Today’s World & Everything In It podcast gets right to the point about the split between the conservative and liberal UMC:
REICHARD: The main issue cited for the split in the denomination is same-sex marriage. But are there other issues of disagreement between the conservative and liberal factions? TOOLEY: There are many, many, many issues of disagreement within the United Methodist Church—sexuality is only the superficial reason for the impending division of the denomination. But if I had to summarize what divides the two or more sides is that the traditional side sees the church as having a chiefly transformative role—evangelizing, winning new disciples to Christ, new birth, a changed heart, a changed mind, personal holiness and sanctification. The liberal side would see the church’s role as affirming people where they are, creating an inclusive community, and working for social justice.
https://worldandeverything.org/2020/01/dividing-the-united-methodist-church/ (special character formatting from Reeder bionic reading mode)
Thus the reason stated is not the symptom; these must be differentiated. The real reason according to Tooley is the view of the church.
