Top court upholds transgender pastor’s appointment

The United Methodist Judicial Council ruled that the Rev. Drew Phoenix, a transgender pastor in Baltimore, can continue to serve as a clergy member in good standing. A UMNS file photo courtesy of the Baltimore-Washington Annual Conference.

By Neill Caldwell*
Oct. 30, 2007
SAN FRANCISCO (UMNS)

The United Methodist Church’s supreme court has upheld a bishop’s decision that a pastor who changed gender from female to male remains eligible to serve the church.

In combining two separate docket items related to the Rev. Drew Phoenix, pastor at St. John’s United Methodist Church in Baltimore, the Judicial Council stated that it was not ruling on whether changing gender is a chargeable offense or violates minimum standards set by the church’s legislative body, the General Conference. Rather, the court said "a clergyperson’s standing cannot be terminated without administrative or juridical action having occurred and all fair process being accorded."

"The adjective (in this case, 'transgender') placed in front of the noun 'clergyperson' does not matter," the court states in Decision 1074. "What matters is that clergypersons, once ordained and admitted to membership in full connection, cannot have that standing changed without being accorded fair process."

Because Phoenix is a clergy member in good standing, the ruling means Phoenix will continue to serve his church. But the subject of whether transgender clergy are eligible for appointment is likely to be among issues debated when the church’s General Conference convenes next April in Fort Worth, Texas. The United Methodist Church bars practicing homosexuals from being ordained but has nothing in its polity about transgender persons.

In other decisions related to sexuality issues, the council ruled that a Minnesota Annual Conference plan for providing health benefits for domestic partners does not violate the church’s Book of Discipline.

The council would not take jurisdiction in challenges to three Northern Illinois Annual Conference resolutions affirming inclusiveness in the church. The council also remanded a case questioning whether Western North Carolina Annual Conference funds were being used to promote homosexuality. It upheld a bishop’s decision in the Pacific Northwest Annual Conference that two campus ministry groups receiving conference funds were not part of any network that promotes homosexuality.

Notable absence
The Judicial Council meeting also was notable for the absence of its president, Dr. Jim Holsinger. As President George W. Bush’s nominee for U.S. surgeon general, Holsinger said his participation could become an "unnecessary and unproductive distraction" to the court's proceedings.

Holsinger is awaiting confirmation as the country's top doctor as the U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee awaits answers to follow-up questions posed to him in August on his views on homosexuality. His nomination has drawn opposition from gay rights groups, among others.

In a statement issued just before the start of the meeting, Holsinger said the "work of the council is too important in the life of The United Methodist Church to have its work distracted. While I remain dedicated to fulfilling the role to which I was elected, I believe this is a time in which my service to the Council can best be demonstrated by my absence."

Sexuality-related cases
During the 2007 executive clergy session of the Baltimore-Washington Annual Conference, a change of name was recorded for Phoenix, from the Rev. Ann Gordon, who was ordained in 1989 and had led the St. John’s congregation for five years. Bishop John R. Schol confirmed that, following surgery and hormone therapy, the pastor had changed gender and adopted a new name.

Two requests were made for a bishop’s decision of law: one on a technical question about how to categorize the pastor’s name change for the conference’s Board of Ordained Ministry, and the other on whether a transgender person is eligible for appointment in The United Methodist Church. Schol said there is nothing in the church’s polity that prevents a transgender person from serving as a pastor, and that the name change was handled correctly.

All decisions of law made by a bishop are automatically sent to the Judicial Council for review, as required by the Book of Discipline. While combining the two questions into one ruling, the Judicial Council affirmed both of Schol's decisions. A clergyperson in good standing is "required to be continued under appointment," the council ruled. In regard to the name change, the council said all name changes "regardless of the reason … are to be placed in minute question 91."

In the Minnesota domestic partner benefits case, the council ruled the plan did not violate Discipline paragraphs listed in the request for a decision because no United Methodist Church funds were being used to supply the benefits. The plan offers benefits to lay employees of the conference and their families, including domestic partners, and the cost of the health care coverage is borne by the employee.

In the question on whether money from the Western North Carolina Conference budget was being used to promote homosexuality through the North Carolina Council of Churches and by the campus ministry at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, the council ruled that it is up to the individual conferences to determine whether money is being used in violation of Paragraph 612.19 of the Book of Discipline, which blocks funds from being spent in such a manner. The decision directs the conference’s Council for Finance and Administration to perform its own investigation and report to the council within 60 days.

In the Pacific Northwest Annual Conference decision, the council upheld the bishop’s decision that the conference’s Council for Finance and Administration had properly investigated two ministries at the University of Washington and the University of Puget Sound and determined that they were not affiliated with groups promoting homosexuality.

In the Northern Illinois Annual Conference item, the council said it did not have jurisdiction because the three resolutions were not debated separately but were handled together as part of the consent calendar. All three were related to the inclusiveness of the church and in response to the Judicial Council’s earlier Decision 1032, which supported the actions of a pastor who blocked an openly gay man from joining the church.

Other issues
The council ruled that candidates for the church’s General Conference and jurisdictional conferences cannot be compelled to disclose their view on controversial issues.

In Decision 1083, the council declared a motion adopted by the Memphis Annual Conference unconstitutional because it directed the annual conference to create a survey for prospective candidates. "Any attempt on the part of an Annual Conference to add to or change the procedures for the election of clergy or lay members to General or Jurisdictional conference is unconstitutional," the council ruled. The decision noted that candidates can choose to ignore or respond to surveys from various caucus group.

The council also rejected as unconstitutional a new policy from the Memphis Annual Conference titled "Identifying and Strengthening Effective Clergy Leadership." The strongly worded ruling lists seven points in which the policy does not conform with the Book of Discipline, including that the "twelve-month whirlwind process … suggests that the real purpose of the proposal is to weed out ineffective clergy rather than developing the skills and abilities which would enable them to become effective."

In a review of a bishop’s decision of law in the Western Pennsylvania Conference on a report titled "Faithful, Effective and Fruitful Clergy: A Working Definition" — and the relation of that report to a proposed discontinuance of a probationary member — the Judicial Council ruled that the questions were hypothetical because the conference did not adopt such a report in final form. The questions related to the effort to discontinue the pastor were moot once the clergy person requests and is granted a voluntary leave of absence, the council said.

