one group within mainline Protestant churches in the U.S., which include the Episcopal, Lutheran and Presbyterian denominations. Mainline Protestants are generally more open to same-sex marriage than Evangelicals, and all mainline churches except Methodists already permit the practice.