Bishop Peggy Johnson and her episcopal colleagues stand in witness to the challenges ahead during worship at General Conference 2016 in Portland, Ore., in May. UMNS photo

Amid talk of a split over LGBT inclusion, Bishop Bruce Ough of the United Methodist Church called for unity on May 17 and addressed conversations from the church’s General Conference in Portland, Ore. that have spilled over into social media. (United Methodist Videos)

Amid reports that United Methodist leaders are considering dividing over LGBT equality disputes, the denomination’s top bishop on Tuesday asked members to recommit to remaining together, even though he described their community as having a “broken heart” and in the views of many being “out of time.”Bishop Bruce Ough spoke during an unscheduled appearance at the major, once-every-four-years meeting of the global denomination, which is being held in Portland, Ore. Ough, the incoming president of the Council of Bishops, said he was responding to a flood of social media leaks about secret meetings top church leaders were having in the last week about the possibility of separating. The meeting is called a General Conference.

United Methodists, the third-largest faith group in the United States, have been talking for years about splitting as conservative wings from Africa and Asia become far more numerous than the relatively liberal American church. Pressure has grown since same-sex marriage started to become legal, meaning more pastors are performing such weddings for congregants — or coming out themselves — and traditional members are pushing for more accountability to United Methodist law and even for trials of pastors who violate it. Read more…