Interpreter Magazine Gets a Makeover

NASHVILLE: United Methodist Communications is giving Interpreter magazine a fresh look and a whole new focus.

The January/February 2007 issue of The United Methodist Church's official ministry magazine features a new, more visually appealing format. The new contemporary nameplate and design, created by The Journey Group of Charlottesville, Va., make the content easier to read and to navigate.

The publication is intentionally refocused as a magazine for both lay church leaders and clergy and potential church leaders. Interpreter will provide Sunday school teachers, volunteers in mission, church officers and other people in congregations with a “leadership connection” to creative ideas, practical ministry suggestions, guidance from other leaders and other information to nurture leadership skills.

“We will strive to provide you with content that inspires and encourages as you continue to grow in Christian faith and as a leader in the church,” said the Rev. Larry Hollon, chief executive of United Methodist Communications. “We will combine ‘quick reads’ with in-depth articles on important concerns that affect us all, such as church revitalization.”

Interpreter will continue to provide inspirational stories and spiritual guidance, while adding new departments, such as “Leadership Link,” which offers leadership resources, and “Lighter Fare,” which includes fun articles and healthy recipes.

The magazine’s revitalization follows more than a year of focus group and telephone research conducted by the Martec Corporation. Readers and potential readers were asked what they were looking for and how the magazine could better meet their needs.

The mission of Interpreter magazine is to inform United Methodist laity and clergy about the wide-ranging ministries of the general church and to promote active involvement in them.

Some churches purchase subscriptions, in addition to the seven they receive through the World Service Fund, for officers, committee members and others who provide leadership in a variety of ways. Interpreter magazine publishes six issues a year and has 180,000 subscribers. A one-year individual subscription costs $12.

For more information, visit Interpretermagazine.org or call (888) 346-3862.

United Methodist leaders demonstrate support of global health initiative

By Deborah White*



Barbara Boigegrain, chief executive of the United Methodist Board of Pension and Health Benefits, addresses participants at the Global Health Initiative Dialogue gathering in Washington. A UMNS photo by Larry Nelson.



WASHINGTON -- Singing "nza mu ranza" from an African praise song, an advisory council of United Methodist bishops, pastors, agency executives and lay leaders demonsrated their support for a global health iniative by spontaneously placing $868 on a conference podium.

With hands raised and singing in unison, they responded to a challenge to save lives issued by Bishop Thomas Bickerton during the Global Health Initiative Dialogue Dec. 18-19 at the National Press Club. Sixty United Methodist leaders and health experts met to raise awareness of global health issues and to mobilize United Methodists for action.

"Buy a net. Save a life," said Bickerton, president of the United Methodist Commission on Communication. He was referring to the Nothing But Nets campaign to buy anti-malaria bed nets for families in Africa. Partners in the campaign include the people of The United Methodist Church, the United Nations Foundation, Sports Illustrated, the National Basketball Association's foundation NBA Cares, Millennium Promise and the Measles Initiative.

"We are in a denomination of predictability that has become an institution," said Bickerton, who leads the denomination's Pittsburgh Area. "Let's make it a movement again! What do you say? This can help."

The Global Health Initiative Dialogue was organized by United Methodist Communications, the General Board of Global Ministries of The United Methodist Church and the United Nations Foundation. A grant from the United Nations Foundation helped underwrite the meeting.

"It's a time for children to celebrate,"said the Rev. R. Randy Day, chief executive of the United Methodist Board of Global Ministries. And yet children affected by malaria, tuberculosis and AIDS don't have the chance to celebrate holidays, he said. "The children aren't able physically to do that. They don't have the chance to live. They don't have a chance even to be children. I think that's part of what pulls us together."

"This is a conversation among leaders about a potential major initiative to invite the people of the United Methodist Church to help end the diseases of poverty," said the Rev. Larry Hollon, chief executive of United Methodist Communications. "Together we may do collaboratively what we individually could not do alone."

Momentum is building for a global health initiative.
Strong support from participants in the Global Health Initiative Dialogue came on the heels of Bishop Janice Riggle Huie's presidential address to the Council of Bishops' meeting in Maputo, Mozambique, in November in which she called on the church to "stamp out the diseases of poverty, particularly malaria and HIV/AIDS." The church's general agencies and members of the Connectional Table, the denomination's program coordination group, are also developing a global health proposal in addition to emphasizing leadership development, new church starts and congregational renewal, and caring for children by addressing poverty.

"It's timely that we meet on the issue," said Hollon, pointing to Dec. 18 editorials in The New York Times and The Washington Post lifting up concerns about global health. On Dec. 14 The United Methodist Church's commitment to eradicating malaria was recognized at the White House Summit on Malaria in Washington. Day was among the participants.

On the first day of the Global Health Initiative Dialogue, health experts and church leaders described global health challenges, including malaria and HIV/AIDS, that affect millions of people. Experts included Michael Madnick, senior vice president of the UN Foundation, Andrea Gay, director of children's health for the UN Foundation, and Todd Summers, senior policy officer for global health at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

In Africa, approximately 800,000 children die every year of malaria, a mosquito-borne disease that can be prevented and treated effectively. Approximately 39.5 million people are living with HIV, and about 2.9 million people have died of AIDS-related illnesses in 2006, according to the United Nations Foundation.

The Rev. Kent Millard, senior pastor of St. Luke's United Methodist Church in Indianapolis, described a challenging question posed to him by the rock star Bono during a tour stop: "What will you tell your children and grandchildren in 20 years when a whole continent wasted away with AIDS?"

Then Millard asked participants, "What will we say The United Methodist Church did?" The church needs to focus in the same direction together, he said. "Not only will it bring the good news of Jesus Christ, it will bring us together as a denomination."

AIDS and malaria are interrelated and they are both connected to poverty, Day said. "People want to do something. They want to save children."

To help move forward a global health initiative, participants spent the second day of the meeting working to suggest action steps. They emphasized partnerships and making global health a priority. "Our compelling vision will unify and pull us together," said Bishop Sharon Brown Christopher, who leads the Illinois Area.

Action steps suggested include:
+Use the Nothing But Nets campaign as a launching point for a global health initiative addressing diseases of poverty, such as malaria, HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and measles.
+Create a new coordinating entity with global representation to focus on global health.
+Form partnerships within The United Methodist Church, with other faith groups and with outside organizations.
+Involve every aspect of the denomination, including hospitals and universities.
+Develop clear messages that resonate with people in the pews and stimulate local church participation.
+Make global health a priority at General Conference in 2008 and educate leadership in advance.
+Use the Advance for Christ and His Church as a fundraising and delivery system.

Two participants announced support for Nothing But Nets during the meeting.

The Rev. Timothy Bias, pastor of First United Methodist Church in Peoria, Ill., pledged to raise money for 1,000 nets. Bishop Janice Huie of the Houston Area, president of the Council of Bishops, said, "I am prepared to make Nothing But Nets the priority for the Texas Conference."

One of the highlights of the meeting was the presence of two bishops from Africa. Bishop David Yemba of the Central Congo Area, said, "I know in my heart that our church can be a leader in bringing health and wholeness to Africa." Bishop Benjamin Boni, resident bishop of the Cote D'Ivoire Area, also attended.

Consulting frequently with bishops and networks in Africa is crucial to a global health initiative, said Bishop Joel Martinez of the San Antonio Area, president of the United Methodist Board of Global Ministries. "It's about justice and equality and hearing the call of Jesus to that," he said.

"I'm involved in a two-day hope meeting," said James Salley, associate vice-chancellor for institutional advancement at Africa University. "The Holy Spirit unites us all. They said we would never build Africa University, but The United Methodist Church has done it. You have done it."

Participants responded with clapping -- and a shout of "nza mu ranza." That's the beginning of a song in the Xitswa language of Mozambique that means, "I worship Christ. There is no one like Him."

*Deborah White is associate editor of Interpreter magazine, a ministry of United Methodist Communications.

Movie spotlights church's role in saga of homeless man

By Mary Jacobs*

In his 40-plus years at Glide Memorial United Methodist Church in San Francisco, the Rev. Cecil Williams has met many of the homeless folks who have come through the church's homeless shelter and soup kitchen. But he won't forget Chris Gardner.

"He was one of the few men I've seen who had a baby with him at all times," Williams recalled. "And I remember him because he had the gall to say that, without a doubt, he was going to break out of the cycle of poverty."

Gardner's remarkable story is the basis of a new film, "The Pursuit of Happyness," which opened Dec. 15, starring Will Smith.

During the period in the 1980s shown in the film, Gardner stayed briefly in Glide's homeless shelter. After he left, Williams said he didn't hear from him until a few years later.

"Next thing we knew, he was in Chicago," he said. "He had started his own brokerage and he was a millionaire."

Gardner credits his success to confidence in his ability to eventually succeed and to the encouragement of his pastor.

"Cecil Williams would talk every Sunday about being able to walk on the waters of life," Gardner recalled. "And he'd say that baby steps count, too, as long as you're going forward. That's food for the soul."

Williams has since retired as pastor of the church but is still affiliated as chief executive officer of the Glide Foundation.

