I’m resubmitting my resolution to the Annual Conference in 2024 that was ignored by the 2023 Annual Conference. Why? The reality is that we didn’t get to the work, but the work still needs to be done. Is it weird to submit a petition for 2028’s General Conference in 2024 before the General Conference in 2024? Possibly. Will it be considered out of order? Probably. Will I lift it up anyway? Yes. What better way to celebrate “National Be Heard Day”? (Yes, I know it is about advertising, but I see a nudging where others see an ad campaign to get small businesses to pay for more advertising. An advertising campaign to get small businesses to spend more on advertising: that’s a bold strategy)

Will it be rejected out of hand? Probably. It is pretty early to consider the subject, so I guess I will have to bring it up again. That’ll be three times I’ve raised the issue. Then maybe four times. Then possibly five times. I wonder how many times it will take before it becomes clear the goal is raising the issue because we met a resolution on the unethical use of silence around IPV with even more deafening silence.

Also, before I bore you, here’s a helpful set of resources if you’re a church official and have asked yourself how you would even begin to ascertain if there’s a problem in your setting or even how you go about home visitation. It could possibly be really helpful for a Safe Sanctuaries training for those working with vulnerable adults. It includes tools for assessing how prepared you are and how your tools are working. Kudos, Minnesota Department of Health: thanks for the help.

Title: Domestic Violence and Intimate Partner Violence Awareness

Since the 2016 publication of the Book of Resolutions and Book of Discipline, the United States’ Center for Disease Control has released information through their publication “The National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey: 2016/2017 Report on Intimate Partner Violence ” indicating that almost one in two women (47.3% or 59 million) in the United States and more than 40 percent (44.2% or 52.1 million) of U.S. men reported contact sexual violence, physical violence, and/or stalking victimization by an intimate partner at some point in their lifetime.

On a global scale, for the year ending March 2022, the Crime Survey for England and Wales estimated that 1.7 million women and 699,000 men aged 16 years and over experienced domestic abuse in the last year. This is a prevalence rate of approximately seven in 100 women and three in 100 men for that single year. In addition, while numbers are not equally reported with the same statistical standards across various cultures and communities, the World Health Organization has stated that slightly less than 1 in 3 women (30%) have experienced sexual violence. It can be inferred that this issue is global in nature and should be addressed more thoroughly by our Book of Resolutions and our Book of Discipline.

Whereas The United Methodist Church is already on record as stating: “We recognize that family violence and abuse in all its forms—verbal, psychological, physical, sexual—is detrimental to the covenant of the human community.” (2016 Book of Discipline ¶ 161.II.H)

Whereas The United Methodist Church is already on record naming sexual violence and abuse as sins and pledging to work for their eradication (“Domestic Violence and Sexual Abuse,” 2000 Book of Resolutions; “Violence Against Women and Children,” 2008 Book of Resolutions).

Whereas The United Methodist Church is called to express itself both carefully and clearly in matters that affect all people of sacred worth which includes both those who experience and perpetrate acts of contact sexual violence, physical violence, and or/stalking victimization. (2016 Book of Discipline ¶ 161.II.H)

Whereas it is statistically probable that whenever any given United Methodist Church within the United States gathers more than 40% of people in that community may have experienced (or may experience in the future) contact sexual violence, physical violence, and/or stalking victimization regardless of their gender, sexual, and/or cultural identities. It is also statistically probable that whenever a congregation of The United Methodist Church gathers around our world, around 30% of the women gathered within our communities may have potentially experienced gendered violence.

Whereas there may be cultural norms and mores that allow certain aspects of these actions to go unreported or unspoken due to the gender, sexual, or cultural expectations placed on individuals of sacred worth by forces outside of those individuals both within and without church communities.

Whereas there are places within our Church and cultural spaces where the silence is deafening, especially when there are often comorbid conditions that can further complicate conversation (i.e., mental illness, addiction, toxic expectations, etc.).

Whereas there should be places within our Church and local churches where individuals can find support, affirmation, and resources from the church community during moments when abuse may be clouding the ability to research church stances, affirmations, resolutions, and resources.

Whereas the Book of Discipline is one resource that touches every level of our connectional church and is one place where our church looks for guidance when considering the nature of our ministry together as a “Nurturing Community.” The Book of Discipline ¶161 on “The Nurturing Community” is one place where we acknowledge that we are called to help people of sacred worth who may be facing the difficult and isolating experiences previously mentioned.

Therefore be it resolved that the 2028 General Conference insert the statement (bold) into Book of 19 Discipline, ¶161.H:

“We recognize that family violence and abuse in all its forms—verbal, psychological, physical, sexual—is detrimental to the covenant of the human community. We recognize that these forms of insidious violence affect people of sacred worth of every gender, sexual, and cultural identity. These detrimental acts are often overlooked, ignored, downplayed, or met with silence. We encourage the Church to provide a safe environment, counsel, and support for the victim and to work with the abuser to understand the root causes and forms of abuse and to overcome such behaviors. Regardless of the cause or the abuse, both the victim and the abuser need the love of the Church. While we deplore the actions of the abuser, we affirm that person needs God’s redeeming love.”