DUBUQUE, Iowa (AP) -- A former standout wrestler at Dubuque Wahlert High School has been charged with setting fire to St. Joseph the Worker Church in Dubuque, causing $100,000 damage.

The United Methodist Church says they have the authority to close churches who leave the denomination, but several are willing to put that to the test.

The Methodist Church of Simpsonville thought it left the United Methodist denomination behind. A new lawsuit demands the church surrender money and property.

In response, the conference sued Southern Methodist, arguing that the university did not have the authority to declare independence without the church’s approval.

He was united in marriage to Nancy Bauerly-Ihm on June 7, 1996, at Grandview United Methodist Church, Dubuque. Larry graduated from Darlington High School.

Bentley said the Global Methodist Church places value on long-term appointments, as opposed to re-evaluating clergy appointments every year and moving clergy around.

A Dubuque church is discussing how the community can be a welcoming space for migrants.

The United Methodist Church overturned its 40-year ban on gay clergy Wednesday, during a meeting of the church’s top legislative body in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Soon, an LGBTQ+ welcoming Lancaster church will open its doors to the public at Belmont Theatre this spring.

A growing schism over LGBTQ+ issues within the United Methodist Church has prompted a quarter of congregations to leave as a Dec. 31 deadline nears.

The United Methodist Church is part of the tradition of mainline Protestantism that now tends to be broadly progressive in its theology and traditional in its worship style.

As United Methodist congregations across the U.S. leave over LGBTQ inclusion and the interpretation of Scripture, one East Texas community is rent asunder.