'Pursuing a dream'
Will Smith, who portrays Gardner, said at a recent press screening in Dallas that the film "will forever hold a spot in my heart."

"(The film) is about, 'How do we do it? How do we keep pursuing a dream and stay encouraged?'" Smith said.

Williams plays himself in the movie. The church's choir, the Glide Ensemble, also makes an appearance. Residents of Glide's homeless shelter were recruited as extras for a scene at a worship service.

Gardner remains a member of Glide and returns four or five times a year to help in the shelter's kitchen.

An early draft of the film's script omitted any mention of the Rev. Cecil Williams.

Gardner sent the script back to the writers."I told them, if there's no Cecil Williams, there's no Chris Gardner," he said.

Smith said being on location at the church brought the role home for him.

"We shot the scenes at Glide in the same places where Chris slept and ate," Smith said. "Being there, the members of the crew and I felt the spirit of what had actually happened there."

In preparing for the role, Smith said, "I asked myself, when would I havebroken in this situation? When would I have given up? For me, it was the scene in the bathroom."

The scene shows Gardner, just evicted from his apartment, spending a night with his son sleeping on the floor in the men's room in a bus station.

Scenes like that, Williams hopes, will give moviegoers more empathy for the poor. "You get a sense of some of the horrifying experiences a poor person can encounter."

Trusting in God
"I was struck by the commitment that (Gardner) had to this idea of who he was and what he wanted his life to be," Smith said. "He gambled everything. He put his trust in God, and in the face of homelessness and hunger he held onto that idea. That idea was food for him when he was hungry and shelter for him when he was homeless."

Gardner said he was pleased with the way Smith portrayed him.

"What I figured out late in the game is while we were shooting for those 17 weeks, while everybody was watching Will, Will was watching me," he said. "I think he's done his best work to date."

Williams said he also got to know Smith while the cast was filming at the church, and was impressed with the actor's character.

"I feel that, spiritually, I did the right thing in making this movie," Smith said.

"The tool that God has given me is my artistry. I feel I'm closer than I've ever been to doing something with that tool that will leave the world a better place."The film depicts Gardner, an African-American man, working to break into a profession that was dominated by white males.

If Gardner encountered any racism, the film doesn't show it. Gardner said that was a conscious choice.

"There's a bigger barrier beyond racial barriers," he said. "It's the barrier of the human spirit, the barriers of possibilities, of what can and can't be done. That's what the movie is about."

If viewers take anything home from the movie, Gardner hopes it's this: "The cavalry ain't coming. You've got to do this yourself."

The film alters a few facts from the real-life story for dramatic purposes. Gardner's son, Christopher, was a baby at the time; in the movie, he's a 5-year-old boy.

Gardner also is shown as a natural whiz at Rubik's Cube, a popular puzzle in the early '80s. In real life, Gardner has never worked a Rubik's Cube; the writers used the device to convey his unusual talents. Smith took 12 hours of lessons with Rubik's Cube champions learning to master the puzzle. After 20 more hours of practice, he can solve the puzzle in about two minutes.

Gardner said his determination to succeed should encourage church members who work on behalf of the homeless."The work that Methodists do makes so much of a difference in someone making it or breaking it," he said. "A lot of times they don't get to see that immediately."

He compared helping the homeless to gardening -- planting seeds, feeding and nurturing them."One day, things have blossomed, but it takes a long time sometimes," he said. "If my contribution is anything, maybe I'm representative of all the gardening all the Methodists have been doing for years."

*Jacobs is associate editor of The United Methodist Reporter. This story originally appeared in the Reporter.

United Methodist is top justice in the Philippines

By United Methodist News Service

The new chief justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines is a United Methodist lay preacher.

Chief Justice Reynato S. Puno, 66, was sworn into office by Philippines President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo on Dec. 7, according to the court's official Web site. He was the most senior of the court's 14 associate justices and replaces Artemio Panganiban.

The Manila native is the administrative council chairman of Puno Memorial United Church and formerly led the administrative board at Knox United Methodist Church.

In a statement, Puno thanked the president for the appointment and thanked "the Almighty for this extraordinary gift, more accurately, this trust, which is heavily laden with responsibility."
Puno said he was aware of "the defining role" of the judiciary in the life of the Filipino people.

"The judiciary may not have the power of the sword, may not have the power of the purse, but it has the power to interpret the Constitution, and the unerring lessons of history tell us that rightly wielded, that power can make a difference for good."

The new chief justice pledged "to espouse no ideology but constitutionalism, to uphold no theology but the rule of law." He said he put his trust in God to bring "fair justice to all."

Puno has served as chairman of the Court's second division and the Senate Electoral Tribunal; is the ex-officio chairman of the Judicial and Bar Council; and led the Court Systems Journal and several other committees.

Originally a private attorney, Puno joined the Office of the Solicitor General in 1971. At the age of 40, in 1980, he became the youngest person ever to be named as associate justice of the Court of Appeals. He was appointed as justice of that court six years later. In 1993, he was appointed to the Supreme Court by then President Fidel Ramos.

A graduate of the University of the Philippines, Puno holds a master of comparative laws degree from United Methodist-related Southern Methodist University in Dallas, where he was valedictorian of his class and master of laws degree at the University of California, Berkeley.

Last year, he received the Distinguished Global Alumnus Award from the Dedman School of Law at Southern Methodist University. On its 100th anniversary, the United Methodist Church in the Philippines named him a "centennial awardee" in the field of law.

Puno was married to the late Luzviminda D. Puno, who was the Supreme Court Clerk of Court. They have three children, Reynato Jr., Emmanuel and Ruth.

New UMC.org will offer more services, create communities

By Linda Green*

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (UMNS) - United Methodist Communications will relaunch the denomination's Web site to become the "front door" to the online faith community in early January.

UMC.org has been retooled to incorporate innovative technologies to bring people together in new ways.

The first large-scale social networking site developed by a mainline denomination, UMC.org's online community has been designed to foster meaningful relationships within the global church community and to allow people to connect with the church seven days a week from wherever they might be.

"The new design was necessary as the Web transforms to become a part of the fabric of our lives," said the Rev. Larry Hollon, chief executive of United Methodist Communications.

The Book of Discipline, The United Methodist Church's law book, charges the communications agency with developing, implementing and maintaining the denomination's "presence on and use of the Internet, the World Wide Web, or other computer services that can connect United Methodist conferences, agencies and local churches with one another and with the larger world."

Since the Web is the place people go to for information, connection and recreation, it's important for the church to be in the environments where people seek to find meaning today, Hollon said.
Research has shown the current Web site "is not as user-friendly and accessible as the church needs in order to be a favorable environment," he said. "So we've committed to this redesign for current church members and those seeking to know more about The United Methodist Church."

The site design team conducted interviews with more than 250 members, leaders and seekers around the world during the research phase of the redesign. The design and its new features were based on the needs expressed by the users, according to the communications agency's Web team.

A Web site is about connecting people and establishing a relationship that serves the needs of the user effectively, Hollon said. UMC.org is an "important entry point to the United Methodist community," and the site has been retooled to be as friendly and useful as possible.

"Designing the Web site based on the expressed needs of leaders, members and those who seek to know more about the church seemed to us to be an important way to maintain that critical relationship," he added.

Front door to the church
When the switch is flipped in early January, the new site will enable individuals to access the church's resources, find a church in any community in the United States, identify personal spiritual gifts and share prayer concerns with others.

The new UMC.org has been designed to meet the needs of a large, diverse audience and to make people feel welcome, as if they are walking into a church, the designers on the Web team said. It will serve as a single entranceway that provides access to church resources and offers visitors a close look at who United Methodists are as a faith community.

"The site is important to the denomination because it is the front door online to our faith community," Hollon said. "It is one of the first places people go to locate a local congregation or to discover tools for leading more effectively or finding ways to connect with local congregations to live more faithfully."

Social networking is becoming an important way for people to connect, learn and interact with others who share common interests and concerns, he said. "As the first denomination to offer social networking on a Web site on this scale, it is our hope that users can interact to grow in their understanding of Christian faith and in their commitment to the church."

A person visiting the "Our People" section of UMC.org will meet the people of the United Methodist Church as well as other individuals of faith around the world, hear their stories and share personal experiences. The new site will allow individuals to expand their ecumenical relationships and learn how others are making a difference in the world through service. More than 60 related topics will provide opportunities for site visitors to join community groups, talk and find spiritual gifts that will benefit others.

UMC.org's online community also has a needs registry through which participants can reach beyond their immediate communities to a global audience. They can create online needs registries of the resources and assistance they need, as well as search the database for volunteer opportunities.

Similar to other online social networks, UMC.org's online community will allow users to establish a profile page with photographs and personal information.

Connections are already occurring through user groups for "UM 101," a small-group study program about the United Methodist Church, Hollon said. Upon completing the online course, many participants continue to stay connected with course participants and share their faith journeys. The course, offered by United Methodist Communications, was developed before the UMC.org redesign but offers an example of effective social networking.

