Has the Women’s Division changed the scope and program of United Methodist Women until it is no longer resembles the organization held in the hearts of the women of the church?

Many women trust the organization of United Methodist Women to represent them well.  Their confidence is born out of the past history of the organization to which their mothers and grandmothers belonged.  Their generous gifts underscore their confidence and keep the organization strong.  They believe United Methodist Women does great good through excellent longstanding programs and through new worthwhile projects.  They are right — to a degree. 

Other women within the church have questioned much within the programs and policies of the Women’s Division for many years.  They have found that the good that is accomplished by some Division programs does not compensate for the many programs which are misguided, unbalanced, overtly politically partisan, and at times, antithetical to their understanding of the gospel. 

While numerous examples could be shared to substantiate these findings, the February issue of Response magazine (the official magazine of United Methodist Women) shows much of the heart of the Women’s Division, and provides current and visible evidence of the Division’s misguided intentions.

This issue of the magazine is dedicated to the topic When We Hate.  While this is a legitimate area of concern for United Methodist Women to address, an astonishing deduction is interwoven within several of the articles and is the main topic of others.  An illogical and erroneous leap is made from legitimate hate crime concerns to accusations that many worthy Christian organizations, and even mainline churches, are perpetrators of hate and hate crimes. 

Sprinkled throughout several other articles are statements that cast aspersions upon those who uphold the sanctity of human life and the sacredness of human sexuality.  Several of the articles express politically partisan bias on solving economic or social problems. 

Focus on the Family, a pro-family, pro-biblical values Christian organization, was criticized for its pro-life position and for its periodic political advocacy in behalf of family values.  It would seem difficult for the Women’s Division to be critical of this in light of their own politically biased advocacy.  The Women’s Division has made no attempt to deny its pro-choice position, even to endorsing many extreme policies promoted by the Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice (RCRC).

This is not the only time Response magazine and other UMW resources have been used to promote positions taken by the Women’s Division in behalf of the women of the church — positions contrary to the beliefs of a large percentage of the women they claim to represent. 

Is this our mother’s and grandmother’s organization?  Decidedly not!  Perhaps we should consider what our mothers and grandmothers might say to us if they could speak to us today.

I think they would tell us that they had been blessed by the women’s organization of their church and had found that it enabled them to come to know Jesus Christ more fully, to experience Christian fellowship and to be in mission both locally and around the world. I think they would remind us of the legacy they passed on to us and then say: “No, United Methodist Women today is not our organization — it is your organization.”

This legacy has fallen to us to guard and transmit to the next generation.  If our own programs and mission focus are misdirected, what will we offer tomorrow’s young women: radical feminist theology; social justice devoid of the transforming Gospel, politically partisan campaigns;  acceptance of the gay and lesbian lifestyle?? 

This is serious.  The time has come for United Methodist women of faith to speak out and to reclaim their organization.  Unquestioning trust has gotten us where we are and only responsible action will get us out of this spiritual malaise. 

We can write or call elected Women’s Division directors and ask them to speak to the Women’s Division and Response staff about the recent magazine issue which challenged our church’s standard on homosexual practice and castigated other Christian organizations for their public witness. 

We can contact our district and conference UMW officers and express our concerns lovingly and clearly, asking for their support in addressing well-founded grievances. 

We can address our concerns directly to the Deputy General Secretary of the Women’s Division and to the Editor of Response magazine

If we do not find that our concerns are being taken seriously, or we do not see any change, we might consider designating our funds rather than giving to Undesignated Pledge to Mission.  We might even consider withholding funds if all else fails to bring reform. 

Our purpose in calling for accountability is not motivated by anger or malice.  Whatever we do should be respectfully expressed, even as we act in firm commitment.  May the sincere faith of our spiritual mothers and grandmothers live in our hearts as we pray and work for the reform of United Methodist Women — our organization.

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