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New York's Religious Corporation Law prescribes the procedure to . TMCP holds legal title in its capacity as Custodian Trustee on trust for the local Managing Trustees by virtue of the Methodist Church Act 1976. Antioch Lutheran Church. Simply put, the Trust Clause states that the local church owns the property in trust for the annual conference. Mike Copeland Jan 13, 2023 Jan 13, 2023; 0; 1 of 4 . When it next meets, the annual conference shall decide whether to formally close the local church. For example, if Managing Trustees want to sell part of a site and use the proceeds of sale (Circuit willing please see Section F of the Sales Guidance for Managing Trustees for guidance on the application of proceeds) to transform a retained Sunday School into a new and vibrant worship space, their legal adviser and surveyor will be able to advise them on the options available. Again, such action would violate the Book of Discipline and ultimately lead to lawsuits, but in an instance in which there is a lot of internal conflict within a church about that churchs continued relationship with the UMC, there is the possibility for factions within the church to use control of church property as a means to achieve their preferred outcome. (See Judicial Council Decision 1282). This is the famous trust clause of the UMC, which reads, in part: All properties of United Methodist local churches and other United Methodist agencies and institutions are held, in trust, for the benefit of the entire denomination, and ownership and usage of church property is subject to the Discipline. The Book of Discipline of The United Methodist Church -- 2016. As 2501.2 says, Property can be released from the trust, transferred free of trust or subordinated to the interests of creditors and other third parties only to the extent authority is given by the Discipline.. Dr. Scott is neither a lawyer nor an accountant, and thus his explanation herein should not be interpreted as legal advice. First, it's important to explain two critical legal frameworks that impact all United Methodist assets: the concept of legal personhood and the trust clause. b) At any time between sessions of annual conference, if the presiding bishop, the majority of the district superintendents, and the appropriate district board of church location and building all consent, they may, in their sole discretion, declare that exigent circumstances exist that require immediate protection of the local churchs property, for the benefit of the denomination. Titles are not held by The United Methodist Church (see 807.1) or by the General Conference of The United Methodist Church, but instead by the incorporated conferences, agencies, or organizations of the denomination, or in the case of unincorporated bodies of the denomination, by boards of trustees established for the purpose of holding and administering real and personal, tangible and intangible property. All five jurisdictions together held less than $4 million in property, though corporate entities related to the jurisdictions held additional assets. The legal owner of nearly all Methodist land and property is TMCP. From The Book of Discipline of The United Methodist Church - 2016. Updated: 10:44 PM EDT July 18, 2022. As the role of TMCP Legal in a sale is to ensure that the charity law and Methodist law, policy and best practice requirements and procedures relating to the sale of Model Trust Property have been met,TMCP Legal have produced detailed guidance for Managing Trustees and their instructed professionals which is available on our website. A Methodist panel of solicitors is in place and ready to act for Managing Trustees who are looking to instruct professionals who understand the responsibilities placed on them as Methodist charity trustees. Hycemoorside House, Bootle Station, Millom, Cumbria LA19 5XG . 2549. Kenya Methodist University belongs to the church. (MVBA) and discuss a possible sale of the landmark church property at 2 to 10 East Mount Vernon Place. b) The local church property is no longer used, kept, or maintained by its membership as a place of divine worship of The United Methodist Church. Disposition of Property of a Closed Local Church. From The Book of Discipline of The United Methodist Church - 2016. Exigent circumstances include, but are not limited to, situations where a local church no longer serves the purpose for which it was organized or incorporated ( 201-204) or where the local church property is no longer used, kept, or maintained by its membership as a place of divine worship of The United Methodist Church. The Book of Discipline outlines property-related responsibilities for the charge conference, the board of trustees, the financial secretary, the treasurer, the finance committee as a whole, and, in cases where they exist, the permanent endowment committee and the directors of the local church foundation. First, the denominations structure and the pronouncements of its Book of Discipline make dealing with properties difficult. 1421 S. Venoy . Book of Discipline: 2549. Church money. 