Critique of Sincere Belief
Following the recent landmark decisions ratified at the postponed 2020 United Methodist General Conference, some in my sphere have given acknowledgement to those for whom these decisions are not well-received. Historically, the United Methodist Church has prided itself as a “big tent” denomination with plenty of room for diverse theological persuasions. Apparently, now that the “big tent” has expanded once again, there are those who recoil at it. The actions of General Conference are said to be beyond their “sincerely held beliefs.” My colleagues assured those hurt by these decisions of their prayers and their commitment to continue striving toward unity.
It is a generous nod to the diversity of belief and opinion still within the United Methodist Church. It also perpetuates the delusion that the UMC can always be a place for everyone. Though we may call ourselves the United Methodist Church, we have never been, are not, and will never be truly united. Like the rest of the — capital C — Church, the UMC will always have within her number sharp disagreements, embittered conflicts, and different “sincerely held beliefs” about God and the world in which we live that will continue to put us at odds with one another. John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist movement, recognized this stark reality in his own 18th century context, which prompted him to ask in his sermon Catholic Spirit, “Though we may not think alike, may we not all love alike? … If your heart is of my heart, take my hand.”
To answer Wesley’s question, no we cannot. When our hearts are not of one another, the right hand of fellowship will always receive the left foot of disunity in return. I’ve long since abandoned a belief in the “unity of the Church” and chock it up to our insistence on maintaining our “sincerely held beliefs.” As long as we cling to our beliefs, valuing and prioritizing them over relationships and building Beloved Community, we pit ourselves against others who do not share our beliefs. Only, here’s the deal: all beliefs, no matter how sincerely held, can change. Interpretations of the Bible can be swapped when current ones no longer prove viable. Theological opinions, no matter how well established, develop and grow over the course of history. Even the word “believe” has changed in meaning. To say, “I believe,” once meant to say, “I put my trust in…” Now, we mean it generally to say, “It is my opinion that…” Like all things on the face of the earth, beliefs and opinions are impermanent. Dr. Lloyd Geering sums up this point well:
…our attempts to express what we believe to be true cannot avoid having a strong objective component. Since our beliefs always reflect the culture that shaped us, even those we arrive at on the basis of personal experience are affected by the limited nature of that experience. When our cultural horizons widen to include more knowledge, we may be forced to change our minds concerning what we believe to be true.
And a maturing, responsible faith obligates us to adapt and to change what we believe, especially when fact compels us to do so. It is never an act of weakness but always an act of strength. To insist otherwise before others, as many in the Church so frequently do, is to perpetuate both fear-mongering and authoritarian control.
Other than religious systems, including Christianity and the United Methodist Church, no other institution on Earth is structured according to “sincerely held beliefs.” In the gospels, Jesus told a parable about two men who each built houses. One built his house on the rock. The other built his house on the sand. Weather patterns being what they are, the house built on sand suffered a demolishing fate while the house built on the rock remained intact. Though this parable can be interpreted in various ways, I highly doubt Jesus intended it to be a call to construct a religious institution on the foundations of creeds and systematic theologies. As a sage situated within his own Jewish wisdom tradition, Jesus offers us a foundational ethic, a way of life, centered around shared values, neatly summarized by later editors in the Sermon on the Mount. It would be his later followers who would prioritize believing over being. Since then, time has proven building our foundation on sincerely held beliefs is no more sturdy than building a house upon the sand. Both are equally foolish. Because like sand, theology shifts with the winds time. We would be all the wiser to treat our theologies as windows on the house faith rather than the block, concrete, and rebar on which faith is built. We can easily update our windows with more energy efficient ones whenever necessary. We wouldn’t bother trying to convince ourselves and others the whole structure is in danger of collapsing if we do. Update what we need to update. Change what we need to change. Life on the face of the earth moves on.
When established fact collides with sincerely held belief, theological responsibility has proven repeatedly it must be the belief that changes. It is now established fact in the medical, scientific, and psychological communities that one’s sexual identity cannot be changed. Sexual minorities are no longer regarded as mental illnesses or moral depravities. The General Conference of the United Methodist Church, recognizing these facts, has updated our denominational language so as not to contradict said facts any longer. It is to make the church a more viable witness to the ethic Jesus put forth as we embody his way of life in our present context. For those hurt by the decisions of General Conference, here is another fact: The hurt you feel is a signal your sincerely held beliefs need to change. No one is attacking your theological opinions. Time has worn them to the point they can no longer shield the house of faith from the elements of progress. Your narrow, constipated interpretations of the Bible, which you claim represent a “high view of scripture,” have bottomed out. Our cultural horizons have expanded to include more knowledge. Nothing can stop that. It is now your responsibility to expand and adapt your sincerely held beliefs to reflect them accordingly.
And if you don’t sincerely believe you can, just read the Sermon on the Mount closely. Jesus might say otherwise.
