The fight to allow same-sex marriage and gay clergy has defined much of the last half-century for major mainline Protestant denominations in the U.S., mirroring in many ways the broader fight for LGBTQ+ inclusion in civic life. The United Methodist Church, which stripped out its bans and related social teachings over the past two weeks, is the last of the major mainline church bodies to go through this process. April 1972 The United Methodist Church has first public debate on homosexuality at a General Conference.