In other rulings, the Judicial Council:
.Affirmed a bishop’s decision of law that the plan of organization for the Baltimore-Washington Annual Conference is constitutional;
.Determined there is no conflict in the voting requirements of Disciplinary Paragraphs 319.2 and 663.6, saying a simple majority vote is all that is required for a conference board of ordained ministry or clergy session in approving the continuance or discontinuance of a local pastor’s license. Paragraph 663.6, which requires a three-fourths majority vote, applies only to district committees on ordained ministry. The case stemmed from the West Michigan Annual Conference;
.Ruled that questions of law put to the bishop in the Western Pennsylvania Conference were moot and hypothetical because they concerned a first draft of a report that had not yet been approved by the conference. The case also involved actions taken by the conference on the discontinuance of a probationary member, and the council said that such questions are "moot once the clergy person requests and is granted a voluntary leave of absence";
.Said that a bishop’s decision of law in the Iowa Conference regarding a legislative question during the annual conference session was "moot and of no effect because subsequent action deleted the provision that was the subject of the question and decision of law." The final action of the Iowa Annual Conference on a substitute motion was in compliance with the Discipline, the council said;
.Affirmed a bishop’s decision of law in the Illinois-Great Rivers Conference that a question was improper because it did not relate to the business of the annual conference;
.Said that the standing rule of the South Carolina Annual Conference — which delegates the nomination of the conference secretary exclusively to the bishop and cabinet without any input of the annual conference — conflicts with Paragraph 603.7 of the Book of Discipline. The court directed the conference to correct the rule;
.Did not affirm a bishop’s decision of law in the New England Annual Conference since questions were submitted on which a decision of law could not be rendered;
.Would not take jurisdiction in a question regarding a petition from 11 members of the Committee on Nominations of the 2005 Southeastern Jurisdictional Conference because "the record does not indicate that a duly called meeting of the Committee on Nominations was held to authorize the petition."
.Continued a docket item from the California-Nevada Conference on an involuntary leave of absence question because the minutes were not provided in the materials sent to the council.

The council will meet next during the 2008 General Conference, set for April 23-May 2 in Fort Worth. The Judicial Council meets twice a year and is in session throughout each General Conference to respond to requests for rulings that may come from the floor.

During the council’s meeting, clergy and laypeople from across the Bay Area gathered at the Hilton Hotel in San Francisco’s Fisherman’s Wharf area where the council convened — for prayer vigils and worship and held a candlelight march. The activities were organized by local participants in the Reconciling Ministries Network, an independent organization favoring participation of people of all sexual orientations and gender identities in The United Methodist Church.

In addition to Holsinger, Judicial Council members Jon Gray and the Rev. Paul Shamwange were absent. Participating instead were the first clergy alternate, the Rev. C. Rex Bevins from the Nebraska Conference, and first lay alternate, Dr. Solomon Christian from the Memphis Conference.

*Caldwell is editor of the Virginia United Methodist Advocate magazine and covers the Judicial Council for United Methodist News Service.

United Methodist home remembers Ohio State coach

A UMNS Report By John Hoban*

Coach Carroll C. Widdoes

Each Saturday during the fall, thousands of Ohio State football fans roar their support for the Buckeyes. Little do they know that some of this Buckeye glory started on the campus of Otterbein Home in Lebanon, Ohio.

Carroll C. Widdoes, a former Ohio state coach, lived at the United Methodist-related home as a youth. Now celebrating its 95th Anniversary, Otterbein Retirement Living Community cared for both youth and the elderly through 1963, when the care switched to focus on older adults. Widdoes died in 1971.

The son of the Rev. and Mrs. Howard W. Widdoes, Carroll and his brothers and sister came to live at Otterbein in 1916. The Widdoes had been missionaries to the Philippines for the Evangelical United Brethren Church, a predecessor denomination of The United Methodist Church, and Carroll was born there in 1903.

For 50 years, hundreds of children lived at Otterbein Lebanon, coming from nearly every Midwestern state. Some were orphans, many were children of one-parent families, others had both parents, but either health or financial reasons prevented the parents from caring for their children.

It was not unusual for Otterbein to receive two, three, four or even eight children from one family. In one instance, 10 Imhoff children were admitted. The Widdoes children were the only children of missionaries to live at Otterbein, initially created to care for missionary children.

Carroll Widdoes attended Lebanon High School and then graduated with a bachelor's degree from Otterbein College in 1926. He worked as a teacher and coach and became director of physical education for the Massillon, Ohio, school system in 1934 as well as an assistant to coach Paul Brown at the high school there.

Brown went to Ohio State University in 1941, taking Widdoes with him. When Brown entered the Navy, Widdoes became interim head coach of the Buckeyes, as everyone expected Brown to return to Columbus after the war.

In 1944, Widdoes led Ohio State to an unbeaten season. The Buckeyes were ranked second in the nation and he was named Coach of the Year by the American Football Coaches Association.

Under his leadership, football player Les Horvath became Ohio State's first Heisman Trophy Winner. In an article written by author/historian David Pietrusza, Horvath said, "I think Carroll Widdoes was a very unusual person. I didn't know at the time in '44 but his parents were prisoners of war in a Japanese camp and he never mentioned it as he coached the team.

"He was not like Paul Brown, he was not a demanding person. He was pretty strict about a lot of things and he was a fundamentalist but he was sort of a shy individual," Horvath continued. "He expected you to do things, but he never embarrassed you by correcting you in front of others. I think he did a fantastic job of coaching our team to an undefeated season."

But Widdoes did not enjoy being in the limelight. After coaching the Buckeyes to a 7-2 season in 1945, he switched positions with assistant coach Paul Bixler and spent the 1946 season as an assistant. Widdoes became head football coach at Ohio University in 1949 and eventually athletic director, staying at that university until his retirement.

While few Otterbein children achieved his national acclaim, the ranks of Otterbein's alumni include teachers and homemakers, military officers and business executives. Otterbein Lebanon Retirement Living Community is probably one of the few retirement communities in the nation with an active alumni association.

A health and human service ministry, Otterbein Homes serves close to 1,700 people, and is related to the East Ohio and West Ohio Conferences of The United Methodist Church.

Otterbein's five retirement communities are located in Lebanon, St. Marys, Cridersville, Pemberville and on the Marblehead Peninsula on Lake Erie. New communities are under construction.

Africa University's chief executive to step down

By Andra Stevens*

Rukudzo Murapa

OLD MUTARE, Zimbabwe (UMNS) -- Rukudzo Murapa is retiring as chief executive of Africa University after almost 10 years of leading the United Methodist-related school.