15,100 square-foot church seats 400+ plus 3-bedroom house plus 1-bedroom caretaker house. Among the many amazing assets and tools with which Churches are equipped, the real property on which they worship, train, minister, and serve has to rank near the top of the list. The vast majority of UMC assets, then, are in the form of local church property. Biltmore United Methodist Church, which has occupied a spot on the southeast side of I-40 for over a half-century, made the decision this month. John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist movement, kept the various Methodist societies and small groups bound together through covenants, shared practices (such as love feasts and night watches) and the model deed, or "trust clause."The model held all church property under a shared trust and ensured the various societies and bands used their assets and facilities to faithfully carry out . Find A Church. The property includes the church's parking lot and three buildings along 5th and Juniper . If Managing Trustees intend to instruct one of the Panel Firms (see box above), then they can take advantage of the streamlining process for sales introduced in September 2021. 2552 refers to [t]rustees of schools, colleges, universities, hospitals, homes, orphanages, institutes, and other institutions owned or controlled by any annual, jurisdictional, or central conference or any agency of The United Methodist Church, yet it continues, It is recognized that there are numerous educational, health-care, and charitable organizations that traditionally have been affiliated with The United Methodist Church and its predecessor denominations, which are neither owned nor controlled by any unit of the denomination. It depends upon the specifics of each entitys articles of incorporation, as a future post will elaborate. The requirements can seem daunting and Managing Trustees may therefore find it helpful to break these down into the steps set out in theSale Guidance for Managing Trustees. The local church makes decisions almost without regard to a national or regional body. "We are a smaller community now, and we want to . WINCHESTER First United Methodist Church plans to sell its longtime location at 308 N. Braddock St. in downtown Winchester and relocate to property it owns on Apple Pie Ridge collectively had $621 million in net assets in 2018. Incidentally, thats true not just for the UMC, but also for the Episcopalian Church and other bodies that also have a trust clause in their church law. And larger churches may have a non-negligible amount of property in the form of vehicles, equipment, books, supplies, etc. The proposed Separation Protocol provides that a local church leaving the denomination for one of two new Methodist denominations, conservative or progressive, must pay for any outstanding pension obligation, even if the pension is fully funded, as well as the cost of preparing new governing documents and real estate deeds that remove the Trust Clause. Thus, when people are talking about the fate of UMC assets, what theyre really talking about is the assets owned by local churches (and associated entities), annual conferences (and associated entities), jurisdictional and central conferences (and associated entities), and boards, agencies, and other general church legal entities. On-site interviews and photos available upon request. First, a decreasing number of Americans consider themselves to be members of houses of worship fewer than half in 2021, for the first time since The Gallup Organization began collecting data. Any or all of these items could be a point of conflict between a departing church and the annual conference. Post-pandemic, those numbers should increase sharply. The denomination promulgates rules about uses of capital and operating money. (1), obtain a Qualified Surveyors Report for review and approval by TMCP, obtain a best price and adequate marketing certificate. These individuals have access to and oversight of the property of a church. Please confirm your email address by clicking the activation link in the email that we just sent to your inbox. JACKSONVILLE, Fla. The Florida Conference of The United Methodist Church was slapped with a 36 page lawsuit; 106 of its churches alleging the conference's . Housing allowances are considered to be current expenses so sale proceeds cannot be used in this way. If a local church in a non-urban center is closed, any proceeds of the sale of its property may be used for new churches, new faith communities, new missional initiatives, relocating churches, churches building multi-campus facilities for the purpose of evangelistic church extension, or an organization that is a nonprofit and has values consistent with The United Methodist Churchs values and is consistent with our Wesleyan heritage, theology, and United Methodist polity. Barring action by General Conference, UMC assets will continue to be held in trust for the UMC as a whole, regardless of who may or may not be part of the denomination at any future point. The remaining local churches within the UMC will be left with no cash to continue, coupled with a collapse of future donations.Under either scenario, the local churches who remain in the United Methodist Church will end up paying substantially higher apportionments, Dalton said. In other words, the UMC as a whole doesnt own anything, but ownership by specific UMC-related legal persons is subject to the provisions of The Book of Discipline. 