"We've also seen that this does not replace face-to-face community in local congregations; it happens in addition to this important physical community," Hollon continued. "The church is, in part, about relationships. We hope to provide a means for people to relate to each other about faith and important life concerns that will encourage deeper study and engagement in local congregations, where the faith is transmitted and we each receive support as we grow in our journey of faith."

Highlighting the footprints
The Web site's "Our Church" section welcomes visitors to The United Methodist Church and gives glimpses of the denomination's work throughout the world. It shows seekers how that work is grounded by a Wesleyan heritage and a Methodist perspective. In addition to teaching United Methodist history, the site incorporates a United Methodist global map to highlight the footprints of the denomination in the world.

How United Methodists live, practice, and share faith through action can be found in the "Our Faith" section of the Web site. A prayer center allows an individual to submit a prayer request to one of more than 300 covenant prayer groups around the world, whose members will pray on the request for 30 days. The center is supported by the Upper Room Living Prayer Center. Online sermons enable a person to learn, explore and grow in faith.

The area called "Our World" shows how United Methodists are making a difference globally and domestically.

The site highlights accomplishments and provides resources, volunteer opportunities and information for people who want to make a difference through their local church. Visitors to this section can also find the latest news and information on global issues and programs such as United Methodist global relief efforts and HIV/AIDS and malaria prevention programs.

"Our World" is also the home of "MethoPedia," an encyclopedia format with resources and news stories about topical issues.

Other features
The redesigned "Find-A-Church" feature offers local churches an opportunity to showcase their primary ministries and add a personal welcome message, worship schedule and activities, photos of the church and its people, membership statistics, an interactive map and driving directions, and more. Users can search the database of churches by geographic location, congregation size, language and ethnicity to find a church that meets their needs.

The "Ask InfoServ" section provides answers to frequently asked questions about the church and allows users to contact the denomination's official information service by e-mail to get their questions answered directly.

The new search tool, supported by Google, makes it easier to find information by enabling users to search UMC.org as well as United Methodist annual conference and church agency Web sites.
For a sneak peek of the new site, go to UMC.org and click on the flash box in the middle of the page, above Headlines.

*Green is a United Methodist News Service news writer based in Nashville, Tenn. Diane Denton, United Methodist Communications' public information officer, contributed to this story. UMNS is a unit of United Methodist Communications.

NCC policy helps member churches join biotechnology debates

By Linda Bloom*

NEW YORK (UMNS) - Should people of faith join the debate on stem cell research, speak out about questionable methods of human "enhancement" and push for adequate regulation of the biotechnology industry?

The National Council of Churches, representing some 45 million church members, adopted a policy in November advocating just that type of action.

The policy challenges the idea that the representatives of the scientific community and the government "ought to control the discussion simply by virtue of their expertise. … To be a responsible church, members must be fully informed, equipped and empowered to serve the common good."

Clare Chapman, an executive with the United Methodist Commission on Christian Unity and Interreligious Concerns, led the committee that developed the policy, allowing the churches to jointly "bear witness to their beliefs in an age of emerging technologies."

Chapman, who will become the NCC's chief financial officer in January, attributed the successful adoption of "Fearfully and Wonderfully Made: A Policy on Human Biotechnologies" to a "stellar committee" and diligent attention by delegates at both the 2005 and 2006 NCC General Assemblies.

The committee was named in 2003. "We worked for a full year just looking at the science and then started drafting the text," she said.

Other United Methodists on the 16-member committee were Blythe Crissman, a pediatric genetic counselor at Duke University Medical Center; the Rev. James Fenimore, the Albany District superintendent for the Troy (N.Y.) Annual Conference; and Victor "Leon" Cyrus-Franklin, a recent graduate of Gammon Theological Seminary in Atlanta. NCC staff representatives were the Rev. Eileen Lindner and the Rev. Marcel Welty.

Two resolutions - on cloning and on biotechnology and national security - also were approved by the 2006 General Assembly. The cloning resolution calls on Congress "to enact federal legislation that would attach criminal penalties to the creation of human reproductive clones" and asks worldwide governmental agencies "to regulate and oversee laboratories with the capacity" to create such clones.

The resolution on biotechnology and national security calls for the creation of a National Science Advisory Board for Bio-Defense within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The board would oversee and regulate bio-defense activities within the government and private sector.

The NCC is asking its member communions to study and implement the biotechnologies policy and has developed a curriculum and study guide. The guide grew out of "a request to the committee from last year's first reading" for a hands-on, easy-to-read curriculum, according to Chapman.

She pointed out that while some background on the science of biotechnologies is helpful for making statements of faith on the issue, "you don't have to get in the real deep science to engage in policy statements."

Not in full agreement
"Fearfully and Wonderfully Made" does not represent complete agreement on biotechnology concerns among NCC members. The section on stem cell research recognizes the divisiveness of the issue within the Christian community.

"There are places in ecumenical life when you agree it's not possible to come to agreement on an issue," Chapman explained.

In this case, the policy compares the lack of agreement to a similar lack of consensus regarding abortion more than two decades ago. "As with the abortion debate, much of the stem cell debate turns on the differing views we hold on the moral status of human embryos," the policy notes.

While the policy "neither endorses nor condemns experimentation" on human embryos or the use of embryonic stem cells for research, "We are, however, in agreement in our recognition of the irreducible sanctity of human life, as well as the intrinsic moral and ethical good inherent in efforts to reduce human suffering through medical science."

Recommendations
Among the policy's various recommendations are that NCC members identify scientists who are church members to interpret biotechnologies; recruit clergy and lay members who have the health care background to serve as resources on the issue; and develop worship materials "that address the emerging needs created by the new biotechnologies and the issues they present."

On the congregational level, priests, pastors and others are encouraged to "recognize that genetics and bioengineering raise a number of pastoral and theological questions with which they, as clergy, are frequently and traditionally involved."

The committee's work is done, but Chapman said the NCC is teaming with the World Council of Churches to sponsor an international consultation on biotechnologies sometime in the fall of 2007.

The idea for such a consultation occurred after representatives of the NCC committee met in Toronto with their counterparts in the Canadian Council of Churches "and found a great agreement on much of this work," Chapman said.

More information about "Fearfully and Wonderfully Made: A Policy on Human Biotechnologies," including downloadable versions of the policy and study guide, can be found at http://www.ncccusa.org/biotechnology/ on the NCC's Web site.

Information also is available by calling Welty at (212) 870-2379 or writing to the National Council of Churches Office of Research and Planning, 475 Riverside Dr., Room 880, New York, NY 10115.

*Bloom is a United Methodist News Service news writer based in New York.

United Methodist Mission Agency Announces New System for Literature Distribution

New York, NY, December 14, 2006 --The General Board of Global Ministries of the United Methodist Church will have a new system for the distribution of print, audio visual and other promotional and educational materials beginning December 29, 2006.

Cokesbury, a part of the Nashville-based United Methodist Publishing House, will fulfill orders for all but one unit of the international mission agency. As previously announced, the Women’s Division will both produce and distribute its materials through the Mission Resource Center in Dallas, Texas.

The changes follow a decision by the Women’s Division, the administrative arm of United Methodist Women, to close its Service Center in Cincinnati. That center had long filled orders for the board as a whole and for several other denominational and ecumenical entities. The closing of the Service Center reflects financial realities affected in part by a decreased use of print as electronic communications increases.

The United Methodist General Commission on Christian Unity and Interreligious Concerns, which had used the Service Center, is also moving its distribution to Cokesbury, as is Friendship Press, a publishing unit of the National Council of Churches.

“We look forward to this new partnership with Cokesbury,” said the Rev. R. Randy Day, the chief executive of the mission agency. “Technically, the transition should be smooth, although we know that many United Methodists may find it hard to change years of thinking of the Service Center as the source of mission material.”

Orders to Cokesbury or to the United Methodist Women’s resource center in Dallas can be made by mail, telephone, or email, and by fax to Cokesbury (see details below).

Cokesbury will handle materials coming from Global Ministries’ communications department and its units on community and institutional ministries, evangelization and church growth, health and welfare, mission personnel, mission contexts and relationships, mission education, and volunteers in mission. It also covers the Advance for Christ and His Church, the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR), Global Praise, the United Methodist Development Fund, Spanish and Korean-language resources, and the Global Ministries’ research office. An online store is located at http://gbgm-umc.org/e-store.

Orders for single copies of the board’s bi-monthly magazine, New World Outlook, will go to Cokesbury, but subscriptions will be handled by the magazineitself.

Mission study books will be distributed with the Women’s Division’s resource center. The division has an online store at www.missionresources.org.

“This may seem complex at first, but it will quickly fall into place,” said Wendy Whiteside, assistant general secretary of the Global Ministries’ communications department. “I will be glad to answer any questions.” Ms. Whiteside can be emailed at wendyw@gbgm-umc.org. Her phone number is 212 870-3921.

Here is the specific order information:

Cokesbury:

Mail:

Cokesbury Customer Service
P.O. Box 801
201 Eighth Avenue South
Nashville, TN 37202-0801

Phone toll free: 1-800-672-1789

Fax: 1-800-445-8189

United Methodists fill 61 seats in new Congress

By Albert J. Menendez*

WASHINGTON (UMNS) - Sixty-one United Methodists will serve in the 110th Congress - approximately the same number as were elected in the 108th and 109th Congresses. The denomination also remained in third place among all religious groups.