Murapa's last day of work will be Dec. 31, and he will take a leave of absence until his retirement becomes effective on Feb. 29, 2008.

The vice chancellor said he would not seek to extend his contract when it ends next February. He shared the news with the executive committee of the Africa University Board of Directors at its Oct. 10 meeting in London.

The board will present its interim plan for the governance and operations of the university during its next meeting in late November. The plan will become effective Jan. 1.

Bishop Nkulu Ntanda Ntambo, who serves as chancellor and chairman of the board for the 1,300-student university, expressed gratitude for Murapa's service and for developing a university "from which all African people can take pride."

Ntambo said Murapa "has borne in his heart and proven through his efforts that he has a profound love for this university." He called Murapa a man of vision.

"He must be thanked for his deep and sound sense of diplomacy, which has largely profited the university and which has helped to open up contacts with a diverse group of institutions, diplomatic missions, organizations, universities and non-governmental organizations worldwide," said Ntambo.

Growth and diversity
Africa University had only been in existence for six years when Murapa took over day-to-day leadership from the founding vice chancellor, John W. Z. Kurewa, in 1998. At the time, the university had four faculties, 41 faculty members and 600 students. Enrollment has since more than doubled, with a diverse student population from 26 African countries. Its reputation has spread based on its effectiveness at research, training and community engagement.

The growth has come despite economic challenges and political crises in Zimbabwe, which is plagued by food shortages, electrical outages, skyrocketing inflation and more than 80 percent unemployment. "Africa University is surviving, enduring and determined to succeed," Murapa said in a recent interview with United Methodist News Service.

Murapa encouraged faculty and students to work at the community level to solve problems, improve quality of life and bring about sustainable development in Africa. Model initiatives include a broad-based collaboration with the United Movement to End Child Soldiering on rehabilitation, advocacy, support and education for former child soldiers and abductees in northern Uganda.

He also created the Institute of Peace, Leadership and Governance, the first of its kind in Africa. The institute's curriculum relates issues of peace and development to the quality of governance systems and leadership performance in Africa.

'Magnanimous leader'
"It takes a truly magnanimous leader to be able to do this," said Grace Muradzikwa, who first knew Murapa as her professor at Africa University and now serves as secretary of the board. "His contributions in developing Africa University will be felt well into the next millennium."

The Rev. Jerome King Del Pino, top executive at the United Methodist Board of Higher Education and Ministry, said Murapa "has made significant contributions that have established a strong foundation for the present and future development of Africa University."

He said the board and its staff and the faculty, staff and students at Africa University look to build on Murapa's accomplishments as the university changes leadership.

"I am strongly persuaded that the university's continued development and sustainability will remain a high priority for The United Methodist Church as it extends its global commitment through higher education to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world by developing leaders for the African continent," del Pino said.

*Stevens is the director of public information and public affairs at Africa University.

United Methodist churches among those affected by California fires

The Santiago fire in Orange County, Calif., lights up the night sky on Oct. 23. The blaze is one of many fires threatening thousands of homes in Southern California, resulting in the evacuation of more than 500,000 people. A UMNS photo courtesy of Wikipedia.

By Kathy L. Gilbert*

United Methodist families are among those who have lost homes in the raging wildfires that have consumed large portions of Southern California since Oct. 21.

Two families in the Fallbrook United Methodist Church congregation and three families from Hope United Methodist Church in Rancho Bernardo have lost their homes, according to early reports from the United Methodist San Diego district.

"The good news is that we have heard from all of our pastors and none of them have lost their parsonages," said the Rev. Myron D. Wingfield, superintendent of the San Diego district. "All our church structures and camps are secure."

Wingfield they will continue to monitor Julian and Camp Cedar Glen because they are still in possible danger from the fires.

Pastors and congregations of at least five United Methodist churches are among the more than 500,000 who have been evacuated and two or three families have been waiting out the disaster in Qualcomm Stadium, home of the San Diego Chargers, Wingfield said.

"I spent the morning at Qualcomm Stadium with Rev. Dick George and Rev. Donna Ford of Hope United Methodist Church, Rancho Bernardo," he said. Wingfield said the United Methodist families in the stadium have heard their homes are safe and they have turned their attention to helping other evacuees.

The hot Santa Ana winds that have fueled the fires were beginning to ease by Oct. 23. The fires have destroyed hundreds of acres and homes.

"We have heard comparisons between the fires and Hurricane Katrina," he said. "But that is so unfair. San Diego has the advantage of nice sunny weather and the fire has not obliterated the systems for communication." The response has been quick and easy, he said.

United Methodist Bishop Mary Ann Swenson, Los Angeles area, called upon "the power of our connectional system" to help.

"As fires rage across Southern California, I hear the psalmist proclaiming, 'God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in time of trouble,'" she said. "God is indeed our refuge, but the work of compassion is ours to do: now is the time to step up and 'Be the Church!'"

Swenson said the United Methodist Committee on Relief sent an emergency grant of $10,000 to the California-Pacific Annual (regional) conference for use in the relief/recovery process.

"Your local congregations can participate and make a real difference," she said. "First, I ask that everyone be in prayer: Pray for the firefighters, pray for those who lost homes and businesses, pray for the evacuees, pray for the animals that have been displaced, pray for those whose loved ones are in harm's way, and pray for the leaders who are working on fighting the fires and recovery efforts."

Secondly, she said the best tool of direct relief is money. There are two ways to designate gifts:

1. Gifts designated for the "Bishop's California Fire Appeal" will be used directly and immediately at the district and local level. Make checks payable to the local church and put "Bishop's California Fire Appeal" in the subject line.

2. Gifts given to the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) will go directly to UMCOR and be combined with gifts from across the country for their in-depth and long-term response in the months ahead. Make checks payable to the local church with "Advance Special #901670" (Domestic Disaster Response California Wildfires) in the subject line. Churches are to send corresponding total dollars and descriptions for each of these as appropriate on the monthly remittance form line 23 for Bishop's Appeal and line 28 for UMCOR.

"In addition to an emergency grant to support the conference in its initial efforts, disaster response consultants are at the ready to provide the conference with their presence and guidance as needed," said the Rev. Tom Hazelwood, head of UMCOR's domestic disaster response.

"As always UMCOR offers its prayers and support to those in need," said Sam Dixon, UMCOR's chief executive. "We ask for your generous donations to the domestic disaster response advance as recent emergencies have depleted the funds we use to provide relief and support in disasters such as these."

Wingfield also said the feeling of the United Methodist connection has been a blessing.

