United Methodist Decision Making Analysis

As a “cradle Methodist,” the standards and theological tasks mentioned in Part III of the Discipline are ingrained in how I understand and apply my faith. These aspects of the United Methodist tradition have been a foundation from which I have grown during my formative years. Although I have not always been able to articulate these beliefs, I have learned the power in living them in addition to teaching them. I believe that much of the affirming, teaching, and applying of our standards and theological task that I do in my ministry is out of this same foundation that was formative to my faith. It informs how I preach, the lead Bible studies I lead, how I lead youth group, and my interactions with congregants and the community.

Dispensationalism, as a system of theology, presupposes two main ideas: God works with humans in distinct ways throughout history, and God has a distinct plan for both Israel and the church (Ryrie, 2007). Popularized in the twentieth-century by Cyrus Scofield, dispensationalism is the most popular system of theology taught in North American evangelical churches today, however, and despite the popularity, dispensationalism continues to be rejected and opposed by many scholars and Christian denominations (Bloesch, 2000). Regardless of the opposition, the word dispensation appears in the New Testament and is translated variably to describe stewardships (Luke 12:42; Rom. 16:23; Gal. 4:2), administrations (Luke 16:2; Eph. 1:10; Col. 1:25) and

Baptist believed that church authority rests with the congregation. For this reason Baptist church government is designated “congregational”, in contrast to other denominations which are “Presbyterian’ or “Episcopal.

While reading this book, the differences between the ideas of Wesleyan belief and Fundamentalism become clear. In the introduction, Al Truesdale lays out the book’s thesis, saying that, “We shall see that differences between fundamentalism and Wesleyan theology are so important that denominations in the Wesleyan tradition cannot adopt fundamentalism without forfeiting essential parts of what it means to be Wesleyan.” (pg.8). Both traditions have high views of scripture, but the main differences that the book describes is that Weslyans, “developed a doctrine of scripture that focused on its role in transforming the believer’s inner being as the ground for reordering behavior. Fundamentalism, developed a doctrine of scripture that tended to focus on reordering behavior in obedience to a body of propositional truths.” (pg. 27). In other words, many of the differences between fundamentalists and Wesleyans are due to their differing views on how the Bible should be viewed. Throughout the book, this viewpoint holds true throughout each topic of

As an academic discipline, theology should share mutual and erudite goals with other academic disciplines: whereas theology strives for historical accuracy, conceptual consistency, interpretive clarity and systematic uniformity, yet it is much more a hope than a science. Also problematic, there is an eternal perspective, a paradigm that we cannot understand. Theology is theory, there are no proofs, the only proof I have is in my heart, and I call that the Spirit of truth (faith). Still, I am conscience that I bring my own set of prejudices, and hopes to this matter. I have good reason to mistrust many of my conclusions. The systematic method of theology looks at many issues wherein much diversity exists, diversity of historical thought, methods, and approaches. Within all this diversity, there are constants. In examining the methods of theology, we must recognize both the diversity and the constancy. One constant is Scripture. Yet, the meaning of Scripture is divers and restricted to interpretation. I think Biblical authority at its best, most earnestly means one does not affirm it as truth without struggling to understand its meaning. I ascribe to a certain authority of scripture, and trust in a divine nature within it. For me, this means addressing questions like: What is the context and the point of this passage? What is it calling me to do? What does this say about the nature of

Reflect on a time when you challenged a belief or idea. What prompted you to act? Would you make the same decision again?

The American population is extremely diverse and is comprised of dozens of nationalities, multiple age groups as well as ethnic circles. Such a melting pot of cultural variety gives us opportunities to make new connections with the folks of different life-styles and mentalities. We choose freely when and with whom those relationships form and how long they last. Without a doubt, American lives evolved and became thoroughly customized over the course of the past several decades. After all, each one of us decides which path to take in life. Every day we’re faced with a process of decision-making that’s based on either planning or impulsivity, this especially pertains to our shopping patterns and consumer behavior. Over the years, advertisers and corporate giants developed a variety of strategies meant to influence our spending power, and while seemingly harmless, I believe these strategies negatively affect our society. Social standards are lowered—within the teenage population—through the repetitive

As a reminder, please remember to add notes to all appeals that your cancelling. In the event, I’m contacted and questioned why an appeal was cancelled, we need to be able to reference the notes. Using the drop down “Not An Appeal” with no notes, in some cases doesn’t explain the issue in details. We handle so many issues, we’re not going to always remember the issue. It’s best to document the reason why we’re cancelling an appeal, even if it was a mistake. An example of that note is “Appeal Created in Error”.

This protestant denomination thrives on the kindness of all of its parishioners to carry out the teachings of Jesus Christ. Their main goal is to spread as much as they can and enlighten people of Jesus’ teachings. They have parts of their religion that set them apart from other denominations and make them unique. The people that make up the United Methodist Church are caring individuals that help the poor and needy as much

Just as Truett Cathy stood his grounds when it came to his religion and business, we are to follow this pattern. To say that operation decisions and Christian values should not be compared is ludicrous. Operation decisions are centered around planning and organizing. Therefore, Christian's pattern of this is very similar, because our faith is about planning and organizing our walk in Christ. Furthermore, management is mostly important in business operations, because they are responsible for assuring that the process, quality, capacity, and inventory is performed in a business. In comparison, Christian values requires us to also management our lives accordingly. Making decisions

Two specific characteristics rise to the front: superintendency and itinerancy. “We are a worldwide denomination united by doctrine, discipline, and mission through our connectional covenant.” The General Conference, which has “full legislative power over all matters distinctively connectional,” meets every four years to determine the content of the Book of Discipline, the governing document of the United Methodist Church. All United Methodist churches fall under the guidance and rule of the Book of Discipline. Churches are defined by connections between people: pastor and pastor, pastor and laity, and laity and laity. That means that we hold interpersonal relationships to be essential to the

From what I read and understood, the "Summary for Decision Makers", is about how our ecosystems have changed and how that change in the environment changes human life on earth, or how it impacts the way we live. It also reports on some of the more known trails the ecosystem's change has entailed on the human population. I found the summary very informative and it brought about an awareness of the environmental issues developing countries deal with because of these changes. It also brought up some every good questions of: "How can priorities be established for actions to address the health consequences of ecosystem change?" (Corvalán, C., Hales, S., & McMichael, A. J. (2005)) The report was very insightful but it

Three ways in which the evangelical and holiness tradition are practice is as follows, application of the word, discipleship and living a virtuous life. In applying the word to their daily lives the Church is edified as they grow more into the likeness of Christ. A central aspect of this is reading the Bible each day and living according to it. Notwithstanding, the word comes to the church in many ways. Through preaching and teaching, encouragement or rebuke from brothers and sisters or others around us. Central to the teachings of the Church is that the word is applicable to

When tragedy hits the families of the church, it is the pastor that is called up to comfort and bring biblical wisdom into a tragic and unfortunate situation. Again, I Peter 5 lays out the ministry of a pastor is to shepherd his flock. If a pastor is leading his congregation like a shepherd, then it is not uncommon for sheep to desire for this caregiver to be near them in a time of tragedy. They are looking for a spiritual mentor, but not all pastors are strong showing compassion.

Definition: A systematic procedure based on thinking patterns used to make choices in the hopes that they are good ones. It involves considering the Elements of a good choice and weighing them against your MUSTS/WANTS and any risks before making a final decision: The book is full of mumbo jumbo on this, but it isn't rocket science. We do some decision analysis almost every time we take a course of action.