Thursday, May 1, 2008
UPDATED and corrected: Bush Library at SMU rebuked by United Methodist Church petition; decision in hands of South Central Jursidiction
Updated 10:54 p.m., May 1, 2008
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UPDATE: The General Conference of the United Methodist Church did receive a petition asking it to block SMU’s decision to lease land for the George W. Bush Presidential Library and Center. Its decision was only to refer it to the South Central Jurisdictional Conference. In no way did it reject the decision already made by the South Central Jurisdiction’s Mission Council. The action was merely procedural because the General Conference said the decision belonged at the Jurisdictional level. The overwhelming nature of the vote was due to the fact that it, along with 11 other petitions, was on a consent calendar of things approved overwhelmingly in committees that recommended referrals.
Ed note: Below is the original reporting and analysis.
The governing body of the United Methodist Church has come out against the George Bush Library being constructed on the campus of Southern Methodist University. This rejection overwhelmingly passed 844-20 on Wednesday morning at the 2008 Quadrennial General Conference of the United Methodist Church that is still meeting in Fort Worth.
Here is the petition submitted by Diane Smock, Greenville, S.C.:
SMU Bush Presidential Library Rejection (80089-MH-NonDis)
I hereby petition the UMC General Conference to prevent leasing, selling, or otherwise participating in or supporting the presidential library for George W. Bush at Southern Methodist University.
Rationale
We should support separation of church and state and if the Bush library goes on the SMU campus or property it will appear to the country and the world as an endorsement of that president by the United Methodist Church. Texas is a big state; surely there are other venues…
The proposal had already been adopted in a committee vote, with 51 voting in favor, 5 against and 1 not voting.
The group’s opposition is centered around the partisan think tank that will be attached to the library. The institute reportedly under the control of Karl Rove will have no academic oversight by SMU. But there may also be some concerns about associating the school with some of Bush’s policies.
“Many are offended by the contempt shown by the administration in areas like torture,” says Rev. Andrew J. Weaver, Ph.D. a minister and psychologist in Brooklyn, New York. “Torture is not a value of the Methodist church.” Rev. Weaver is a graduate of SMU’s Perkins School of Theology, and told Dallas South that torture in today’s terms would be the moral equivalent of slavery.
See more of Weaver’s thoughts in his article Slavery, Torture, and the Methodist DNA.
The decision now lies in the hands of the South Central Jurisdiction of the United Methodist Church. The land on which the library would be built is owned by the South Central Jurisdiction. A body of approximately 290, many of whom voted in the general conference, will take a final vote on the sale of the land. The 2008 South Central Jurisdictional Conference is scheduled for July 16-19 at the Hilton Anatole in Dallas. The North Texas Conference of the UMC will play host to the event.
If torture is in fact an issue, then it seems pretty cut and dry on where the administration stands. Just look at President Bush’s March 8, 2008 veto of a measure that would have banned waterboarding and other torture tactics used by the CIA.
According to the Washington Post, Bush claimed the legislation “would take away one of the most valuable tools on the war on terror.” He went on to say “This is no time for Congress to abandon practices that have a proven track record of keeping America safe.”
I’ve always thought that the library is a good idea, but not the think tank. But I’m thinking about from a Dallas standpoint, the school should have much broader concerns. Some faculty members have threatened to leave the university if the library and think tank are built, and some students have reportedly returned their SMU diplomas in protest to the school’s decision.
So what’s been reported as a done deal may not actually be the case. I hope to get some reaction from the General Conference at some point, but if not, we will follow the developments at the South Central Jurisdiction Conference in July.
Pegasus News content partner - Dallas South
Shawn Williams publishes Dallas South Blog; his e-mail address is shawn@dallasouthblog.com.
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Comments
Lisa Lawrence Merritt Verified
I shall repeat:
[Posted on February 3, 2008 at 12:08 a.m.
Here's the problem: this is an internal issue of the Methodist Church,the Laity and an educational institution owned by the Church.
