Church and Society
The primary function of The United Methodist Church and Society Ministry is to drive long-term, systemic social change and justice, rather than providing one-time charity. It works to bring human life into alignment with God’s will by educating, advocating, and mobilizing congregations
The core functions include:
Advocacy & Public Witness: Engaging with policymakers and advocating for systemic justice regarding civil and human rights, economic inequality, and environmental stewardship.
Implementing the Social Principles: Fulfilling the mandate of the denomination by putting the Social Principles—which cover issues like racial justice, poverty, and peacebuilding—into active practice.
Educating the Congregation: Raising awareness about societal challenges (such as public education or healthcare disparities) and training church members to become effective advocates.
Church & Society works to live faithfully, seek justice, and pursue peace by educating,
advocating and connecting in an effort to implement the Social Principles and other
policy statements of the United Methodist Church. This may involve advocating with
policy makers, regardless of political affiliation; organizing grassroots efforts, and
educating future leaders.
Church & Society focuses on:
1. Civil & Human Rights
God has given us the Great Commandment to love God and love our neighbors as ourselves (Matthew 22:35-40; Mark 12:28-34). The United Methodist Social Creed states: “We commit ourselves to the rights of men, women, children, youth, young adults, the aging, and people with disability; to improvement of the quality of life; and to the rights and dignity of all persons.”
2. Economic Justice
Scripture and United Methodist tradition affirm a vision of abundant living where all God’s children have access to sufficient resources to thrive. The Bible also warns against greed, calls us to love and care for one another, and compels us to seek justice for the poor. Church & Society is the lead agency on the denominational focus on Ministry with the Poor, which seeks to engage in relational ministries to address the root causes of poverty.
3.Environmental Justice
Humankind has struggled to live in relationship with the created world, with each other, and with God. We have often treated creation as simply a resource for humankind. In the “United Methodist Social Principles” it states that “All creation is the Lord’s, and we are responsible for the ways in which we use and abuse it. Water, air, soil, minerals, energy resources, plants, animal life, and space are to be valued and conserved because they are God’s creation and not solely because they are useful to human beings.”
4.Health and Wellness
Jesus said, “I came that you might have life, and have it abundantly.” (John 10:10b) This is a tall order and leads us to work in the areas of healthcare, mental health and addictions so that everyone can have access to both spiritual and physical health abundantly.
5.Peace with Justice
Scripture calls followers of Christ to love our enemies (Matthew 5:44-45a), forgive others their trespasses (Matthew 6:14-15), to overcome evil with good (Romans 12:21), and to seek peace and pursue it (Psalm 34:14). Peacemakers are blessed and called the children of God (Matthew 5:9). Our social principles state that “the first moral duty of all nations is to work together to resolve by peaceful means every dispute that arises between or among them.”
6.Women and Children
United Methodist Social Principles states “We understand our gender diversity to be a gift from God, intended to add to the rich variety of human experience and perspective; and we guard against attitudes and traditions that would use this good gift to leave members of one sex more vulnerable in relationships than members of another.”