This week in Christian history: Falwell loses at Supreme Court; UMC backs traditional marriage

By Michael Gryboski, Mainline Church Editor Sunday, February 20, 2022

UMC votes to uphold stance on homosexuality at special session – Feb. 26, 2019

View of the stage during the United Methodist Church's special session General Conference inside the Dome at America's Center in St. Louis, Missouri, on Sunday, Feb. 24, 2019. | United Methodist News Service/Kathleen Barry

This week marks the anniversary of when delegates at a special session of the United Methodist Church voted to affirm the traditional stance of the denomination labeling homosexuality “incompatible with Christian teaching.”

Held in St. Louis, Missouri, the special session was supposed to help resolve the decades-long debate within the UMC over its official stance against homosexuality, same-sex marriage and the ordination of non-celibate homosexuals.

In a vote of 438-384, delegates at the special session approved something known as the “Traditional Plan,” which not only maintained the official stance but included measures aimed at more strictly enforcing the rules.

Rather than resolve the divisive debate, the special session was ultimately seen by many to have merely shown that the denomination needed to graciously separate over theological differences.