Taking an active stance in society is nothing new for followers of John Wesley. He set the example for us to combine personal and social piety. Ever since predecessor churches to United Methodism flourished in the United States, we have been known as a denomination involved with people's lives, with political and social struggles, having local to international mission implications. Such involvement is an expression of the personal change we experience in our baptism and conversion.

The United Methodist Church believes God's love for the world is an active and engaged love, a love seeking justice and liberty. We cannot just be observers. So we care enough about people's lives to risk interpreting God's love, to take a stand, to call each of us into a response, no matter how controversial or complex. The church helps us think and act out a faith perspective, not just responding to all the other "mind-makers-up" that exist in our society.

The Church and Society committee is the mechanism used by St. Stephen's UMC to live out the expression of our United Methodist Social Prinicples, from which the above paragraphs are taken.

Co-Chairs: Lorac Lawton This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it and Gary Clinger This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

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