The number of United Methodists in Congress will be the same as in the 108th session and one less than in the 109th session. Some partisan reshuffling has occurred, resulting in a net gain of four Democrats. In fact, all five newly elected United Methodists in the House of Representatives are Democrats. They are Tim Mahoney of Florida's 16th Congressional District (the seat vacated by Mark Foley); Dave Loebsack of Iowa's 2nd District; Nancy Boyda of the 2nd District of Kansas; and Betty Sutton of Ohio's 13th Congressional District.

CQ's Guide to the New Congress also lists Baron P. Hill, of Indiana's 9th District, as a United Methodist. In his former years in Congress, Hill was a member of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ).

There are 34 Republicans and 27 Democrats in the Methodist membership in the House of Representatives.

There were no changes in the 13 United Methodists serving in the U.S. Senate, where they are second in number to Catholics.

Missing from the 110th Congress will be Jim Kolbe of Arizona, who retired; Tom Osborne of Nebraska, who ran unsuccessfully for governor; Ted Strickland of Ohio, an ordained United Methodist minister, who was elected governor of the Buckeye State; and Donald Sherwood of Pennsylvania, who was defeated in November. (Rob Portman of Ohio resigned from Congress before the 2006 election; President Bush appointed him U.S. trade representative in 2005.)

With 10 members, Texas has the largest number of United Methodists in Congress (with a runoff election set for one of the state's districts Dec. 12), followed by five in Florida, four from Ohio, and three from Indiana and Kansas. Thirty states elected at least one United Methodist to Congress in 2006, the same as in 2004.

Thirty-five United Methodists represent states in the South or Border South, while 16 hail from the Midwest, seven from the Rocky Mountain West and the Pacific Coast, and three from the Mid-Atlantic states. There are no United Methodist members from New England.

In terms of strength within state delegations, the denomination is strongest in Kansas, where three of six members belong to The United Methodist Church. Two of five members in Nebraska and New Mexico are United Methodists. A third of the members from Arkansas and Wyoming are also United Methodists. Nearly a third - 30 percent - of the Texans in Congress are United Methodists.

United Methodists rank third in total Congressional membership, following Roman Catholics in first place and Baptists in second. Presbyterians, Jews and Episcopalians are in fourth, fifth and sixth places. Nondenominational Protestants, Lutherans, Mormons and nondenominational Christians complete the top 10 religious groups represented in Congress.

In addition, President George Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney are United Methodists.

After the recent elections, the United Methodist Church also has six members who are or will be serving as state governors. They are Janet Napolitano, Democrat, Arizona; Ruth Ann Minner, Democrat, Delaware; Charlie Crist, Republican, Florida; David Heinemann, Republican, Nebraska; Ted Strickland, Democrat, Ohio; and Rick Perry, Republican, Texas.

*Menendez is a freelance writer and director of research for Americans for Religious Liberty.

EDITOR'S NOTE: This tabulation is based on the religious affiliations reported by Congressional staffs to Congressional Quarterly and to the Almanac of American Politics. The affiliations of the newly elected members of the 110th Congress appeared in CQ's Guide to the New Congress, issued Nov. 9. They have been compiled by Albert J. Menendez. The tabulation does not reflect the outcome of a Dec. 12 runoff for the 23rd Congressional District in Texas. Information on the governors' religious affiliations comes from CNN and from The Almanac of American Politics.

United Methodist Communications' leader testifies before FCC

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (UMNS) - At a Dec. 11 public hearing regarding the Federal Communication Commission's media ownership rules, the head of The United Methodist Church's communications agency told FCC commissioners that relaxing the rules on ownership of media has resulted in a form of censorship.

"I know you do not advocate censorship, but one of the consequences of relaxing the rules on ownership of media has been a form of censorship: a limiting of voices in the public dialogue that is so important to our representative democracy," said the Rev. Larry Hollon, chief executive of United Methodist Communications.

"As rules on public service and ownership of media have been relaxed and as ownership consolidates into fewer and fewer hands, it is becoming more difficult, and more expensive, to project our voice into the public conversation," Hollon testified.

He cited the refusal of religious advertising by some broadcast networks as an example of how corporate policies can restrict free speech.

In 2003, Reuters refused to carry United Methodist advertising - with the theme "Open hearts. Open minds. Open doors." - on a Times Square electronic billboard. That decision was later reversed when the denomination protested on the grounds that the church should have the same access to commercial space as any other organization.

During a combination of panel presentations and public comment periods, a diverse group of performers, music industry executives, independent radio station owners, college students, advocates and others gathered to present their viewpoints to commission members.

The Nashville hearing was one of six that will be held nationwide seeking public input on rules governing media consolidation. Among the issues being considered are newspaper-broadcast cross-ownership rules, and local radio and TV ownership limits.

North American Methodists build bridges on immigration

By Elliott Wright*

TUCSON, Ariz. (UMNS) - Concern for people migrating across political borders is motivating increasing mission collaboration between The United Methodist Church in the United States and the Methodist Church of Mexico.

Simultaneously, United Methodist general agencies are stepping up their collective attention to U.S. immigration policy and legislation.

Bishops and others from annual (regional) conferences north and south of the U.S.-Mexican border met Dec. 1-2 in Tucson to formalize what will be called the Methodist Border Mission Network. It was the third meeting of its kind in the last 15 months.

The day before, meeting in Phoenix, representatives from most of the general agencies and the denomination's Council of Bishops set up an Interagency Task Force on Immigration, a possibility projected by the church's legislating General Conference six years ago.

This panel will focus on federal, state and local immigration policy and on education about immigration issues within the denomination. The emphasis is on just immigrant policy and comprehensive U.S. immigration reform legislation.

Bishop Minerva Carcaño of Phoenix convened the interagency group as chairperson of an immigration committee of the Council of Bishops. In addition, as host bishop, she presided at the meeting that set up the border mission group. Most of the participants in the interagency group also attended the Tucson sessions to make presentations on existing programs dealing with immigrants.

Cooperative work between U.S.-Mexican border conferences is not new, but it has taken on new urgency as, acting under current laws, the United States has slowed the flow of undocumented people moving north from Mexico and Central America. Those who do cross are often in dire need of human necessities. More and more people are being stranded along the southern border, and increasing numbers are being jailed or deported by the United States with no resources to return to their places of origin.

Bishops or their delegates from three Mexican and four U.S. annual conferences began meeting in 2005 to consider mutual concerns related to immigration. The series of meetings were made possible by a grant from the United Methodist Board of Global Ministries. Bishop Joel N. Martínez of San Antonio, the board's president, has strongly promoted the initiative.

World without borders
The new bi-national group envisions a time when God's people engage in mission in a world without borders. Its mission is to "manifest our Wesleyan heritage in cross border ministries through mutually empowering collaboration between the Methodist Church of Mexico and The United Methodist Church."

"This new border mission network will begin with the acute matter of immigration, but we want to anticipate an expanded agenda in the future," Martínez said.

He noted that his conference and others along the northern border have sustained relations with corresponding Mexican Methodist conferences to the south. United Methodist Volunteers in Mission form one of the major means of interaction.

The Rev. Felipe Ruiz, who heads the immigration ministry of the Mexican church, said that 82 percent of the people crossing the border into the United States are from Mexico, with Hondurans, Salvadorians and Brazilians forming the next largest groups.

Saving lives
A major concern at both the border consultation and the interagency meeting was how the churches serve acute human needs and work to prevent the loss of life among migrants. Both gatherings acknowledge that migration - the movement of people - is a global reality challenging the churches.

Considerable attention in Tucson focused on the different ways in which the U.S. and Mexican churches experience the current immigration situation.

In the United States, the concern is that of hospitality and life-saving services. In Mexico, the ministry opportunities arise in relation to three groups: Central Americans passing through on the way to the border, the concentration of hopeful crossers along the border, and those being deported by the United States. Many people are being assisted by the Methodist Aid Center for Migrants, sponsored by the church in Mexico.

700-mile wall
Last September, the Council of Bishops of the Methodist Church of Mexico adopted a resolution questioning certain aspects of current U.S. immigration policy. The action questioned the wisdom of the proposal to build a wall along 700 miles of the 2,000-mile border. Such a wall, the bishops said, "will result in more immigrants dying in their attempt to enter the USA." Directors of the Board of Global Ministries endorsed this perspective in a resolution passed in October.

Bishop Milton Velasco Legorreta of Chihuahua and Bishop Jaime Vazquez Olmena of San Ysidro took part in the Tucson deliberations. United Methodists were represented by the Desert Southwest, Southwest Texas, California-Pacific and New Mexico Annual conferences.

United Methodist agencies and organizations taking part in the Interagency Task Force on Immigration include the Council of Bishops; Board of Church and Society; Board of Discipleship; Board of Global Ministries and its United Methodist Committee on Relief and Women's Division; Commission on Religion and Race; Commission on Christian Unity and Interreligious Concerns; General Council on Finance and Administration; and the National Plan for Hispanic and Latino Ministries.

