Why no one takes The United Methodist Church seriously

I noted in, "Death throes of a Blue Model Church," on the (non-)results of the recently-adjourned General COnference of the UMC,

As [Methodist] Bishop Willimon puts it, "The Methodist Federation for Social Action received new life, the [General] Board of Church and Society went home unscathed by reform" and pretty much every other entity of the church maintained an even strain. (For the record, if I were king I would completely close down the General Board of Church and Society, which is the Marxist wing of the UMC and the religious arm of the Democratic National Committee. But fact is, so non-influential of public life has the UMC become that not even the Democrats pay attention to us anymore.)

Why is the UMC, on the whole, so socially ineffective? Why are its socio-political pronouncements not taken seriously? Very simply because we continue to show that we are not serious people. I bring you, United Methodists: Afghanistan Better Off Under Taliban:

For at least 50 years, the United Methodist Church, America’s third largest denomination, has been unable to effectively apply traditional Christian teachings to issues of war and peace. The resolution called “Seeking Peace in Afghanistan,” originating with the New York-based United Methodist Women’s Division, and approved by the recent governing General Conference of the 12 million member global denomination, continues this sad tradition. 

Ostensibly the resolution puts the church on record for peace in war torn Afghanistan. But actually it demonizes the United States, itself a 50 year tradition in United Methodism, while ignoring the evils of the Taliban and al Qaeda. And it materialistically assumes that peace can be purchased with ever more U.S. dollars. It never cites radical Islam, a chief cause for strife in Afghanistan, perhaps because liberal United Methodist elites cannot conceive of anyone taking traditional religion any more seriously than they do. ...  

The resolution inevitably rehashes the canard that the U.S. “devotes almost the same amount of resources to military spending as the other 95 percent of the world combined,” as though the world would be safer with less military spending by the U.S. and relatively more by other nations. And it vacuously urges: “May we find the courage to join with Afghans and neighboring Pakistanis and all who seek to transform today’s glut of swords into plowshares.” Who are these elusive partners for peace? They are unnamed.

Of course they are unnamed. The Religious Left always thinks simplistically and always assumes that everyone actually longs for the same things it does. Read the whole thing.