Investing as faithful stewards

Paragraph 717 of The Book of Discipline (Discipline) serves as The United Methodist Church’s primary governing text for sustainable and socially responsible investing. It offers crucial guidance to United Methodist general boards, agencies and institutions, including Wespath, who seek to invest in alignment with Church values. Over the years, Paragraph 717 has been the source of numerous debates and legislative contests at General Conferences, especially regarding divestment petitions related to fossil fuels and issues concerning Israel and Palestine.

At General Conference 2024, a petition concerning Paragraph 717 was referred to the General Council on Finance and Administration (GCFA) for further review and consideration. Following General Conference, the GCFA Board referred the petition to Wespath, recognizing Wespath's long history working on sustainable investing and our capacity to support in-depth discussions across the denomination.

Wespath has developed a thorough process to consider updating Paragraph 717. As an initial step, Wespath is organizing a two-day gathering in September 2025 dedicated to discussion around Paragraph 717. Decisions about proposed edits to Paragraph 717 will not be made at the September gathering. The gathering is intended to act like a focus group to better understand the various perspectives related to updating Paragraph 717. Kate Ott, a professor of Christian social ethics at Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary, will lead participants through guided exercises and small-group discussions.

Wespath wants to hear from multiple, diverse perspectives. Attendees will include general agency representatives, divestment proponents from several organizations, annual conference representatives (including from areas focused on financial and benefits plan management), bishops, leaders of annual conference foundations, central conference representatives, and others.

Wespath representatives at the gathering will include both senior leaders and members of the Wespath Benefits and Investments Board of Directors. A majority of the Board members who will be at the gathering serve on Wespath’s UMC Principles Committee, which provides the full Board with guidance and recommendations on the interpretation of the Social Principles and other directives of the General Conference. This committee plays an important role in ensuring that Wespath’s work remains aligned with the values and expectations of the broader United Methodist Church.

There will be dedicated time at the September gathering for attendees to discuss the best ways to foster additional dialogue with interested parties. Wespath plans to use lessons and questions from this gathering to inform engagements with the wider Church, and is exploring options for its participants and institutional investors to provide feedback digitally.

The September gathering is intended to kick off the connectional conversation and gather perspectives to help inform Wespath’s process.

Throughout these gatherings, Wespath will adhere to Paragraph 717 of the Discipline, which calls on Wespath to “make a conscious effort to invest … with the goals outlined in the Social Principles.”

Wespath will continue to consult with various stakeholders as we consider any proposed updates to Paragraph 717. Nothing in Wespath’s work precludes others in the Church from reviewing and gathering people to discuss Paragraph 717, sharing thoughts with Wespath directly about Paragraph 717, or proposing their own visions of Paragraph 717 to the 2028 General Conference.

Wespath’s Board will review and discuss whatever emerges from the September gathering and subsequent follow-up engagements, before we submit our Paragraph 717 referral report to the 2028 General Conference in August of 2027, and before we submit any petitions.

Many of the individuals and organizations invited to this initial gathering had previously engaged with Wespath about Paragraph 717, socially responsible investment or divestment. A list of attendees can be found here. Groups represented at this initial gathering include:

• Clergy (both active and retired)
• Bishops
• Philippines and Southern Africa Central Conferences
• Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary
• General Agencies
• UMC Groups Advocating for Broader Use of Divestment
• Other advocacy groups within the Church
• Annual Conferences
• UMC Foundations

We recognize that this is not a complete list of those with relevant perspectives to share on Paragraph 717 and acknowledge in particular the need for broader global representation. We are exploring ways to ensure future discussions on these topics reflect the full diversity of our Church, including focused efforts to gather the important perspectives of United Methodists in the central conferences.

For this initial gathering, Wespath wants to create a space where people with different views can talk openly, build relationships and discover shared understanding. In conversation with facilitator Kate Ott, Wespath staff decided the best way to foster open and respectful dialogue—especially around these often sensitive and complex topics—is to gather representatives from groups that have previously demonstrated interest in Paragraph 717. There will be additional forums to share individual perspectives with Wespath.

Coté Soerens, an external contributor specializing in visual facilitation, created the above illustration to help summarize a group discussion on the first day of the gathering. A full written recap, and a link to Soerens' second illustration, is available here.

Video recaps

• Watch Wespath General Secretary and CEO Andy Hendren and Wespath Board member Deaconess Irene DeMaris recap Day 1.
• Watch Wespath Managing Director of Sustainable Investment Strategies Jake Barnett, Wespath Board member Ian Urriola and facilitator Kate Ott recap Day 2.