Hundreds of churches plan to disaffiliate with United Methodist Church

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- More than 200 Methodist churches in Texas are looking to disaffiliate from the United Methodist Church in a multi-step process that could receive official approval Saturday at a special session called by the Texas Annual Conference.

That session is set to take place starting at 9 a.m. at Houston's First Methodist Houston West.

The guidelines for disaffiliating from the denomination were approved in August 2020. They contained seven required steps, such as a vote by church attendees looking to sever ties with UMC.

Same-sex marriage and LGBTQ+ rights are some of the factors that have played a role in this movement.

SEE ALSO: This Historic Raleigh church has been supporting LGBTQ+ equality since the 1950s


The Woodlands Methodist Church is proceeding to leave the UMC and is waiting for approval at Saturday's special session to make it official.

Their senior pastor, Rev. Mark Sorensen, said the decision is based on an overall desire to affiliate with a denomination that "most aligns with who we are."

The Woodlands Methodist Church's website has an entire section dedicated to the process, including what steps they could take once their affiliation with the United Methodist Church is officially terminated.

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