"We have the sense that our United Methodist family around the country is keeping us in God's grace. That's a huge comfort at a time like this."

Professional Association of United Methodist Church Secretaries Institute, Candler School of Theology, Atlanta, Georgia, July 20-25, 2008

Sponsored by General Council on Finance and Administration of The United Methodist Church, Nashville, Tennessee

Who should attend?
United Methodist Church Secretaries, Administrative Assistants, General Agency Office Personnel, Episcopal, District and Annual Conference Office Personnel

Why should you attend?
The Institute provides outstanding advanced professional training and enrichment for United Methodist church secretaries from across the denomination. A participant who completes the program and meets the requirements set forth by the General Council on Finance and Administration is eligible to apply for certification as a Professional United Methodist Church Secretary.

How does the church benefit?
The five-day PAUMCS Institute is designed to stimulate professional growth and development of the individual. Participants are introduced to business concepts required for understanding the financial operations of the church as well as relationships with the pastor, church employees and members of the congregation. Studying such concepts with professors selected from a strong business school faculty and other experts encourages secretaries to become better informed and more effective church administrators.

How do other church offices benefit?
The experience of learning with local church secretaries and networking with others in similar office settings provides a broader understanding of the connectional United Methodist Church. Church secretaries learn the functions of district, conference, agency and episcopal offices, while these various office personnel learn about the many responsibilities of a local church secretary. It is a place to see how all members of the church body are in ministry together.

PAUMCS INSTITUTE PROGRAM
July 20 - 25, 2008
.Registration
PAUMCS Certification Orientation
Welcome Dinner
.Understanding Personality (MBTI Assessment), Intro to Group Projects
Taxes and the Church
.Ethics & Confidentiality
Conflict Resolution
.Polity of the Church
Church Diversity
Free Afternoon
.Dollars and Cents of
Office Management
Working Effectively in Groups and Teams
Class Photograph
Graduation Dinner
.Small Group Presentations of Special Projects
Program Wrap-up


PAUMCS Institute Certification Program
Office of Church Ministries Education
Candler School of Theology
Emory University
Atlanta, GA

Why become certified?
Legislation was officially adopted by the 1988 General Conference as follows: "The General Council on Finance and Administration shall have the authority and responsibility to provide guidance and consultation for continuing education of church secretaries, including establishment of training and certification programs, and to provide assistance to the Professional Association of United Methodist Church Secretaries." (2004 Book of Discipline, ¶ 807.19)

Certification recognizes your accomplishment of successfully completing professional training at an established school of business. It enhances your position as a true professional and stimulates the need for continuing education to augment your ministry in the church.

CERTIFICATION ELIGIBILITY
Upon successful completion of the Institute, GCFA staff rep. to PAUMCS will review your application. Following approval, you will be recommended for certification at the GCFA Annual Meeting.

Note: Membership in National PAUMCS req.
Request a membership brochure from:
Cynthia Haralson
Staff Rep. to PAUMCS
GCFA, PO Box 340029
Nashville, TN 37203-0029
( 866-367-4232 x2386 (toll free)
615-369-2374
paumcs@gcfa.org

Class size is limited to 30 participants. Registrations will be honored in the order in which they are received.

PROGRAM FORMAT
The Program begins Sunday, July 20, 2008 with check-in from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. and orientation at 5:00 p.m. program ends approximately at 12:00 Noon on Friday, July 25, 2008. Please do not make plane reservations before 2 p.m. on Friday.

What will it cost?
Registration fee for the 2008 Institute is $300.00*. This includes course materials, a couple of lunches and dinners, and refreshments. Travel, room, additional meals and any other incidentals are the responsibility of each participant.

The registration fee for the Institute may be paid by personal check, money order or church check Payable to GCFA and mailed to the address on this brochure. Registration fee scholarships for the Institute are available on a limited basis by written request.

Where will I stay?
Arrangements have been made with Emory University for air-conditioned dormitory rooms at $38.00* for singles, per day and $30.00* per person for doubles per day. If you plan to stay in the dormitory.

An appealing aspect of the Institute is the opportunity for participants to interact with colleagues from churches across the denomination. The sharing of ideas is a valuable complement to the course material. Staying in Emory dormitory rooms promotes camaraderie and friendships.

Hotels are available as an option to contact on your own. When staying in a hotel there will be a $15 commuter charge for the week by Emory.

COMMENTS FROM THE 2007 INSTITUTE GRADUATES:
“I truly enjoyed myself this week. I have gained a wealth of knowledge and a bunch of new friends.”
Miriam Champion, North Georgia Cnf/Cascade UMC

“Was an experience that every office administration should be required to take.”
Mr. Tanard Hill, Baltimore-Washington Cnf/Asbury UMC

“The relationships I’ve built are beyond price. I thought all presenters were knowledgeable and engaging. I would heartily recommend the PAUMCS Certification Institutes to any person in the related fields of serving the United Methodist Church”.
Gail Kendall, California-Pacific Cnf/Episcopal Office

“A great beginning to becoming better leaders. The classes were overall informative, insightful, and fun.”
Priscilla Wright, Texas Cnf/West District Office

*Fees & Rates are as of October 2007

United Methodists support NCC changes, nominee

By Linda Bloom*

NEW YORK (UMNS) - United Methodist ecumenical leaders are supporting the recent reorganization of the National Council of Churches as a necessary action.
And they are uniformly enthusiastic about the nomination of the Rev. Michael Kinnamon, an ordained minister of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), as the council's new chief executive. The election for general secretary will take place during the Nov. 6-8 NCC General Assembly in Woodbridge, N.J.

The reorganization, which resulted in the elimination of at least 14 staff positions, was approved in late September by the council's governing board.

Although the ecumenical agency is financially stable because of its reserve funds, it had a $1 million-plus deficit during the fiscal year that ended last June and had projected a deficit for the current budget year.

Bishop William B. Oden, ecumenical officer for the United Methodist Council of Bishops and a governing board member, believes the "sizeable staff reduction" was necessary in order to bring the council's budget back in line. "There's really been concern about the NCC living with a deficit," he explained.

"The governing board felt it had no choice but to bring the budget in line with the anticipated income," the bishop added.

The Rev. Larry Pickens, chief executive, United Methodist Commission on Christian Unity and Interreligious Concerns, noted that although the staff cuts were significant, the reorganization reflects the strategic plan of the governing board, of which he also is a member. "It's really going to be something they (the council) will have to live out," he said.