3. c) The annual conference board of trustees may retain, sell, lease, or otherwise dispose of the property of a closed local church in accordance with the direction of the annual conference, if any. Published every four years since 1817, the Doctrine and Discipline of the African Methodist Episcopal Church (commonly known as the "Discipline") contains the fundamental laws, procedures, and beliefs that undergird and guide the Connectional AME Church at all levels.The year after the General Conference is always a time of . The . Harp Design furniture business closing, selling property. For example:1. Under the Constitution and disciplinary procedures set forth in this Book of Discipline,the United Methodist Church as a denominational whole is not an entity, nor does it possess legal capacities and attributes. Rev Kanyaru said they published the caveat after discovering that there was a plan to sell church land valued at more than Sh20 billion at Gitanga in Nairobi. In such case, the annual conference board of trustees shall hold or dispose of such property in its sole discretion, subject to any standing rule of the annual conference. 2. 2509.2 gives annual conferences the authority to bring lawsuits to enforce the trust clause. and sell property." Some United Methodist conferences have used the trust clause to claim ownership of a disaffiliating church's property or to require the property appraisement payment. The United Methodist Church needs to collect and analyze key information not only about real estate, but also six additional factors that go to determine future viability: Market. The denomination needs to collect and analyze mountains of key information about its real estate: size, use, location, condition, value, red flags and the like. Litigation Issues for Church Property Ownership. _____The certification by the district superintendent that he or she has complied with the requirements of 2539.3 is conclusive evidence of the same. Districts and annual conferences should do so for their portfolio of properties. Downsize. The Methodist Church. It is common to hear congregational trustees say that they are one new roof (or boiler or steeple repair) away from closing.The high costs of too-large, too-burdensome real estate can smother congregations. Under the second scenario, no separation plan passes, and local churches will immediately leave, either to become independent, or to form a denomination with others. 2. Separate to the Methodist panel of solicitors, a Methodist panel of surveyors is also available to help Managing Trustees managed by the Property Support Team. It has more than six . If Managing Trustees have decided that they want to explore the possibility of selling property and have considered the "Strategic Guidance for Property in Mission", then there are different steps to take depending upon whether one of the firms on the Methodist Panel of solicitors (Panel Firm) will be instructed to assist in the sale. d) If the annual conference closes any local church, the failure to complete any of the prior steps will not invalidate such closure. Newsletter Signup. If a local church in an urban center with more than 50,000 population is closed, any proceeds of the sale of its property must be used for new and/or existing ministries within urban transitional communities, as described in 212. Part of the question hinges on whether this process would involve the transfer of the trust (more likely allowable, since the legal entity would continue as is) or the transfer of parts of the entity's assets (less likely allowable, since it could violate the charter). (Photo by Mike DuBose, United Methodist News) Although the exact requirements will depend upon the type of property being sold and method of sale, in summary the Managing Trustees will need to: The Sale Guidance Notes aim to help Managing Trustees and their professional advisers to navigate their way through the charity law and Methodist law, policy and best practice requirements on sales: If you are following the streamlined sale process then please use the resources on the Streamlining page of the TMCP website: If you want the sale to be considered as a replacement project please address any questions relating to logging a project to the Web Applications Team and any other questions to Property Support who are responsible for decisions relating to replacement projects. St. Mark United Methodist Church, at Peachtree and 5th streets, wants to sell about an acre of its land. When it next meets, the annual conference shall decide whether to formally close the local church. Holiday, FL 34690. 