On November 5, 2025, the United Methodist Council of Bishops announced that United
Methodist voters on four continents have ratified a major restructuring of the denomination that
supposedly aims to put the United Methodist Church’s different geographical regions on equal
footing. Under the old structure, annual conferences outside the United States were organized
into central conferences, while within the United States, rather than central conferences, the
annual conferences were organized into five jurisdictional conferences. Under the newly ratified
restructuring, the five jurisdictions in the United States become one regional conference and
central conferences in Africa, Europe and the Philippines are organized into regional
conferences. In celebrating this change, Bishop Tracy S. Malone, Council of Bishop’s President
said, ”The ratification and certification of these constitutional amendments mark a defining
moment in the continuing renewal and unity of The United Methodist Church.” She continued,
“These amendments reflect the church’s rich diversity and deep commitment to live more fully
into our mission to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world and
strengthen our world-wide connection to serve faithfully and inclusively in every context.”
At first glance, these changes look like they put all regional conferences on the same footing.
But do they? This massive organizational change presents a complex picture for Pan-
Africanism. It disregards diversity and disagreement among African United Methodists. It risks
the potential of leaving neocolonialism on doctrinal matters in place in spite of what looks like an
equitable change. The main theological drivers for the complexity for African United Methodists
are biblical authority, definition of marriage and sexuality, concerns about core doctrines and the
doctrine of repentance, and social holiness.
Concerning biblical authority, African United Methodists hold the view that the Bible is the
supreme and infallible authority in matters of faith and life. They largely adhere to the traditional
interpretation of the Bible which teaches that the practice of homosexuality is incompatible with
Christian teaching. The church’s move to change its policies is seen as a departure from these
core scriptural principles, sacrificing biblical integrity for cultural accommodation. Related to
biblical authority, African United Methodists hold a traditional view of marriage as a lifelong
covenant exclusively between a man and a woman as depicted in Genesis and reinforced by
Jesus’ teachings in Matthew 19. The United Methodist Church’s decision to allow clergy to
officiate same-sex marriages and permit such ceremonies in church sanctuaries is a direct
contradiction to this deeply held belief.
Furthermore, African United Methodists often emphasize the pursuit of holiness and the concept
that, while all people are of sacred worth, certain behaviors do not represent God’s will,
therefore are sinful, and require repentance. The new United Methodist stance, established
at the 2020/2024 General Conference, which affirms committed same-sex relationships and the
ordination of LGBTQ+ clergy in those relationships, is perceived as removing the commitment to
holiness, and replacing it with a vision of God’s grace that compromises historic Christian
teaching.
While the architects of regionalization argue that it was intended to grant more autonomy and
equity, some African United Methodists see it as a move to divide Africa into several regions to
set their own policies on social and cultural issues, a structure which still imposes liberal
western values on Africa. America remains (as of now) one big brother region with
approximately 326 delegates while the four African regions will have approximately 284 total, for
all four regions. American United Methodists continue to use their financial muscle and
institutional power to influence African conferences, forcing them to choose between their
traditional values and beliefs and remaining within the denomination to receive its needed
resources.
These policy and structure changes have also caused severe damage to the concept of Ubuntu
within the African United Methodist Churches. Ubuntu emphasizes a broad, shared humanity
and idea of a single, unified community, the “I am because we are” community. The possibility of
different regions developing different standards on significant issues undermines Ubuntu and
leads to a fragmented global church. It erodes this universal solidarity and connectionalism. The
creation of several regions of the denomination on the continent has solidified and intensified
internal divisions within African United Methodist conferences. This division and rhetoric of “us
versus them” goes against the core principles of the Bantu people, of harmony, mutual
understanding, and the ethical responsibility of family members to avoid unnecessary scolding
and quarreling. American United Methodist values of individualism have been exported to
Africa.
Finally, empowering regions to act more independently from one another could make it
impossible to ensure consistent accountability for leaders across the denomination. Ubuntu calls
for collective responsibility and ethical behavior, and a system perceived as lacking robust
mechanisms for holding leaders accountable on a global scale could clash with this value.
John Wesley declared that “the gospel of Christ knows no religion, but social; no holiness but
social holiness!” The recent structural changes in United Methodist do the opposite.
Rev. Dr. Kennedy Mukwindidza.
President of Theological Voice of Africa