Living within its means
Bishop Melvin Talbert, a former United Methodist ecumenical officer and past NCC president, pointed out that ecumenical agencies often "live on the edge economically" and added that the NCC "has had to learn the hard lesson of living within its means. As long as the supporting churches continue to struggle with their economics, the national council will face that struggle."

While he does not consider the economic struggle to be a sign of a loss of effectiveness or lack of relevance, the staff cuts do signal a change. "You can't expect the remaining people in the national council to do all the work that was traditionally expected of it," Talbert said. "Priorities will have to be set. Some things will continue and some things will not."

Clare Chapman, a United Methodist currently serving as the NCC's acting chief executive, said at the time the reorganization was announced that new staff structure should not be viewed as a sign of insolvency. Despite the recent deficit, the council still has multimillion-dollar reserves. But the governing board made a commitment "to operate on available revenues" and not draw from reserves, she explained.

United Methodist Bishop William Boyd Grove, another former ecumenical officer, recalled the council's budget crisis in 1999 and agreed with that commitment. "While I regret the need for the cuts, I think it was entirely appropriate to make them so we preserve the hard-won financial solvency of the National Council of Churches," he said.

The United Methodist Church is continuing to financially support the NCC, according to Pickens and Oden. During a conference phone call of the denomination's Interdenominational Cooperation Fund committee in early October, committee members agreed to give $100,000 immediately to the council and send another $50,000 at the end of the year as part of its budgeted commitment.

"We wanted to make clear our ongoing support of the council," said Pickens, who added that the committee will request the same funding for the NCC during the 2009-2012 quadrennium as during the current four-year period.

That amounts to $450,000 annually to the NCC from the Interdenominational Cooperation Fund.

Chapman said the council is eager to speak more broadly with United Methodist ecumenical leadership on issues of mutual concern. "We're grateful to have the funds now," she added. "We've asked for a formal dialogue and we hope that will happen in the next month or so."

More support from members
Officials in the United Methodist Church also want more equal budgetary support among the NCC's member communions. United Methodists joined the governing board several years ago, according to Oden, in passing a resolution that set a goal of no single denomination contributing more than 25 percent of the total funding provided by NCC members.

Although the resolution is not a rule, "The United Methodist church is really eager to move toward that goal because we're funding more than 25 percent (from member communions) at this point," he said.

Under the reorganization, now effective Jan. 1, five new staff positions are being created in addition to the general secretary and development director. Those positions are chief operating officer, three program positions and a media specialist. A position for database manager still exists but is not currently staffed.

If affirmed at the General Assembly, Kinnamon will become the Council's ninth general secretary since its beginnings in 1950. He succeeds the Rev. Bob Edgar, a United Methodist pastor who left the council in August to become president and CEO of Common Cause.

Kinnamon, a professor at Eden Theological Seminary in St. Louis since 2000, is a member of the NCC governing board and chairman of its Justice and Advocacy Commission. He led the Consultation on Church Union, which became Churches Uniting in Christ, from 1999 to 2002, was a professor and dean at Lexington, Ky., Theological Seminary and served as executive secretary of the World Council of Churches' Commission on Faith and Order from 1980 to 1983.

An exceptional leader
Oden called Kinnamon a friend and "an exceptional leader in ecumenical concerns. I fully expect him to be confirmed and to lead the council to a new level of effectiveness."

Pickens said he was impressed with Kinnamon's experience within the ecumenical movement and expects him to be "very intentional" about reaching out to the member communions and restoring any strained or broken relationships.

Both Talbert and Grove also expressed their enthusiasm over the nomination. Talbert, who has worked with Kinnamon over the years, noted his "strong passion toward justice" and said he has earned the trust of African-American church leaders.

"Michael is a fine man," he added. "He's a gentle spirit and I think he'll have good relationships with the churches."

Chapman said she is excited about Kinnamon's nomination. "He's been a dynamic leader," she added. "I think he will bring many, many skills to the job and will be a wonderful addition to the staff."

The Rev. Bruce Robbins, former chief executive of the Commission on Christian Unity, noted that Kinnamon is very familiar with the United Methodist Church and served as a director on the commission for four years. "I can't think of anyone better…who understands the nature and relationships of churches in this country," he said.

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

Relationships encourage young clergy hopefuls

A UMNS Report
By Vicki Brown*

Jessica Henry felt called to ordained ministry before she attended EXPLORATION 2006, but the national event solidified her feeling that the call was real. And the support she has gotten from her annual conference since the November 2006 event has been critical, she said.

"I remember the first time I mentioned to my pastor that I was feeling called. He told me I should e-mail the bishop. I thought, 'I'm not e-mailing the bishop, I don't know her,'" the 20-year-old sophomore at Eastern University recalled.
After she signed a commitment card at EXPLORATION 2006 in Jacksonville, Fla., United Methodist Board of Higher Education and Ministry staff sent her name and contact information to her bishop's office and to the chair and registrar of her annual conference's Board of Ordained Ministry.

Henry soon received e-mails from members of the Board of Ordained Ministry of the Central Pennsylvania Conference, offering support, encouragement and expressing joy.

"I think it would have been discouraging if no one had contacted me," she said.
The Rev. Julia Piper, a local pastor in the Central Pennsylvania Conference who said her passion as a pastor is to nurture the call of young people, agrees.

"It's extremely important that they have support. It's important for them to know that they are not alone in discerning and following God's call," she said. Piper, a local pastor who serves two churches, is currently in seminary herself, but volunteers for programs aimed at developing young clergy.

"Our conference has continued to meet in small groups since the EXPLORATION 2006 event. We have had discussions about the difference between the calls of an elder and a deacon and we have had open forums for our participants to share their concerns and questions about the process of seeking ordination," she said. "That allows people from the Board of Ordained Ministry to explain some things to eliminate some of the fear."

Ongoing relationship critical
The Rev. Meg Lassiat, director of student ministries, vocation and enlistment at the board, said EXPLORATION can provide excellent resources as a one-time event, but the ongoing relationship that young adults have with people from their local church communities helps give continual encouragement as they discern how God is calling them to live.

"One of the most important things we've learned is that follow-up at the annual conference and local ministry level is critical to the ongoing engagement of young adults in the discernment and candidacy process," she said. "As we begin preparing for EXPLORATION 2009 in Dallas to be held Nov. 13-15, we hope annual conferences will identify one or two point people who will stay in contact with young adults who are considering God's call in their lives.

"These contact people have the opportunity to build relationships with young adults, address questions and concerns, and make sure they are assimilated smoothly into the candidacy process," Lassiat said.

