No Grace Here

Written By Anna Spencer

United Methodist Bishop Minerva G. Carcaño has been acquitted of all charges after a four-day trial and the unanimous vote of 13-person panel.

She was the first bishop in church history to face such a trial, the first bishop to be suspended from active service while facing a complaint, and – oh yes – the first Latina to be elected bishop in the church.

For a year and a half, while she awaited trial, she was banned from United Methodist churches and therefore banned from receiving Holy Communion in her own church.

She also was forbidden to speak publicly about the charges, which were never publicly revealed, allegedly to protect confidentiality in the case. She was never allowed to meet her accusers until the trial.

When the charges were finally revealed in church court, it was clear that she was not guilty of inappropriate conduct but at most was guilty of failing to communicate her intentions and her actions to people who appeared all too eager to think the worst of her and respond accordingly.

She will now serve out another year or so as bishop in the Western Jurisdiction and retire at the mandatory age of 70.

I did briefly once know one of the complainants, but otherwise I know nothing of the personalities involved. I also know little about the cultural and political forces that contributed to this fiasco. But I deeply deplore the whole thing. Placing a person in purgatory for 18 months is beyond conscience. We Methodists supposedly believe in grace, but no grace was shown here.

 
Anna Spencer

Anna Spencer makes her home in the heartland. A graduate of the University of Kansas, she is a die-hard Jayhawk fan and has a degree in broadcast journalism and a masters degree in digital content strategy. She has worked in television news, public relations, as a freelance writer, website designer, and social media consultant.

https://annaspencercreativemediadesign.com
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