Programs highlighted included UMCOR's Justice for Our Neighbors, which sponsors 22 congregation-based legal clinics for immigrants in the United States, and the educational work of United Methodist Women on migration-related concerns.

*Wright is the information officer of the United Methodist Board of Global Ministries.

Pastor relies on God's strength in aftermath of Pa. shooting

By Andrea Brown*

BART TOWNSHIP, Pa. (UMNS) - For Mike Remel, a 32-year-old seminary student and the pastor of Georgetown United Methodist Church, the recent shootings at a local Amish school impacted him as a pastor, father and neighbor responding to an unimaginable tragedy.

Yet Remel was never so powerfully aware of God's presence as in that moment.

Though the incident was overwhelming, he said, "I don't know that it would be any different for an older pastor," since the strengths that were called for were less his than God's.

On Oct. 2, Charles Carl Roberts IV took over tiny Nickel Mines (Pa.) School and shot 10 schoolgirls - five fatally - before taking his own life. Remel and other area pastors stayed busy in the days that followed, offering outreach and hope to their Amish neighbors and the rest of the community.

"I have really relied on God and on my prayer life," said Remel, a student at Palmer Theological Seminary in Wynnewood, Pa. Whenever he became exhausted, "I felt the refreshing of the Spirit sustaining me and uplifting me and allowing me to move on to the next task that had to be done."

One of those tasks was sharing the news with his 5-year-old son, Shawn.

Shawn is a friend and preschool classmate of Bryce Roberts, the 5-year-old son of Charles Carl Roberts IV. Remel lives two doors away from the Roberts family.

"On a personal level, we know the Roberts children; we know Marie," Roberts' widow, Remel said. He said he didn't know Charles himself well because they had opposite work schedules.
"They're doing as well as can be expected," he said. "She's back in their home with the kids.

They're receiving ministry and counsel. The kids are back in school. There have been - praise God - no incidents" of any of Marie's three children being singled out or picked on by their peers.

As for Remel's son, he said, "We told him Bryce's dad died, and Shawn said, 'Well, Bryce must be very sad.' And we said yes. And we said, 'All of Lancaster County is sad because there were some Amish girls shot in a schoolhouse.' We did not connect the two events. He has since seen news coverage and has connected them himself." But Shawn continues to do well, Remel said.

"One of the things in our family is, we've never shielded Shawn from death, whether it was an aunt or an uncle or a loved one or a friend," Remel added. "We have tried to teach him that death is a natural part of life but that death is not the end - that God makes a promise to us of eternal life."

Including children in funerals and other mourning rituals helps them to have such assurance, Remel believes.

Inundated with media
In addition to his wisdom as a parent, Remel relied on his wisdom as a pastor and community leader in dealing with the swarms of media that came to the area.

"We were just inundated," he said. Humility is a strong value for the Amish, and though they read and produce newspapers, they are wary of the effects of having their image reproduced in photographs and on film.

Remel had many conversations with camera crews and found this to be the most stressful part of the situation, "just trying to get them to understand that the most respectful way to film this event was don't do close-up shots of their faces. Many were respectful, some certainly were not."

While Remel closed his church to cameras during a prayer meeting in order to protect the Amish, the same motive led him to open the church to reporters as an unobtrusive site for viewing the solemn procession of dark buggies headed to funerals for the girls who died.

Forgiveness
Still, amid the stresses were many blessings.

"One of the things that was absolutely astounding was of the Amish forgiving as quickly as they did. And it wasn't just the Amish. It was this community," he said.

"There was a need for forgiveness, to embrace each other and not push each other away. I saw God working in those situations where we were being drawn together."

What's more, he said, "I've seen God in the well wishes from all across the United States and internationally. It's a message of how they've been inspired by the care and faith of the community and of, 'We're praying for you. We're caring for you.'

"This is in some ways - I don't know how to put it - I feel very humbled by the experience, and I have learned lessons about Christian love and care from people in my community through this tragedy, and just to see the level of care that is going to everyone involved in this because, you know, both the Amish and the Roberts family are seen as victims in this."

Remel recalled the power of seeing Marie Roberts attending the girls' funerals, and later, seeing the families of the girls at Charlie Roberts' burial behind Georgetown Church. "That was just an overwhelming, humbling experience."

*Brown is associate pastor of Grandview United Methodist Church in Lancaster, Pa.

Red Bird Mission experiencing financial shortfall

A UMNS Report By Kathy L. Gilbert*

A significant decline in contributions has created a crisis that may result in the closing of the school at Red Bird Mission, according to the mission's executive director.

Red Bird is one of four mission institutions of the United Methodist Red Bird Missionary Conference. The conference is in an isolated area in the heart of Appalachia, a geographic region that stretches along the Appalachian mountain range from Mississippi to southern New York. Red Bird Mission School in Beverly, Ky., has been in existence since 1921.

For the past three years the mission has been operating with a deficit, using reserves to meet the shortfall, said the Rev. Fred Haggard. The mission includes a clinic, retail operations, community outreach and a work camp.

"The cost of education takes the biggest percent of our budget," he explained, adding that the other parts of the mission are able to raise funds through their ministries but the school has no real way to raise money.

This year, the budget shortfall is $500,000. "We jumped from having a pretty bad situation to a near critical situation," Haggard said.

The mission has enough money to operate through 2007, but if no more funds are received decisions will have to be made about what to cut. "It could mean a loss of the school," he said. "Most likely it would mean cutting out part of it, probably the high school since that is the most expensive part."

Haggard noted that students and parents are upset about the possibility of closing the school.

"Red Bird School is not just a place for educational advancement, but spiritual advancement," said Jonathan Sizemore, a senior at the school. "For the past six years, I have attended chapel and devotional sessions. It has been a true blessing from God to be able to start out the academic day with a praise song, words of encouragement from the speakers and a prayer."

Denominational attention to recent disasters, such as the South Asian tsunami and Gulf Coast hurricanes, has resulted in a drop in donations to the mission, according to Haggard.

"One of the reasons we have had a decline in people coming to our work camps is because lots of groups say they sent teams to Mississippi and couldn't get enough together to come to Red Bird," he added.

He also believes the attitude of United Methodists toward mission work is changing. "Seems the more exotic and the further out they (mission projects) are, the more they want to go. People go and spend a lot of money on these mission events and they come home and feel like they have done their mission work."

Declining membership and the aging of members also are factors in declining giving to missions like Red Bird, in Haggard's opinion.

"I think we offer to this community a very unique education that is Christian and small school based," Haggard said. "In my mind it is the best thing we are doing as far as changing the future -- changing the way people in this community live."

Donations to Red Bird Mission can be made through the Advance #773978. Checks can be dropped in church offering plates or mailed directly to UMCOR, P.O. Box 9068, New York, NY 10087. Write "UMCOR Advance #773978 Red Bird Mission" on the memo line of the check.

Credit card donations can be made at http://new.gbgm-umc.org/umcor/ online or by calling, toll free, (800) 554-8583. For more information about the conference, call (605) 598-5915 or send mail to Red Bird Missionary Conference, 54 Queendale Center, Beverly, KY 40913-9607.

The Website address is http://www.redbirdconference.org.

*Gilbert is a United Methodist News Service news writer based in Nashville, Tenn.

Bishop Bolleter will take post with World Methodist Council

A UMNS Report By Linda Bloom*

A United Methodist bishop who has provided leadership to church members in countries spanning from Algeria to Albania is the new Geneva secretary for the World Methodist Council.

Bishop Heinrich Bolleter, who retired in May as episcopal leader of the Central and Southern European Conference of the United Methodist Church, will begin his part-time position Jan. 1.

The Rev. George Freeman, the council's chief executive, said Bolleter was chosen for the position "because of his wide ecumenical experience in Europe," depth of knowledge about the church and linguistic skills.

As bishop, he oversaw United Methodists in France, Switzerland, Austria, Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary and all the Balkan states, along with Tunisia and Algeria.

Freeman expects the bishop "will help to interpret to the council what's happening in the ecumenical movement" and explain the council's positions and programs to others. "We are very excited to have him in this position and look forward to the way that our participation in the ecumenical life will expand under his leadership," he added.

In March, Bolleter was honored by the Republic of Austria for being a "bridge builder" in Europe, particularly for his ability to build connections with Eastern European nations.

Bolleter, who grew up in Zurich, was ordained an elder in 1969 and elected bishop in 1989. He lives in Aarau, Switzerland, about halfway between Zurich and Geneva, to be closer to his three children.

He told United Methodist News Service that he will represent the council at specific ecumenical events, such as central committee meetings of the World Council of Churches and meetings of the World Lutheran Federation and Reformed Alliance. He said he "will help to interpret the World Methodist Council's views to the other congregational families."

Interfaith issues also are a concern. "I think we have been awakened in Europe to the presence of Muslims in our societies," Bolleter explained. This presence requires dialogue not only at the state and organizational levels but also at the local level, he said. "We have to see the people, to visit with the people, to be more open to share our different views and our different cultural backgrounds."

