Methodists End 50-Year Battle by Removing Anti-Gay Bans

Source: U.S. News and World ReportWhen the United Methodist Church removed anti-gay language from its official rules last week, it marked the end of a half-century of debates over LGBTQ inclusion in America's mainline Protestant denominations. The nation's largest Methodist, Presbyterian, Episcopal, and Lutheran denominations have all now removed barriers to LGBTQ participation in the pulpit and at the altar. But this comes amid long-term declines in membership and influence.