The United Methodist Church (UMC) and the Global Methodist Church (GMC) are engaged in a legal dispute over at least seven properties in Liberia.
Bishop Samuel J. Quire Jr., head of the UMC Liberia Conference, confirmed to UM News that the church property cases are being litigated in the country’s courts. He stated, “While we were at our conference, a GMC surrogate filed an injunction in court for the sole purpose of disrupting and closing down our conference. By the grace of God, this attempt was thwarted by our legal team.”
Bishop Quire accused GMC members of attempting “to seize some of our local churches by force, criminally removing our logos from the edifices and replacing them with GMC insignia.” He added, “This has led The United Methodist Church to resort to the legal process.”
The GMC in Liberia is led by Rev. Jerry Kulah, who, along with other supporters, was arrested last month during a demonstration at one of the disputed church properties. Kulah claimed he was released after two hours without any charges filed against him.
He said, “The police said they heard that there was rioting and stone throwing,” and when he asked who was rioting, they could not respond. He further questioned, “When church members gather to worship in an open space, were they rioting among themselves? They could not answer, and there was no video footage to back up their allegations.”
Kulah argued that Bishop Quire had previously agreed to allow the regional body to leave the UMC if the mainline denomination altered its rules on sexuality and LGBT issues, which it did at the UMC General Conference last year.
At the General conference in last May, delegates voted to remove several prohibitions from the Book of Discipline, including bans on same-sex marriage ceremonies, the ordination of noncelibate homosexuals, and funding for LGBT advocacy groups. The UMC also eliminated a statement declaring that homosexuality is “incompatible with Christian teaching.”
In June 2024, soon after the denomination ratified the changes, Liberian Bishop Samuel J. Quire Jr. released a statement declaring that his conference would uphold traditional standards regarding marriage and ordination. Nevertheless, many contended that the regional body should still depart from the UMC due to the General Conference vote, advocating that the properties should be transferred to the newly established GMC of Liberia.
The Liberian Senate has intervened, organizing efforts to mediate between the two Methodist denominations, holding the first official hearing on the matter last month.
Sen. J. Gbleh-bo Brown of Maryland County explained, “The Joint Committee was able to de-escalate tensions between the two parties and ensure the neutrality of the police in this matter,” adding that “a plan of action would be formulated to be submitted to the Plenary once both parties agree to the approach.”
Tensions over church properties between UMC and GMC adherents have escalated in Nigeria as well, where violent attacks in Munga Dosa resulted in the deaths of three United Methodists and the destruction of multiple homes last December.