She encourages each annual conference to name a point person for working to invite and retain young adults in the candidacy process and to e-mail that person's contact information to explore@gbhem.org.

"This will help GBHEM in providing resources and follow-up information as it becomes available," she said.

The North Georgia Conference, which had about 20 people sign commitment cards at EXPLORATION 2006, has tapped those young people as leaders for a discernment event Feb. 1-3, 2008. The Rev. Joe McKenchie, who heads up the event, said that with so few young ministers in The United Methodist Church - one study found just 850 elders were under the age of 35 - developing young clergy is one of the most important things conferences can do.

"Imagine having an individual visit your church and afterward declaring 'I am so eager to grow in my faith!' As a pastor, I would do anything to develop a relationship with that individual," McKenchie said. "In terms of those teens who attended EXPLORATION, we work hard to keep in touch with them and answer all their questions."

He said the conference plans gatherings, meals and events such as "Is God Calling You?" to be held in February at Simpsonwood, Ga. Bishop Lindsey Davis will preach at that event, where 80 young people are expected.

Personal contact
Piper said the EXPLORATION alumni from Central Pennsylvania met together during annual conference and a "God's Calling" event in January, a weekend event that is part of the conference's "Cultivating the Culture of Call" program.

During annual conference, Piper said the students gathered for a luncheon and discussion, then attended the ordination service at annual conference together.

The Rev. Lynn Spence, the chair of the Division of Call and Candidacy in the New York Annual (regional) Conference, said four young people in the annual conference signed commitment cards at EXPLORATION 2006. He contacted them by e-mail immediately to let them know that the Board of Ordained Ministry members applauded their initiative and were open to any questions or comments.

Two of the young people attended a dinner during a training event for camping ministries summer staff, where the group discussed how their summer as a camp counselor might be a part of God's call to ministry.

He said several of the Boards of Ordained Ministry members talked about what it is like to be in set-apart ministry. "We thought the dinner approach worked well," Spence said.

He, too, believes the personal contact with the annual conference is "profoundly important."

"A lot of folks won't act on the call unless they feel some comfort level with the system. If they can put names and faces together, it takes a lot of the anxiety out of it," he said. He said the conference Board of Ordained Ministry is also working with pastors in the students' local churches to make sure there is continued contact.

Spence said, "We want to help them make the connections they need to make and keep them connected."

For more information about discerning or answering God's call to ministry, visit http://www.explorecalling.org/.

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

Bishop Christopher announces retirement

By Paul Black *

Bishop Sharon Brown Christopher has announced she will retire when her third term as episcopal leader of the Illinois Area ends Sept. 1, 2008.

Christopher notified the president of the Council of Bishops by letter that she will seek retired status, concluding a 20-year career as bishop in Minnesota and Illinois.

"My decision is the result of a long, prayerful, intentional discernment that has led to the realization that it, simply put, is time to retire," Christopher said. "In the ordinary time of Charles and my life and in the extraordinary movement of God, it is time."

Christopher could have served another four years as bishop in another episcopal area but chose voluntary retirement.

"I love the work I am about as a bishop. I have never been more fulfilled in ministry or more hopeful for the church and its mission in the world than I am now," she said. "Thus, this decision is not driven by any desire to distance myself from episcopal ministry."

Christopher was chosen by the Council of Bishops to deliver the Episcopal Address at the 2008 United Methodist General Conference, the top legislative assembly for the denomination, which will meet April 23-May 2 in Fort Worth, Texas. She was the first woman to serve as president of the Council of Bishops in 2002 and was named the first person to lead the new Connectional Table in 2004.

The North Central Jurisdiction will now need to set up an election for bishop when delegates gather in Grand Rapids, Mich., July 16-19, 2008.

A conference delegation will begin discernment Oct. 26 around whether to offer an episcopal candidate to the jurisdictional conference. Meeting Sept. 22 - prior to Christopher's announcement - delegation members set the Oct. 26 date to begin discernment, even though it was not certain as to whether there would be a vacancy requiring an election in 2008.

*Black is the editor of The Current, the newspaper for the Illinois Great Rivers Conference.

Commentary: Finding a kingdom in heaven in Manila

Fifth in a series

A UMNS Commentary
By Kathy L. Gilbert*

God sent me to the Philippines twice this summer. I think there was a plan.

Manila, a city of about 11 million people, is jam-packed. Two-lane streets become three, four, five lanes or more as taxis, cars, buses, jeepneys, tricycles and miserable-looking horses pulling heavy carts full of passengers fight for a piece of the road.

As one of the most densely populated places on the planet, there is not enough room or jobs for everyone to scrape together a living to put food on the table every day or a roof over their heads every night.

Families lives in a cemetery where mothers put their infants down for a nap in a discarded laundry basket suspended between tomb stones. Men stand in waist-deep garbage praying for rain as they wash bits of plastic in hopes of selling it for a few pesos.

United Methodist Mary Johnston Hospital, established in 1906 to serve the poor, has not forgotten its mission. Doctors, nurses and administrators take food and medicine to their neighbors in one of the most dangerous communities in the city.

In all of these sad, bad places are United Methodists bringing Christ and hope.

Waves of misery
In July, I was part of a delegation from the United Methodist Board of Global Ministries visiting street children and the poor. In August, I returned as part of a team from the United Methodist Board of Church and Society meeting with human rights advocates. (A second series of stories from that trip will be published in the next few weeks.)

The only place I visited both times was Smokey Mountain, a smoldering, stinking sea of garbage that stretches as far as the eye can see. Hundreds of the poorest of the poor call it home.

Smokey Mountain is one of the last places on earth you would want to go. But Sun Sook Kim, a United Methodist missionary, has spent 20 years in ministry to its residents. She plans to retire next year and, instead of going home to Korea, she will stay with the people she has come to love.

Kim described how visitors and church volunteers react when she takes them to Smokey Mountain. Many sit in their cars and cry, unable even to get out.

Families have built makeshift shacks on the edges of the trash pile. As one woman said, "When it rains outside, it rains inside," pointing to the home she has cobbled together with scavenged lumber and tin.

Garbage trucks constantly rumble in to dispose of the city's trash. Residents of Smokey Mountain eagerly rip open the bags hoping to find treasures - a bit of copper, glass, plastic or other recyclable goods. The lucky ones make about $2 a day.

Smokey Mountain was not on the agenda for my second trip. However, I had a gift to deliver.

