Recommended Reading: Korean-Americans and the Way Forward

Rev. Sungho Lee of the California-Nevada Annual Conference recently wrote a commentary on UMNS about the debate over sexuality in the UMC. Rev. Lee argued that the best way forward for Korean-American churches would be to keep the current stances against the practice of homosexuality, gay marriage, and gay ordination, but to decrease enforcement of these clauses. Essentially, Rev. Lee argues for a "don't ask, don't tell" policy as best for Korean-American United Methodists.

This commentary is interesting for two reasons:

First, it does not conform to the positions of either of the two main camps of white American United Methodists, who desire to either remove the current stances or increase enforcement. Rev. Lee advocates doing neither of these.

Second, Rev. Lee's post is evidence that what I wrote last month about some delegates from African annual conferences and the Philippines may be true of other groups as well: They may prefer no plan pass to either the One Church or Traditional(ist) Plans passing. These delegates may want to keep the current prohibitions but be uninterested in enforcing these prohibitions on progressive Americans.

It is interesting that Rev. Lee advocates an exit clause passing. It may well be that an exit clause alone is the plan that has the most chance of approval by General Conference next month.