7. This article was originally published at UM News.Richard Reinhard is associate of The Lakelands Institute and principal of Niagara Consulting Group. COVID-19 innovations will make lasting impact on America's churches. Some denominations, such as the Roman Catholic Church and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, are top-down. Wis Stat & 187.15(1). One problem here is that most bankers, investment brokers, and real estate agents are not familiar with the intricacies of the BOD. 41 churches are seeking approval . Bishop Ruben Saenz Jr., bishop of the North Texas Conference, during a special called session at the United Methodist Church in Plano on Saturday, Mar. the process of selling or mortgaging church-owned property via email: administration@fmcusa.org or call 1-800-342-5531 and ask to speak with my Executive Assistant. Some churches, especially those in vibrant real-estate markets, have joint-ventured with developers to build mixed-use properties that may include housing, office and retail in addition to a faith-based component, e.g., SouthPark Church in Charlotte, North Carolina.Some annual conferences, like Western North Carolina, have formed their own not-for-profit redevelopment corporations; others have proved willing to partner with other for-profit and not-for-profit developers. The mission of the church is to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world. The more complicated a sale may be, the earlier it is recommended that Managing Trustees seek advice from their professional advisers. "Throughout the process, the church has decided on multiple occasions to focus its work on community engagement. Dalton outlines short-term and long-term considerations for local churches weighing their options to separate or stay from the United Methodist Church: What the Proposed UMC Separation Means for Your Churchis available for complimentary download on the Dalton + Tomich website. It is strongly recommended that Managing Trustees instruct one of the Methodist panel firms to act for them to help transactions run as smoothly as possible. a strip of land adjoining the chapel, or want to sell the whole property, it is strongly recommended that you contact the legal office of Trustees for Methodist Church Purposes at the earliest possible stage. For a variety of February 22, 2013. . Thus, the question of property ownership goes beyond whether departing congregations can continue to worship in their same building. Church, does not sell but may transfer title of its facilities to another United Methodist church or agency; and (d) the congregation, in case of relocation, first offers its property to a United Methodist congregation or agency at a price not to exceed fair market value. What is not spelled out though, is the cost to remain with the denomination. History has shown that annual conferences and agencies dont engage in wholesale restructuring or eliminating agencies that no longer serve the local church. The legal owner of nearly all Methodist land and property is TMCP. The city purchased the former Cove United Methodist Church . On Tuesday, Jan. 17, the board of the United Methodist Children's Home voted to expand its ministry by selling its DeKalb County property. The Trust Clause is contained in all the deeds of all the churches in the denomination. DetroitFebruary 20, 2020Daniel P. Dalton, a religious property attorney, co-founder of Detroit-based Dalton + Tomich,and author of a new eBook about protocols for the United Methodist Church separation entitled, What the Proposed UMC Separation Means for Your Church,says there will be more than emotional costs to pay for local churches who opt to leave the United Methodist Church after the May 202o General Conference. It shall be the duty of the annual conference board of trustees to remove, insofar as reasonably practicable or necessary, all Christian and United Methodist insignia and symbols from such property. Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas. Virtual churches like the Rev. There will be a substantial loss of churches if either one of two likely scenarios occur. Quick Statutory Reference Guide Sale, mortgage and lease of real property of religious . Especially when it comes to financial property, local congregations may have significant assets beyond their building over which annual conferences may want to assert their ownership. Except as provided in 2549.3, the district superintendent may, pursuant to this paragraph, recommend the closure of a local church, upon a finding that: a) The local church no longer serves the purpose for which it was organized or incorporated ( 201-204); or. Methodist Church, Ainstable , Carlisle, Cumbria CA4 9PZ. Visit FAQs Recently Sold. Methodist Church, does not sell but may transfer title of its facilities to another United Methodist church or agency; and (d) the congregation, in case of relocation, first offers its property to a United Methodist congregation or agency at a price not to exceed fair market value. Local churches and other United Methodist agencies and institutions may acquire, hold, maintain, improve, and sell property for purposes consistent with the mission of the Church, unless restricted or prevented by the Discipline.