Protestants in Europe, he said, have developed their own patchwork religious life. Although many identify themselves as Christian, they are not active in the faith. "The churches are in a situation where they have to prove they can really serve the people," he noted.

Bolleter said he will work closely with the Rev. Robert Gribben of Australia, the new chairperson of the council's ecumenics and dialogue committee. One of his concerns is that "the voices of Protestants from the South" be heard by European Protestants.

The bishop also will continue to have some United Methodist obligations. His successor, Bishop Patrick Streiff, has asked him, at present, to continue oversight of United Methodist congregations in Croatia and Albania, according to Bolleter. "These are situations where we have new church development, and many new things are on the move," he said.

*Bloom is a United Methodist News Service news writer based in New York.

Finees Flores, a leader in Hispanic ministries, dies at 78

By United Methodist News Service

The Rev. Finees Flores Jr., 78, former editor of el Intérprete magazine and an influential figure in the United Methodist Church's Hispanic ministries, died Nov. 18 at his home in San Antonio, after a long struggle with cancer.

He was editor of el Intérprete from 1973 to 1986, guiding the magazine from United Methodist Communications' Evanston, Ill., office. He took the reins following an interruption in the publication, which had been published as el Intérprete in Puerto Rico from 1969 to 1971. During his leadership, the magazine became one of the first Spanish resources to reach the United Methodist Spanish-speaking population in the United States and Puerto Rico.

"He was an advocate for the Hispanic/Latino causes in the church," said the Rev. Yolanda Pupo-Ortiz, a teacher at the Academy of Spiritual Formation and former staff executive at the United Methodist Commission on Religion and Race. "He will be remembered for his passionate work in social justice issues as he worked incessantly for the poor and the disenfranchised. As a pastor, he never remained within the four walls of his church. He was out doing his work in the community and mentoring new pastors."

Flores helped the United Methodist Church develop its Hispanic ministries. In 1979, he was one of the organizers of the first Consulta Nacional of MARCHA (Metodistas Asociados Representando la Causa Hispano/Latino Americana), the denomination's Hispanic caucus, according to Bilha Alegría, Flores' former editorial assistant and currently a staff member of InfoServ at United Methodist Communications.

Flores was a founder of the Local Pastor School in Spanish - currently el Curso de Estudio (Course of Study) - at Garrett- Evangelical Theological Seminary in Evanston, Ill., Pupo-Ortiz said. The Rev. Guillermo Debrot was a cofounder with Flores.

The school began with Hispanic students from the North Central Jurisdiction and eventually incorporated students from Puerto Rico, the Northeastern Jurisdiction and Cuba, said the Rev. Julio Gomez, a former MARCHA executive director and a retired pastor in the Greater New Jersey Annual Conference.

"Finees Flores was a leader of the Hispanic people and for the Hispanic people," Gomez said.
When he died, Flores was a member of Oxford United Methodist Church in San Antonio. He was an active hospital chaplain and also the minister-in-charge of Monte Sinai United Methodist Church. During his career, he was an elder in the church's Northern Illinois Conference and was also appointed to serve in the Rio Grande Conference.

Flores received his bachelor of arts degree in religion and philosophy from Northern Baptist College, Chicago, and his master of divinity degree from Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary. He received a doctorate in ministry from McCormick Theological Seminary in Chicago.

He served the church at the annual conference, jurisdictional and general church levels. He was a General Conference delegate in 1976, 1984 and 1988, and he served on the General Council of Finance and Administration from 1988 to 1992.

A memorial service was held Nov. 22 at Oxford United Methodist Church. The Rev. James Galloway-Edgar and Bishop Joel N. Martínez officiated. A graveside service was held Nov. 24 at Ft. Sam Houston National Cemetery, with full military honors. Flores had served in the U.S. Navy.

Survivors include his wife Elda; son and daughter-in-law Steven Flores and Leica of San Antonio; daughter Deborah Hernandez of San Antonio; brother and sister-in-law Frank Flores and Charlotte of Chicago; and four grandchildren.

News media contact: Amanda Bachus, Nashville, Tenn., (615) 742-5470 or newsdesk@umcom.org.

Moscow bishop sees no impact so far from new Nongovernmental Organizations law

A UMNS Report By Linda Bloom*

Concern has been raised over whether a new law in Russia will have an impact on religious organizations there.

According to Forum 18 News Service, which focuses on issues of religious freedom, religious organizations could be affected by amendments to several laws, signed by President Vladimir Putin last January, that were meant to pertain to social and non-commercial entities.

The Federal Registration Service is requiring religious groups to submit the first annual accounts of their activity by next April, the news service reported. Official forms seek detailed information on events, meetings, projects and governing bodies as well as details on income and financial aid received.

But United Methodist Bishop Hans Växby of Moscow said he doesn't expect the new law to have a direct effect because the United Methodist Church is registered under the Law of Religious Freedom, not the Law of Nongovernmental Organizations.

He noted that while some have said the new NGO law would supersede the religious freedom law and that its reporting requirements could be applied to religious groups, "we haven't seen anything of that. As religious organizations, our local churches already submit an annual report to the local representatives of the Ministry of Justice. I imagine that for local churches without a denominational organization, the case is different."

Methodism was re-established in the former Soviet Union in the early 1990s. The denomination's Eurasia Conference was established in 1997 and now includes five annual (regional) conferences. The Russia Initiative, sponsored by the United Methodist Board of Global Ministries, is a partnership among annual conferences, congregations and institutions aimed at church growth and development in the region.

Växby conceded that Protestant churches often are regarded with suspicion in Russia and sometimes referred to as "sects." Most Russians still consider themselves as Orthodox even if they have no participation in the church.

"These things, in combination with a strong nationalistic mood, sometimes make local governments find ways to make it difficult for Protestant churches," he said. "There are political groups who would like to see the Russian Orthodox Church be the one and only church in their region and use their influence in that direction."

Such an attitude, Växby stressed, does not come from the Russian Orthodox Church itself. "On the contrary, we recently experienced generous help from the Orthodox Church and deep Christian spirit in a difficult property case in the Volga District," he added.

"All things considered, I would say that our church is protected by the law, not threatened by it," Växby said.

*Bloom is a United Methodist News Service news writer based in New York.

Survey to help shape 'future of urban ministry'

A UMNS Report By Linda Bloom*

Ten years ago, the United Methodist Church adopted a strategy called "Holy Boldness" to shape the denomination's ministry in urban areas of the United States.

Now, as United Methodists prepare for the meeting of the 2008 General Conference, their top legislative body, that plan is being evaluated and revised.

To assist in the process, a survey, "Shaping the Future of Urban Ministry," is being conducted by the Office of Urban Ministry, United Methodist Board of Global Ministries, and the related National Urban Strategy Council.

The questionnaire can be found at http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.asp?u=375832674837 through Jan. 31. Concerns raised at a luncheon during the denomination's 2006 International Clergywomen's Consultation last August in Chicago showed the need for such a survey, according to Diane Johnson, staff executive for the Office of Urban Ministry.

Johnson provided support for the Rev. Karen Vannoy, pastor of Travis Park United Methodist Church in San Antonio, who convened the luncheon for some 90 clergywomen. Bishop Janice R. Huie, president of the denomination's Council of Bishops, led the discussion and expressed her own lack of experience with urban ministry, Johnson said.

Other women agreed, asking for more diversity in the resources available for urban ministries; a focus on the legacy of racism and classism; better training for urban churches, particularly to work with inner city youth; an emphasis on lay leadership and the possibility of lay missionaries; attention to issues of urban decline and gentrification and other efforts to focus on urban needs and concerns.

Reviewing the comments, Johnson said she found "the need for more information, more networking, and more how-to steps." She also sees an opportunity to connect with United Methodists outside the United States who are dealing with urban concerns.

One of the issues raised as the Holy Boldness plan is revised is what the term "urban" actually means, she added. While the United Methodist Book of Discipline defines an urban population as 50,000 people or more, such groupings of population can now be found even in formerly rural areas as suburbs expand into "exurbs," defined as regions lying beyond the suburbs of a city.

The focus of the Office of Urban Ministry, she said, remains on downtown urban areas and first-ring suburbs.

Johnson's office and the National Urban Strategy Council collaborated with the United Methodist Board of Discipleship to create the survey. As of late November, about 400 responses had been received, she reported. A tabulation of responses is expected in February.

The survey collects geographic data and asks "a broad range of questions" about the types of ministries being offered by local churches, districts and annual (regional) conferences and what their needs are, particularly in terms of resourcing and networking through the denomination. Respondents have opportunities to comment throughout the survey and Johnson has found that, "in some instances, people are just happy to vent."

In addition to the online survey for clergy and laity, a survey aimed at United Methodist bishops will be sent out in January, probably by mail. A third survey is designed for the three seminaries cooperating with the Office of Urban Ministry and the council.

The research, including survey results, will provide a revised and refined urban ministry plan tentatively called "Holy Boldness: Pathways to Transformation" (referred to as "Transformation" in the survey.)

