Amid 18 Months Ultimatum, Who Wants To Kill The Bishop?
By Garmah Never Lomo, garmahlomo@gmail.com
Monrovia, Liberia- As the United Methodist Church in Liberia continues to be rocked by controversy over adoption of same-sex/gay marriage practice approved by the Church’s general conference in the United States earlier this year, UMC Bishop Samuel Quire is claiming that he is facing death threat.
Bishop Quire made the revelation in a live radio program, THE BUMPER SHOW with Liberia’s state radio, ELBC yesterday, Thursday, October 17, 2024.
Despite calls by a segment of Liberian Methodists for the Church here to breakaway in protest against the move and the holding of an emergency Annual Conference, the leadership of Bishop Samuel Quaire insists that the Annual conference can’t be until next year, though he maintains that the UMC in Liberia ‘is not a Gay Church”.
At the meeting in the US early in May this year, United Methodist General Conference, the church’s global legislative body, voted to overturn every ban on LGBTQ people. The historic changes include a new definition of marriage as a lifelong covenant between “two people of faith,” rather than solely between a man and a woman, and a repeal of its ban on LGBTQ clergy, although Reverend Jerry Kulah, a delegate from Liberia, was quoted as saying: “We do not believe we know better than the Bible.”
The General Conference also struck down a 52-year-old stance on homosexuality being “incompatible with Christian teaching.” At A Meeting In The US: United Methodist Church Holds Historic Vote in Favour Of LGBTQ Inclusion – News Public Trust
The Methodist Bishop did not say who wants to take his life but said ever since he returned from the US general conference, some members have been bent on spreading misinformation that he has been given money to turned Liberia UMC into a Gay Church, thus coming under several physical attacks.
Bishop Qaire recently disclosed that their mother body (General Conference) has given them 18th months ultimatum for them to implement the same sex marriage regionally.
He made the disclosure during a Police called meeting with some high-ranking members of the Council of Churches headed by former President of the council Churches Bishop Kortu Brown.
According to him, the church is one and they remain one and there is no way the church will sign unto same sex marriage because it’s against the laws and cultures of Liberia.
Bishop Quire said, at no time, the United Methodist Church intend to carry out same sex marriage as was speculated on social media Sunday afternoon on October 13,2024.
Recently, at the global conference, the majority voted to lift the ban on the same sex marriage in the United Methodist Church; meaning that ‘man can marry man, woman can marry woman, man can marry his daughter and woman can marry her son.’
Liberia’s Police Inspector General Gregory Coleman recently said that the police extended invitation to Bishops of the United Methodist Church and some high-ranking officials of the Council Churches to ascertain why the tension was about at one of their branches in New Georgia Estate.
Police IG used the occasion to dismissed rumors that same sex marriage was being carried out at the New Georgia State United Methodist branch and the said information as false and misleading.
IG Coleman added that he called the clergy men to a meeting due a misinformation campaign that was going on social media relating
The church didn’t officiate any gay wedding as being paraded on social media and members of the public IG added.