Given the idea of "separation of church and state" and given the fact that George Bush, Jr. associates himself with the United Methodist Church, many within the leadership and congregations of the UMC believe that the actions of the current Bush administration are in DIRECT conflict with the UMC philosophy, teachings and interpretation of the Christian faith.
I was brought up in the Methodist tradition and included myself with those who have signed the petition against allowing the Bush library and the "Freedom Institute" to be aligned with SMU and, therefore, the UMC as a whole.
Although the UMC is a church of "open hearts and open minds" and we welcome the opinions of all people, I would like to remind the Pegs Bloggers that this is an internal issue.
I would prefer that Bush and his supporters find a nice "state" supported university to make their offering to.(Just like Daddy)
In other words, I'd like to see the actions of Bush and His State separated from Our Church.
Have a nice day.]
2 weeks ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )
Robert Kelly Verified
very 'christian' of you lisa
2 weeks ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )
Kay Anonymous
Lisa's post was much nicer than mine would have been. Bless the United Methodists for standing up against this outrage of a Karl Rove idea/deal!
How "snarky" of you, Robert.
2 weeks ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )
GregFW Anonymous
I find Lisa's perspective to be quite Christian, although she certainly does not need justification from either of us. I share her desire that our faith not be entangled with politics (that old render unto Caesar thing). It is to protect the faith.
I would only add my own view that a shrine to the most anti-intellectual president we have ever seen should be built far from any institution of higher learning. I would like to propose an alternate site but it would be too insulting to any category I might choose.
2 weeks ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )
James Scott Verified
"...some students have reportedly returned their SMU diplomas in protest to the school’s decision."
funny - I'm sure they stopped listing their degree on their resumes too, right?
2 weeks ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )
Robert Kelly Verified
I guess your right, I have long seen the policies of exclusion to be a tenet of the Christian religions, though they do share it with a long list of other groups.
2 weeks ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )
Kay Anonymous
Amen to GregFW's view!
Funny, I had tried to come up with an appropriate alternate site to suggest .... couldn't think of one that was just right. If there must be one, I agree it should be as far as possible from any institute of learning.
2 weeks ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )
Robert Kelly Verified
Hey, I saw in the morning news today that the methodists don't want the gays either!!
Thank Allah there are lots of hetero whites around!!
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedconte...
1 week, 6 days ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )
Lisa Lawrence Merritt Verified
Any person who seeks to associate or take membership with the UMC, or any organization for that fact, must first understand its doctrine and FULLY accept it as it stands before agreeing to make a declaration as such.
Just like a woman who marries a man and then wants to proceed to change him: how stupid is that?!
I have never known any openly gay person to be asked to leave or denied membership to any UMC that I have attended. I have known of a same sex marriage that was denied and that any non celibate homosexual ordained UM minister risks being de-frocked unless agreeing to remain celibate.
The last church I attended on a regular basis allowed gay singles and gay couples with children to appear in the church directory photo album...just as anyone else. Openly gay Laity were always welcomed to serve the Church.
Free Will and the Grace to walk thereby- either into the church doors or out, it's up to the individual person.
1 week, 6 days ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )
Alex Bentley Staff
Robert, we have that story on our site, too, courtesy of Dallas Voice.
1 week, 6 days ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )
Robert Kelly Verified
but its way more fun to pile on here. hypocrisy rocks. "What would Jesus do?" indeed..
And I don't mean to paint with broad brushes, but it is easy to do with a convention in town. You get a book about Jesus, then proceed to screw it all up with the inadequate 'rules of man'. I keep looking for "Thou Shalt not Be a Fag", but someone is going to have to point that out to me.
1 week, 6 days ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )
Matt Anderson Verified
Lisa, it's really not just an internal issue. SMU is more than just a little UMC outpost. It's the alma mater of thousands of people, many (and probably most) of whom are not Methodists -- and who support it financially. It's a Dallas asset, and receives a financial support from the community. It has also received over $25M in federal grants in the last two years.
Whether folks are for or against a Bush library there, it's not just a UMC issue.