According to Johnson, the new plan will focus more on the "how-tos" of urban ministries and include a manual to assist churches, districts and conferences. She can be contacted via email at dhjohnson@gbgm-umc.org for more information.

*Bloom is a United Methodist News Service news writer based in New York.

World Council of Churches leader visits China, Taiwan

A UMNS Report By Linda Bloom*

In a recent visit to China, the chief executive of the World Council of Churches praised the work of Christians there and discussed the role of religion in building a "harmonious society" with government officials.

"If China wants to be the kind of global player that it is clearly becoming, then there are norms and standards (in terms of religious freedom) which will be expected of its government, and I think they are aware of this," said the Rev. Samuel Kobia, a Methodist from Kenya, during a press conference in China.

The Nov. 15-22 visit, Kobia's first in his role as WCC leader, included stops in Shanghai, Nanjing, Beijing and Xi'an. Kobia and his delegation then traveled to Taiwan for a Nov. 23-26 visit at the invitation of the Presbyterian Church of Taiwan, a WCC member.

The Rev. Larry Pickens, chief executive of the United Methodist Commission on Christian Unity and Interreligious Concerns, called the visit of the WCC delegation to China and Taiwan "very significant."

"It is hard to determine the number of Christians living in China, but it is clear that Christianity is a growing faith and continues to experience tension within what is still a totalitarian regime," Pickens added. "The World Council of Churches can play a vital role in regulating this tension by providing its ongoing witness and voice of justice in the region."

Post-denominational church
Diane Allen, who directs the United Methodist China Program for the denomination's Board of Global Ministries, said the Protestant churches in China have been guided by a "three-self" policy - emphasizing self-support, self-government and self-evangelization - for nearly six decades.

"The China Christian Council has always been keen to point out that, as Christians in China find their own way forward in theology, works, worship, language-that is, living out the Christian faith as they experience it-'self-isolation' is not, and never was, a criteria for church and spiritual development," she told United Methodist News Service.

Kobia's visit, along with visits from other Christian groups worldwide, reinforces the model "of equality, mutuality, partnership and equal exchange," Allen added.

During a dinner hosted by the Christian China Council and Three-Self Patriotic Movement in their new headquarters at the historic "Red Brick" Holy Trinity Church on Shanghai's Jinjiang Road, Kobia noted that the Chinese church represents "something unique" to the ecumenical movement. "As a post-denominational church, you are in a class of your own, and we want to learn more from you," he said.

"Though the Chinese culture is renowned for its ancient history, now when we think about Chinese Christians, we think about the future, because more and more Christians are realizing that if we are to live the prayer of Jesus Christ that all should be one, then we need to be post-denominational in character," Kobia said.

Meeting with leaders
Some 16 million Chinese today are members of congregations related to the Christian China Council, compared to 700,000 Christians living in China in 1949. The council has 18 seminaries and Bible schools and about 2,700 ordained pastors and associate pastors.

Kobia met with Bishop K.H. Ting at his residence in Nanjing and saluted his contributions to Christianity in China, to the WCC and to the ecumenical movement as a whole. Ting is the Christian China Council's honorary president and honorary chairman of the Three-Self Patriotic Movement.

Ting and other Christian leaders started the Amity Foundation in 1985, which continues to work in the areas of education, rural development, health care, social welfare and gender development. The Amity Printing Press, a joint venture with United Bible Societies, has printed 42 million Bibles in Chinese since 1986.

"We believe in what you do," Kobia said in response to a briefing in Nanjing on the foundation's work. "You have been a very effective instrument in helping churches in China see that what is preached is translated into the real lives of people."

When he met with Ye Xiaowen, China's minister of religious affairs, Kobia asked how many Christians and believers of other faiths lived in China, pointing to the difficulty of obtaining accurate statistics. Ye told the WCC delegation that the government would conduct a census of religious believers, according to international standards, in the near future.

Kobia also met in Beijing with leaders representing the Islam, Catholic, Taoist and Buddhist faiths.

Encouraging cooperation
During a Nov. 21 press conference, Kobia said he was impressed with the growth of Christian communities in China and noted that "it is in the best interests of the government to actually expand the space for the practice of religion." He encouraged the government to ensure wider participation of religious people in its vision of a "harmonious society."

Allen pointed out that Chinese leaders "are aware of a general lack of ideological underpinning and social morality" to the focus on economic growth during the last 30 years. "The government has realized that some basic religious tenets, also inherent in Christianity, are some they'd like to encourage amongst its entire people - honesty, integrity, a respect for elders, volunteer work, charitable giving.

"The welcoming of the Rev. Kobia by high-ranking leaders in the Chinese government is a definite signal that China is serious about encouraging religious cooperation within its national goals," Allen said.

Kobia's visit occurred during "exciting times" for Christians in China. "There is will, energy, ability, and availability for all kinds of life-affirming involvement within Chinese society," she explained.

A signal to Taiwan
In Taiwan, Kobia and his delegation met with faculty and students at Taiwan Theological College and Seminary, visited urban and rural ministries for indigenous peoples, stopped by the Presbyterian General Assembly office, and were guests at a reception attended by various Protestant leaders.

Kobia's arrival was "a signal to people in Taiwan that the World Council of Churches stands with them," according to Pickens, who visited the ecumenical leadership of the Presbyterian Church there earlier this year. "This is an important message because Christians and other people of faith oftentimes feel abandoned by the international community."

Other members of the WCC delegation included the Rev. Tyrone Pitts, chief executive, Progressive National Baptist Convention, USA; the Rev. Seong-Won Park, Presbyterian Church of Korea, South Korea; the Rev. Gabriel Papanicolaou, ecumenical officer, Church of Greece; and the Rev. Mathews George Chunakara, WCC Asia secretary.

*Bloom is a United Methodist News Service news writer based in New York. The World Council of Churches contributed to this report.

AIDS takes high toll among African-American women

A UMNS Report By Kathy L. Gilbert*

Men "on the down low" are turning marriage into a risk factor for contracting HIV/AIDS.

The term "on the down low" refers to men who are having sex with other men but keeping it a secret, often from their wives or girlfriends, said Jane Pernotto Ehrman, a national health consultant for the United Methodist Board of Global Ministries.

The practice is especially high among African-American men because it is "absolutely not OK to be homosexual" in the black culture, she added.

The secret is killing African-American women at an alarming rate. Statistics show AIDS is ranked among the top three causes of death for African-American women ages 35-44.

"Women are paying a mighty big price in this AIDS pandemic because many times they are the innocent victims," said Linda Bales, director of the Louise and Hugh Moore Population Project of the United Methodist Board of Church and Society.

"In the U.S. as well as in sub-Saharan Africa and other regions, women contract the HIV/AIDS virus from their husbands who have had sex outside the marriage," she said. "Sad to say, being married is a risk factor for AIDS."

HIV/AIDS among black women is three times higher than among Latino women and 18 times higher than among white women, Ehrman said. "Sixty-eight percent of all new HIV cases are black women - 75 percent of whom contracted the disease from heterosexual sex. These women are your everyday women, wives and mothers."

High rate among youth
HIV/AIDS is also increasing among young people. Ehrman quoted statistics that show youth and young adults between the ages of 13 to 25 years are contracting HIV at a rate of two every hour.

Another alarming fact is that an estimated 250,000 youth are unaware they are infected with HIV. By the 12th grade, 65 percent of American youths have become sexually active, and 1 in 5 has had four or more sexual partners.

"According to the surgeon general, the HIV virus can be in the body up to 12 years without having symptoms," Bales said. "The ramifications of this fact are enormous and can point to the importance of AIDS testing. If individuals know their status they would be able to make informed decisions. If people don't know they are infected, precautions go out the window. Churches can work in partnership with health officials by serving as places for testing."

The church's responsibility
Ehrman and Bales said the church needs to pay attention to this "human issue" and speak out about it from the pulpit.

"The church has a major role to play in stemming the tide of HIV/AIDS. It is vital for every congregation to sponsor sessions for young people on comprehensive sex education that includes a strong dose of AIDS information," Bales said.

"If the church neglects its faith-based educational role, the church is complicit in the spread of this disease," she added.

It's not about judgment but education, according to Ehrman, who cautioned that the subject needs to be approached with compassion.

"If you approach it from (the standpoint that) people on the down low are bad, or make judgments about a person's sexuality and how that fits biblically, then you miss the whole point," she said.

Ehrman recently talked about these issues at a workshop, "HIV/AIDS and the Church: A Call to Action," during the National Congregational Health Ministries Conference held in October in Memphis, Tenn. She also has conducted the workshop in her United Methodist district in Cleveland, Ind.

The program educates the church community about these issues. In the workshop, she explains what HIV is and how it differs from AIDS. She also talks about how the disease is transmitted, prevention and who is at risk. "It is done with frankness so that nobody is talking in code about anatomy or different risk factors," she said.

Pastors need to know how to talk about HIV/AIDS from the pulpit and how to handle the fallout from people who may be upset about hearing a pastor talk about the issue. "In the context of a sermon it needs to be looked at through Christ's eyes of love, compassion and acceptance," Ehrman said.

