Answer #1 (Stay UMC)
Local churches have been able to leave the denomination since the time of John Wesley, and while paragraph 2549 specifically deals with the closure of church property, not the transfer of it, a proposal will be presented at Alabama West Florida Annual Conference in June 2023, to allow the financial terms of disaffiliation of Paragraph 2553 (which states that a church that votes to disaffiliate may exit with its property) may be applied to Paragraph 2549 for disaffiliation of a church after General Conference in May of 2024. Currently, Paragraph 2553 is the only approved path for disaffiliation under the current Book of Discipline. This exit opportunity expires on December 31,2023. A thorough explanation of the “wait and see” option and paragraph 2549 can be found here: www.awfumc.org/newsdetail/17224481
Answer #2 (Pro-Disaffiliation)
No, it is a paragraph in the Book of Discipline outlining how a local church can be closed. It is currently being suggested by some annual conferences as an alternate path to be used after Paragraph 2553 expires on 12/31/23. There are many unknowns concerning this suggested path, including its provisions and its viability. It is a risk to predict that it can be a path. Those who wish to disaffiliate are not depending on its unknown future.