How homosexuality has torn apart the United Methodist Church

How homosexuality has torn apart the United Methodist Church

From Holy Smoke by The Spectator

April 12, 2026 · 19 min

About this episode

The episode discusses the decline of the United Methodist Church and the impact of homosexuality on its membership and future.

The United Methodist Church has experienced a sharp decline over the past century, from an estimated 11 million members in the 1950s to around 4 million now. However, over 1 million of those are estimated to have left since 2022 alone, due to splits over the teaching of homosexuality. Can the Church survive? And what does this tell us about Christianity in America in general – are we entering a 'post-denominational era'? Mark Tooley, president of the Institute on Religion and Democracy – and a committed Methodist, joins Damian Thompson to discuss. Produced by Patrick Gibbons. Become a Spectator subscriber today to access this podcast without adverts. Go to spectator.co.uk/adfree to find out more. For more Spectator podcasts, go to spectator.co.uk/podcasts . Contact us: podcast@spectator.co.uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

People in this episode

Host: Damian Thompson

Guest: Mark Tooley

Topics covered

  • homosexuality
  • United Methodist Church
  • Christianity in America
  • church decline
  • post-denominational era

Keywords

  • United Methodist Church
  • homosexuality
  • church decline
  • Christianity
  • Mark Tooley
  • Damian Thompson
  • post-denominational era

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Institute on Religion and Democracy, United Methodist Church, The Spectator

More episodes of Holy Smoke

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Holy Smoke podcast page.