An outpouring of donations from my colleagues at United Methodist Communications sent me back to the garbage site with $500. Kim used the money to purchase 600 pairs of rubber slippers in every size for the children, women and men.

For many people, especially the children, the shoes were the first new ones they had owned.

Welcome the children
Rebecca Asedillo, a staff executive with Global Ministries, was part of the team in July. A native of the Philippines, Asedillo said the experiences reminded her of Matthew 18:5: "Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me."

"That is at the very core of our ministry as Christians, I think," she said.

The city's first Smokey Mountain dump became an international embarrassment in the early 1980s and was closed in 1995 though a new site was opened just a mile away. Asedillo said the "New" Smokey Mountain reminded her that the problem remains the same. "How does one uproot poverty?" she asks.

"The civil society and people's organizations are quite strong in the Philippines. They know that as the rich get richer, the poor gets poorer. The church cannot stop at charity. The church needs to advocate for social change."

Kim recalls that, when she first went to Smokey Mountain, she was angry and couldn't understand why people were forced to live in such conditions. She wanted to tend to their wounds and provide decent clothes to wear and nutritious food to eat.

God answered her anguished prayers with Matthew 6:30-34, in which Jesus reminds us that God is watching over his children: "Strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well."

Kim and other United Methodists are bringing hope to the poor in the Philippines. As she said, "I cannot offer them a kingdom here on earth, but I can show them the way to a kingdom in heaven."

*Gilbert is a United Methodist News Service news writer based in Nashville, Tenn. She compiled this series based on her trip to the Philippines in July.

A UMNS Commentary: Ecumenism not optional for Christians

By Bishop Timothy W. Whitaker*

World Methodist Council leaders meet with Pope Benedict in 2005 at the Vatican. The United Methodist Church has been in dialogue with the Roman Catholic Church since 1966. A UMNS file photo courtesy of the World Methodist Council.

It is common to acknowledge that ecumenism is not a high priority for churches today.

There were high hopes for ecumenism in the 1960s and 1970s following the Second Vatican Council of the Roman Catholic Church. However, those hopes have subsided over time as the churches encountered resistance to making changes necessary for unity with one another. Moreover, the decline in membership of the churches engaged in ecumenism has caused them to invest their energies in their own renewal, rather than in relationships with one another.

This common perception that ecumenism is not a high priority does not take into account the important work of dialogue that is still taking place. The United Methodist Church is engaged in some significant new relationships with other churches.

The longest ongoing dialogue between The United Methodist Church and another church is with the Roman Catholic Church. Numerous documents have been published jointly by bishops of both churches since 1966. During the next five years, I shall chair the United Methodist delegation in the next session of dialogue. At the same time, the World Methodist Council has been in a separate conversation with the Vatican and published a 2006 report titled "The Grace Given You in Christ."

By Bishop Timothy W. Whitaker*

A separate report on the dialogue between our church and the Episcopal Church, titled "Make Us One With Christ," also was published in 2006.

In 2004, our church entered into an interim Eucharist sharing agreement with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. The document describing the agreement is "Confessing Our Faith Together."

The goal of dialogue between churches is to achieve full communion with each other. This would involve members receiving the Eucharist in one another's churches and recognizing the ordination of each other's ordained clergy so that the clergy could serve in each other's churches according to the laws and discipline of each respective church.

Consensus and divisions
Many of the historic theological differences among the churches have been resolved. There is a great consensus between Catholics and Protestants and among Protestants about the meaning of justification by grace through faith.

Differences that remain pertain to church structures, ordination and liturgy. A focus of discussion is on the office of bishop as a third order of ministry. For example, recognizing the episcopacy as a third order of ministry distinct from deacons and elders is the only real obstacle to full communion between United Methodists and Episcopalians.

We seem to have learned two lessons throughout nearly 50 years of ecumenism. First, it is unrealistic to create one church body at this time in history. Second, it is inadequate to develop mere mutual respect among the churches without visible signs of unity. If both lessons are learned, then the churches can move toward a more visible unity by embracing full communion and recognition of orders and then seek guidance of the Holy Spirit for the further way into the future.

Local efforts
While I have emphasized the official dialogue among churches, I realize how important ecumenism is at the local level, where churches worship together and share ministries of service.

I would encourage local churches and their leaders to study the official documents issued by our church and other churches and to initiate conversation with local churches of other Christian communions in their neighborhood. Shared Eucharistic services between local United Methodist and Episcopal or Lutheran churches are encouraged.

Ecumenism is not an option for Christians or their church bodies. In John 17:11, the Son of God prayed to his Father that all of his disciples "may be one, as we are one." Making ecumenism an ongoing commitment is a sign that we shall not reduce the church to an institutional form, but we shall seek to obey Christ as the Lord of the church down through time.

*Whitaker is bishop of the United Methodist Florida Annual (regional) conference. This commentary first appeared in e-review, an online publication of the Florida Annual Conference.

Church offers hope to Filipinos living amid garbage

Third in a series

By Kathy L. Gilbert*

A young girl is surrounded by trash at the dump nicknamed Smokey Mountain in Manila, Philippines. The city's poorest people live in the dump and make their living looking for goods to recycle. UMNS photos by Kathy L. Gilbert.

MANILA, Philippines (UMNS) -- Shalom Kindergarten at Smokey Mountain United Methodist Church is full of smiling faces. Sixty children in matching plaid uniforms sit in three rows facing a large blackboard.

Teacher Elenita Laurente leads singing, and the children participate at the top of their little lungs. Laurente grew up in squalid conditions and is grateful for the opportunity to teach and raise six children who do not have to live as she once did.

Sun Sook Kim stands outside and peeks in the front window of the one-room classroom. She acts as if she has never seen such a scene, although she has been a missionary in the area for 20 years.

Kim is leading a group of United Methodists from the United States on a tour of her world. Prior to visiting this room of beautiful, singing children, the group saw where the children live a few blocks away in the "new" Smokey Mountain.

Poorest of the poor
For many in the United States, the phrase Smoky Mountain conjures up images of breathtaking beauty in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park between North Carolina and Tennessee, the most visited national park in the country. For most in the Philippines, Smokey Mountain conjures up images of the last place on earth anyone would want to visit.

Hundreds of families live on the edge of the city's garbage dump nicknamed Smokey Mountain because, during the summer months, the mountain of rotting garbage often ignites underground and sends out toxic clouds of smoke that hangs over the area like a blanket.

This is the rainy season so the smoke is drowned out by the rain. Of course rain just brings on a different kind of misery - thick, stinking mud.

