United Methodist Church becomes first church to divest from 'Israel'
United Methodist Church (UMC), one of the world’s largest Christian denominations with more than 12 million members globally, has made history by becoming the first Christian denomination to divest from 'Israel', avoiding investment in government bonds of countries maintaining prolonged military occupations.
This fulfills the denomination’s 2024 General Conference resolution calling for ethical investing aligned with human rights.
This decision comes amid 'Israeli' almost two-year-long aggression against Gaza which left over 62,000 people killed, mostly women and children, as well as rising 'Israeli' forces and settler violence in the occupied West Bank.
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Wespath, the church’s primary investment agency managing over $26 billion, announced on August 6, 2025, that it would not only implement the divestment but also expand its policy to include other governments with prolonged occupations, histories of authoritarianism, or sanctions.
The move comes after decades of grassroots advocacy led by United Methodists for Kairos Response (UMKR), an independent justice movement within the church. UMKR has campaigned since 2010 for investments reflecting the church’s commitment to Palestinian rights and opposition to occupation.
“This new framework reduces our complicity in occupations and human rights abuses while promoting ethical investing worldwide,” said UMKR co-chair Carol Garwood.
