On August 17, 2023 our District Superintendent held a Charge Conference in our sanctuary. The purpose of this meeting was to allow the congregation to vote to remain United Methodist or to disaffiliate from the denomination. There were 114 people in attendance with 96 of them being church members. A two thirds majority vote was needed from those members in order to disaffiliate. The ballots were collected and counted immediately. The results were 80 “yes” votes, 15 “no” votes and one abstained. Therefore, 84% of the members present voted to disaffiliate. This number was above the two thirds needed for the disaffiliation to pass.
Next Steps Timeline / Schedule
- September 10 – Question & Answer session immediately following worship service
- September 29 – Church Provides completed checklist to UMC District Office
- October 13 – Full Payment due to UMC District (Released from Trust within 15 days of cleared check.)
- October 28 – Special Session of Annual Conference to vote on release of Disaffiliating churches.
- October 31 – Church Disaffiliation formally becomes effective. (Remove Cross/Flame insignia 3 months after this date)
- To Be Determined – Decide Global Methodist Church or Independent
Disaffiliation Cost
Leaving the United Methodist Church comes with financial cost to the UMC to release us from the trust clause. For churches to disaffiliate the cost is determined upon two factors: (1) Past 12 months + 1 year apportionments, (2) Unfunded pastor/staff pension liabilities.
The New Knoxville UMC estimated disaffiliation cost as of July 2023 is $74,736. We have $48,828 available from past apportionment monies.
We need to determine funding to cover the remaining *$25,908
* There will also be legal fees and business costs for items such as church name change, remove UMC cross/flame branding, 501C(3) non-profit, etc.
Independent or Global Methodist Church (GMC)
As a congregation we will need to make a decision whether we stay independent or join another denomination. After reviewing different methodist denominations our church administrative board decided we should investigate the Global Methodist Church.
Global Methodist Church Information
- Global Methodist Church FAQ
- GMC Beliefs & Governance
- Ten Reasons Why I’ll Join the GMC
- Connected or Independent
Mailings and Bulletin Inserts, Slide Presentations:
- 03/12/2023 – History of Methodism
- 04/23/2023 – Who is the GMC (Global Methodist Church)?
- 04/30/2023 – Methodist Denomination Comparison
- 05/21/2023 – Differences between UMC and GMC
- 9/10//2023 – Independent vs GMC Comparison
UMC Membership
When we disaffiliate from the United Methodist Church members will have 2 options.
1. Change membership from the UMC to whatever denomination we chose to go.
2. Keep UMC membership.
Church members are NOT be required to change their membership from the UMC. If desired assistance will be available to help connect with UMC churches in our area.
What are your thoughts?
We created the below email address for you to ask questions to share your thoughts. You the author of your email will be kept confidential. You may authorize us to use your identity if you wish. Your question and the response may be used in future communications of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ). Thank you for your thoughts and prayers.
Please submit your questions to: discernment@newknoxvilleumc.org
New Knoxville Methodist Church
109 South Main Street
P.O. Box 119
New Knoxville, Ohio 45871
phone: (419) 753-2427
email: nkumc@nktelco.net
