In this 11-part video series, Vital Conversations 4: Race, Culture, the Church and Human Sexuality, the General Commission on Religion and Race has invited church laypeople, theologians, pastors, campus ministers, LGBTQ individuals, ecumenical friends and outside-the-church friends – most of them people of color – to weigh in with their perspectives. Should The United Methodist Church fully accept and include or should it exclude from full participation those who are gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender or intersex? Could the church find and explore middle ground? What might U.S. people of color and people beyond the United States and beyond our denomination add to this conversation?
We further invited presenters to speak authentically in their own voices, using their vernacular. Those featured in this series represent their own cultures, languages and ideological perspectives. While some terms used may be unfamiliar and even unsettling for some, we encourage you to listen actively and open yourselves to these speakers.
This content was originally published by the General Commission on Religion and Race; republished with permission on ResourceUMC.org on May 27, 2026.