First United Methodist Church of Long Beach is discerning it’s path forward as a member of the United Methodist Church congregation. Below are items that are intended to be used by members to understand more of what is happening and what the options of the church are.
Your word is a lamp to guide my feet and a light for my path.
Psalm 119:105
“We believe, indeed, that ‘all Scripture is given by the inspiration of God;’
“The Character of the Methodist” –John Wesley
The Church Council appointed an Exploratory Committee to research options for a path forward for the church should the church continue down the path to disaffiliation from the United Methodist Church denomination.
Long Beach First United Methodist Church will hold a special church conference on Sunday, March 3, 2024, for the sole purpose of considering a closure resolution as presented by the church’s governance board. The meeting will be held at the church in the Sanctuary. It will begin promptly at 2:00 pm. All those voting must be full members of the congregation and must be present at the time the votes are cast. The voting will be done by secret ballot supplied by the presiding elder of the conference. The vote must be at least 66 2/3% of those present and voting to be approved. No other business will be conducted at this conference.”
On January 29, 2024, the Long Beach First UMC Church Council voted to enter the
Mississippi Conference Trustee Church Closure plan (Paragraph 2549 of the current Book of Discipline) which is now the only method for churches to leave the United Methodist Church denomination.
On February 18, the Long Beach First UMC Church Council voted to select option C in the Mississippi Conference Trustee Church Closure plan. The link below contains a copy of that official decision.
The link below explains the March 3rd conference and its relationship to the January 29th, 2024, decision and February 18th, 2024 resolution. This action will result in staying or leaving the United Methodist Church.
At a meeting conducted on February 18th, 2024, our senior pastor provided guidance for our church which included references to scripture, quotations from our denomination’s founder, John Wesley, and information regarding how our church assembles the information that compile our actions.
As members of the Christian church, we are beholden to the Holy Bible. It is our first authority for all of our beliefs. Scriptures pertaining to the current conversations are found in the link below.
As members of the United Methodist Church, we adhere to the United Methodist Church’s Book of Discipline. Excerpts regarding the issue at hand are contained in the linked document.
First United Methodist Church of Long Beach is a member of the Mississippi Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church. The process for disaffiliation is outlined on their website at the link below.
Below is a link to Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about the 2549 process