1 week, 6 days ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )
DavidPersons Anonymous
Ms. Merritt, while I agree with you about SMU hosting the Bush Presidential Library being somewhat akin to the Holocaust Museum hosting a Klan fund raiser, I have to seriously disagree with what you said above about the necessity, or even the value, of blind conformity.
Let me quote Mr. Wesley himself in arguing that we do not have to agree with, not accept, everything that our Church says or does. One of the things that makes the United Methodist Church, and the Methodist movement throughout its history, so strong and such a powerful witness and influence is its ability to host many different views and opinions while still standing for Christ in a meaningful and powerful way. Wesley was right profoundly correct, and prophetic, in saying that our strength lies in understanding that we must have "in the essentials unity, in the non-essentials diversity, and in all things love". That pretty much says it all. While it is an important discussion regarding whether or not President Bush's library ultimately winds up at SMU, or for that matter at the Junior College of Guam, is simply not an essential. How we decide about the issue is an essential, for it is in our connectional process that our strength, and our future, lies. It is how we discover God's will and plan for our Connection, it is how we empower our many ministries and the work we do, and it is how we will face the future together as Christians called by God to transform the world. That future is ours, unless we lose our way by worrying more about whose library goes where, or who chooses to fall in love with whom, or who "wins" and who "loses". If God wins we all do. God wins by our focusing on the essentials, and accepting the diversity of the rest - the rest that God also created, and loves.
The United Methodist Church, of which I am a proudly serving pastor, needs to begin to realize that the message of Jesus Christ was not to be politically correct, or even politically victorious - it was to transform and the lives of every one of its people, so that they may transform the lives of all that they encounter. Even Mr. Kelly. People and love for them is the essential - policies are not.
1 week, 6 days ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )
Lisa Lawrence Merritt Verified
"People and love for them is the essential"- I never said they weren't. :)
1 week, 6 days ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )
DavidPersons Anonymous
Sorry, that last paragraph should have read
Sorry, I didn't proof read as well as I should have.
1 week, 6 days ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )
Rick Yost Verified
I wouldn't want to be associated in any way to G.W.
I'm not quite sure he has ventured far enough into the world of literature to have a library named after him. (Wait, did I say that out loud?)
Next he'll be ghost-writing a book on how to win a war in the Middle East.
1 week, 6 days ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )
Robert Kelly Verified
Wesley was right profoundly correct, and prophetic, in saying that our strength lies in understanding that we must have "in the essentials unity, in the non-essentials diversity, and in all things love".
Good solid sentiment David. The world needs more parsons like you. When I see the politics of exclusion played in the religious world, to me it's not far from "jihad!!", or more aptly, "crusade"(Not that I'm blaming the Methodists for that). Much good is done in the world in the name of religion, but much bad as well. Keep on the positive side of the ledger, and don't let the dogma bog you down.
Back on topic, regarding the SMU library, it is primarily a historic venture, and can you imagine all the good stuff(and I use that term loosely) that will come out in 20 years.
"Presidential Libraries are not libraries in the usual sense. They are archives and museums, bringing together in one place the documents and artifacts of a President and his administration and presenting them to the public for study and discussion without regard for political considerations or affiliations. Presidential Libraries and Museums, like their holdings, belong to the American people."
Now I am no fan of what this president has done, but what is wrong with having all that info here in Big D.
I've said enough, probably more than enough on this topic. Enjoyed the banter, see you on the next topic
1 week, 6 days ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )
Lisa Lawrence Merritt Verified
Matt: can you say the same thing to those non Catholics that have attended Notre Dame and apposing veiw points that have conflicted with the Roman Catholic Church?
But you bring up this point with the UMC?
Hmmmm.Doesn't work for me, Bud.
1 week, 6 days ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )
Matt Anderson Verified
Of course I say the same. If ND were proposing to build a presidential library, of course it would be of concern to all ND alumni, the citizens of South Bend, and many more. And they're not independent of the "state" either -- they've received over $100M in federal grants in the last couple of years.
That's just the way it is. I am crushed that it doesn't work for you.
1 week, 6 days ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )
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