Section I. Conferences

¶11

Jurisdictional conferences are now permitted rather than required, and are no longer defined as a United States institution.

2024 Discipline: ¶11
On the ballot paper: ¶10
Article: II → III
Change: Amended

Numbers trade contents here. The provision now at ¶11 is the one previously at ¶10; what used to stand at ¶11 moves to ¶10. The comparison below follows the provision, not the number.

Rewritten rather than tweaked — only 4% of the wording survives. Read the two texts side by side rather than the diff.

What changed

Two changes that are easy to miss, both in the first line. “There shall be jurisdictional conferences” becomes “There may be” — jurisdictions are now optional, and a region could organise without them. And “for the Church in the United States of America” becomes “for the work of the Church,” so jurisdictions are no longer confined to the United States by definition. In practice the five United States jurisdictions continue: nothing here abolishes them, and doing so would take a further amendment.

Before

Book of Discipline 2020/2024, ¶11

There shall be jurisdictional conferences for the Church in the United States of America, with such powers, duties, and privileges as are hereinafter set forth, provided that in The United Methodist Church there shall be no jurisdictional or central conference based on any ground other than geographical and regional division.

After

Petition 21039, as ratified

There may be jurisdictional conferences for the work of the Church, with such powers, duties, and privileges as are hereinafter set forth, provided that in The United Methodist Church there shall be no jurisdictional conference based on any ground other than geographical and regional division.