Faith working by love

Tag: united methodist church

  • The Theology of General Conference’s passing of the Three Rs

    The Theology of General Conference’s passing of the Three Rs

    Author’s note: Like the Social Principles, this blog is meant to be a starting point for conversation. I invite you to read and listen with an open mind to how the Holy Spirit may be speaking through me, and I will also seek to listen for the Holy Spirit in your respectful response. Yesterday, I…

  • End-of-Life Ethics in the proposed new Social Principles

    End-of-Life Ethics in the proposed new Social Principles

    In 2023, I completed a master’s thesis titled, “Is This How Human Life Should End?: A Methodist Examination of Physician-Assisted Suicide.” Through this year-long research project, completed through the Th.M. program at Boston College School of Theology and Ministry, I considered the history and growing popularity of physician-assisted suicide (PAS) in the United States and…

  • Creation 4: Faith and Science

    Creation 4: Faith and Science

    The Social Principles affirm the value of science and encourage dialogue between scientific and theological communities. However, the proposed revised principles overly simplify this affirmation. On a positive note, the revised social principles call for ethical standards in scientific research and affirm traditional wisdom within indigenous communities.

  • Creation 3: Creation Justice

    Creation 3: Creation Justice

    What does it mean to seek justice? Thomas Aquinas defined justice as a cardinal virtue that renders to each person what is due to them, or what they have a right to receive. God’s justice, then, honors the dignity of all beings–a foundational principle of the UMRSP and one that is extended not only to…

  • Creation 2: Sustainable Policies and Practices

    Creation 2: Sustainable Policies and Practices

    This post covers the following sections of “Community of All Creation” in the proposed revised UMC Social Principles: Stewardship of Creation “The goodness of God’s creation, and the value given to every part of it, call people to respect, protect, and care for the creation and all interrelated aspects of it.” This statement brings together…

  • Creation 1: Creation in Peril

    Creation 1: Creation in Peril

    The United Methodist Social Principles detail human culpability in global warming and climate change. But humans are not only part of the problem. We also ought  to be part of the solution.