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How LGBTQ Methodists in Kansas are navigating the church’s divide

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FILE - In this April 19, 2019 file photo, a gay pride rainbow flag flies along with the U.S. flag in front of the Asbury United Methodist Church in Prairie Village, Kan. Conservative leaders within the United Methodist Church unveiled plans Monday, March 1, 2021 to form a new denomination, the Global Methodist Church, with a doctrine that does not recognize same-sex marriage. The move could hasten the long-expected breakup of the UMC, America’s largest mainline Protestant denomination, over differing approaches to LGBTQ inclusion. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel, File)
Charlie Riedel
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AP
In this April 19, 2019 file photo, a gay pride rainbow flag flies along with the U.S. flag in front of the Asbury United Methodist Church in Prairie Village, Kansas.

In June of this year, 96 Kansas congregations left the United Methodist Church over mainly LGBTQ issues.

While the majority of U.S. Methodists are supportive of the LGBTQ community, about 20% of congregations have left the church over the issue in recent years.

That includes 96 churches in Kansas.

The split comes after years of contention in the United Methodist Church over the role of LGBTQ people in the church, including whether to allow gay clergy and whether ministers should officiate same-sex weddings.

Jae Moyer, an LGBTQ+ activist and member of Indian Heights UMC in Overland Park, told KCUR’s Up To Date they think the church is caught up in the culture wars.

“It feels like there are people who are turning religion into this one topic, that this is what being a United Methodist is, that this is what being a Christian has become,” Moyer said.

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When I host Up To Date each morning at 9, my aim is to engage the community in conversations about the Kansas City area’s challenges, hopes and opportunities. I try to ask the questions that listeners want answered about the day’s most pressing issues and provide a place for residents to engage directly with newsmakers. Reach me at steve@kcur.org or on Twitter @stevekraske.
Claudia Brancart is an Up To Date producer for KCUR 89.3. She graduated from Pitzer College in Los Angeles where she majored in World Literature and Studio Art. You can reach her at claudiab@kcur.org.
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