*Gilbert is a United Methodist News Service news writer based in Nashville, Tenn.

Report cites positive signs amid rising HIV/AIDS statistics

A UMNS Report By Linda Bloom*

Programs to prevent HIV/AIDS get better results when they target the people most at risk and make adaptations as the course of the epidemic changes.

That's one of the conclusions from the 2006 AIDS Epidemic Update, published by the Joint United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS and the World Health Organization.

Although the infection rate continues to grow - even in some countries where it had previously declined or remained stable - the report noted some positive signs, such as the decline in HIV prevalence among young people in a number of African countries.

Dec. 1 is World AIDS Day, and the United Methodist Church's top legislative body, the General Conference, encourages church members to observe it through prayer and action.

The United Methodist Social Principles states that individuals living with HIV/AIDS must be "treated with dignity and respect" and have rights to employment, medical care, public education and full participation in the church. "We urge the church to be actively involved in the prevention of the spread of AIDS by providing educational opportunities to the congregation and the community."

According to figures from the 2006 update, released Nov. 21, an estimated 39.5 million people are living with HIV. Southern Africa "remains the epicenter of the global HIV epidemic," with 32 percent of those infected living in the sub-region and 34 percent of AIDS-related deaths occurring there.

In fact, 65 percent of the 4.3 million new infections in 2006 occurred in sub-Saharan Africa, but significant increases also were seen in the infection rates in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. Some 2.9 million people have died of AIDS-related illnesses in 2006.

The update reports that 1.7 million people are living with HIV/AIDS in Eastern Europe and Central Asia, where the infection rate has seen a 20-fold increase in less than a decade. Most of the 15- to 24-year-olds living with the disease in the region are in the Russian Federation and the Ukraine. They make up nearly one-third of the new infections. Dirty needles are the prime mode of HIV transmission.

Calling these statistics "numbers without tears," the Rev. Donald Messer, executive director of the Center for the Church and Global AIDS, said the challenge is to have United Methodists and others "feel" the facts.

"When I think of the global AIDS pandemic, I don't respond to abstract figures but to human faces," Messer, the former president of Iliff School of Theology in Denver, told United Methodist News Service.

"I remember the sobbing mothers and wives that embraced me in sorrow at an AIDS hospital a few weeks ago in India. Likewise, I recall those prisoners with AIDS that knelt in front of me and begged for us to pray together. And I see those little children who are dying of AIDS because the world refuses to provide them medicine."

Focusing on prevention
The UNAIDS/WHO report suggests that increased HIV prevention programs aimed at reaching those most at risk are having an effect. As young people have delayed becoming sexually active, taken few sexual partners and increased the use of condoms, declines in HIV infection between 2000 and 2005 have been seen in Botswana, Burundi, Cote d'Ivoire, Kenya, Malawi, Rwanda, Tanzania and Zimbabwe.

Prevention programs specifically targeting sex workers and IV drug users seem to have had an effect in some regions of China. Infection among drug injectors in Portugal dropped by almost a third between 2001 and 2005 after special prevention programs were started.

But in several regions, including Latin America, the Caribbean, the Middle East and North Africa, people at highest risk often aren't reached by HIV prevention and treatment programs because not enough is known about their situations, according to the AIDS Epidemic Update. Knowledge about safe sex and HIV also remains low in many countries.

Improving prevention strategies in 125 low- and middle-income countries "would avert an estimated 28 million new infections between 2005 and 2015," the report said. That would save $24 billion in associated treatment costs.

"Once United Methodists begin to feel the facts of the global AIDS pandemic, I am confident that every pastor will preach an Advent sermon related to World AIDS Day and every layperson will speak out against stigma and discrimination," Messer said.

At that point, he added, the United Methodist Global AIDS Fund "will easily surpass its $8 million goal."

The fund is aiming to raise $1 per United Methodist in the United States, or about $8 million. The United Methodist Global AIDS Fund is an Advance Special of the United Methodist Church, #982345. Write that number on the memo line of a check and drop it in the offering plate of a local church. Credit-card donations may be made by calling (800) 554-8583.

*Bloom is a United Methodist News Service news writer based in New York.

God's call comes in different ways, clergy tell young people

By Vicki Brown*

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (UMNS) - Ordained clergy told their personal stories of answering God's call to 525 young people attending EXPLORATION 2006.

The annual event, sponsored by the United Methodist Board of Higher Education and Ministry, invites young people to explore whether God is calling them to ordained ministry in the United Methodist Church.

More than 300 high school seniors and young adults from 42 states stepped forward Nov. 18 to pray with elders, deacons, local pastors, chaplains, and campus ministers in a commitment service. At the end of the night, 198 youth and young adults signed commitment cards indicating their definite interest in ordained ministry.

"It's New Year's Eve at Times Square for the United Methodist Church," said the Rev. Peggy Johnson, pastor of Christ United Methodist Church of the Deaf in Baltimore. Johnson, one of two American Sign Language interpreters, said EXPLORATION is about the future of the church and she would not miss it. "I would crawl on glass across England to be here."

The Rev. Jerome King Del Pino, top executive of the Board of Higher Education and Ministry, welcomed young people to the Nov. 17-19 event, telling them they are already considered leaders in the church.

"You are here to struggle with the idea that you might someday speak for God. You are here to dive in and make waves as you endeavor to discern, 'What is my path? What am I to do with my life?'" Del Pino said.

The Rev. Telley Gadson spoke of hearing God's call as a teenager. "But I was going to law school. I advised God of my plan to preach during the weekend and be a lawyer during the week," she said. "God laughs when you tell God you have a plan."

Then, Gadson heard the late Bishop Cornelius Henderson preach at an EXPLORATION event. "It was as if God was asking me, 'Is my calling nothing to you?'" she said.

After that, Gadson said she got the "true wireless communication," the one that "takes you by hand and calls you by name."

"This wireless communication that offers the best plan - you don't have to wait until 7 p.m. to talk for free. You've got to listen above the noise, listen above the clutter that would prevent you from hearing God. I can hear him now," said Gadson, pastor of St. Mark United Methodist Church in Sumter, S.C.

'More of a realization'
Young people attending the event, high school seniors to age 24, said hearing the stories, both in the main worship and plenary session and during workshops and small group sessions, was helpful in clarifying what God was telling them to do.

Matt Benton of Springfield, Va., was struck by how the call stories he heard never started with a single moment. "They started with background. The calls weren't really a burning bush, but more of a realization. That kind of made me start to look back at my own life."

"When they started their stories, it sounded like they were talking about me. They were active in youth group ... had spoken in church a few times. That's what I did. They felt at home in the church and were called to seek a vocation in church. When I meditate on that, I felt the same way," Benton said.

The Rev. Meg Lassiat, the board's director of student ministries, vocation, and enlistment, said people trying to discern God's call often find it is hard to meet others struggling with the same questions.

"EXPLORATION gives youth and young adults the opportunity to meet others who are listening for how God is calling and how they can respond to that call," she said.

"Knowing that there are young adults from around the country and meeting people who are willing to support young people in their discernment process is very empowering for those who want to say 'yes' to God's call," Lassiat said. "The connections made at EXPLORATION can provide strength and support throughout a young person's discernment and candidacy process."

She stressed the crucial need for young clergy in the United Methodist Church. "For youth and young adults to gather together for one purpose and for the rest of the denomination to witness these participants' commitment shows us that there is excitement in today's church and much anticipation about the next generation of deacons and elders. I look forward to seeing how these students develop over the next few years," Lassiat said.

God kept calling
The Rev. John Miyahara, an elder in the Rocky Mountain Annual Conference and campus minister at United Methodist-related Dickinson College, Carlisle, Pa., spoke of fighting the call for nine years.

"God just kept calling," he said.

First, Miyahara told how as a child he was watching an episode of the television series "Mission Impossible" in which one of the main characters thought a room was bugged.

"I thought maybe the KGB (Soviet secret police) were bugging my room, so I wandered around tapping the walls. Then, just to make sure, I picked up a hammer and smashed a hole in that wall," Miyahara said. About that time, he realized no one had bugged the room, and his parents were not going to be happy about the hole in the wall.

"I had this leaflet from our church with Scripture that was just the right size, so I taped it over the hole. Then God used that Scripture to teach me," he said.

God called again when his grandfather told Miyahara how he wanted to become a preacher, but felt he couldn't do it because he had a family and it was during the Depression. Later, a camp counselor asked Miyahara if God might be calling him to ministry.

"It freaked me out," Miyahara said. He said he wanted to go to Stanford and make a lot of money and buy a BMW. "I finished college and applied to seminary and withdrew." Finally, he was driving down the highway one day and could resist the call no longer. "OK, God, I'll do this, but you have to do it with me," he said.

"All of our calls are different; all of our calls are important," he said. He described how his own ministry has included urban churches, military chaplaincy, and now campus ministry.

"We are making waves around the world for his kingdom," he said. "Is God calling you? What steps are you taking? Tonight we challenge you to take that call seriously, to listen. If you are called, step out on faith."

*Brown is an associate editor and writer in the Office of Interpretation, United Methodist Board of Higher Education and Ministry.