Children play on a dirty mattress

Smokey Mountain is one of the five poorest places in the world, Kim says. The people who have built homes here make their living by scavenging through the city's garbage looking for items that can be recycled for money. The average return on a hard day of ripping through bags of stinking trash is around 200 pesos - about $2 in the United States.

In the 1970s, what was once a small village by the sea became the growing, burgeoning city of Manila's primary dumping site. By the early 1980s, Smokey Mountain became an international embarrassment to then President Ferdinand Marcos. He had the site bulldozed, and new public housing was built for the poor about 25 miles south of Manila. The dump was closed in 1995, and the "new" Smokey Mountain opened a mile away.

Families who could not make the minimum $8 monthly mortgage payments in the government-built apartments were forced once again into shacks along the new garbage heap.

Literacy consultant to the nation

Kim has been the United Methodist Global Ministries missionary to this area since 1986. She has a big job. She serves as literacy consultant for the whole country, training teachers and working with the illiterate through local churches, seminars and community centers.

She is also a registered nurse and coordinates first aid, public health teaching or family planning as needed. She conducts semiannual medical and dental clinics and also is involved in organizing new congregations.

Missionary Sun Sook Kim ministers to residents of the Smokey Mountain dump

When she first came to Smokey Mountain, she recalls, it was hard not to be angry at the miserable conditions in which people lived. She just wanted to "fix" them by covering their wounds and providing food and clothes."

The little children with their bare feet -- no shoes or slippers -- just walk on the garbage," she said. Every foot has crisscrossed wounds.

Most of the people have asthma and other respiratory disease from the smoke. Many also have tuberculosis, and hepatitis is common.

Kindergarten -- a bridge to Jesus
"The purpose of this kindergarten is to be a bridge to bring mothers and children to Jesus Christ," Kim said. "At the very beginning I could not enjoy my work because I had such anger and depression. I kept asking, 'Why do these people have to live like this?' Then I realized it was my mission to bring them hope through Jesus Christ."

The kindergarten starts a child on the path to an education, and Kim says an education is a way out of poverty.

Kim believes God sent her Matthew 6:33 as an answer to her prayers, and the verse has been her guide: "But strive first for the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well."

"I cannot offer them a kingdom here on earth," said Kim, "but I can show them the way to a kingdom in heaven."

*Gilbert is a United Methodist News Service news writer based in Nashville, Tenn. She compiled this series based on her trip to the Philippines in July.

Board considers global aspect of United Methodism

Scott Brewer, director of research for the United Methodist Council on Finance and Administration, addresses members of the Board of Global Ministries in Stamford, Conn. A UMNS photo by Cassandra Heller.



By Linda Bloom*

STAMFORD, Conn. (UMNS) - One-third of the membership of The United Methodist Church now lives outside the United States. But the denomination's structure remains decidedly centered both in and on the United States itself.

How to respond to the new global reality was the topic of a panel discussion during the Oct. 8-11 annual meeting of the United Methodist Board of Global Ministries.

Scott Brewer, director of research for the denomination's General Council on Finance and Administration, reported that at end of 2005, the denomination had almost 13.8 million baptized and professing members, which includes children who have been baptized. While the U.S. baptized and professing membership stands at more than 8.9 million and continues to decline, "globally, the United Methodist Church is growing," with most of the growth in Africa, he said.

More commonly, United Methodists cite the church's size in terms of professing membership, which stands at almost 11.5 million worldwide and almost 8 million in the United States, as of the end of 2005.

Keeping track of such information is part of a long tradition. "Methodism was one of the very few movements, at least in the 18th century, where everyone counted - everyone was counted," Brewer told the directors. "It's part of our cultural and theological DNA to count each other."

GCFA would like to create a single, worldwide standard of information from every annual conference, regardless of geography, he said. The data gathered would include information about membership and participation figures, finances, appointments, mission and ecumenical work and other business of the annual conference.

Petitions filed
Several petitions on the "worldwide nature of the church" to the 2008 United Methodist General Conference, the denomination's top legislative body, address the issue of structure. General Conference meets April 23-May 2 in Fort Worth, Texas.

Rena Yocom, a consultant for the Board of Global Ministries, noted that petitions submitted by the Council of Bishops and Connectional Table would replace the term "central conference" with "regional conference." The denomination's central conferences are groupings of annual conferences outside the United States.

There also is discussion that the United States might become a regional conference. Such changes require a constitutional amendment, which has to be passed by two-thirds of the denomination's annual conferences.

The Board of Global Ministries has submitted a petition that would change the current Commission on Central Conference Affairs to the Standing Committee on Central Conference Matters.

As an independent body, the committee would "serve as the coordinating body to study the structure and supervision of The United Methodist Church in its work outside the United States and its territories and its relationships to other Church bodies."

The standing committee would meet twice during every four-year period to work on petitions and resolutions related to the conferences outside the United States.

Autonomous Methodists
Relationships with autonomous Methodist denominations also are being considered. United Methodist Bishop Minerva Carcaño spoke with directors about continuing and deepening ties with the independent Methodist churches in Latin America and the Caribbean.

The Latin American/Caribbean Methodists regret that the autonomy they received "did not have more flexibility" to allow for unity, the bishop said. In fact, she added, being autonomous "stands in direct conflict" with Methodism's connectional identity and the concept of being one in Christ.

A study committee on the Relationship Between The United Methodist Church and the Autonomous Methodist Churches in Latin America and the Caribbean will report to the 2008 General Conference.

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

Emerging church seeks to get back to church's roots

Participants at the "emergingumc" conference share ideas on ways to make The United Methodist Church more relevant and authentic in today's society. UMNS photos by Linda Green.

By Linda Green*

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (UMNS) - Young adults, seminarians and pastors with a heart for the Gospel are thinking and talking about new ways to "do church" by transforming churchgoing from the inside out.

More than 50 people gathered in Nashville Oct. 4-6 for an "emergingumc" conference on getting back to the roots of church and its mission. The event was sponsored by the United Methodist Board of Discipleship.

The emerging church is a nondenominational grassroots movement that intertwines evangelism and social justice to make the church more relevant to today's culture and to make worship and Christian life authentic, experiential and connected.

Known officially as the emerging missional church, the concept is about turning the church from a place of ritual worship to one of reclaiming mission as the foundation, said the Rev. Taylor Burton-Edwards, director of worship resources for the United Methodist Board of Discipleship.

"The core is not to get people to come to Sunday morning worship. The core is to get disciples of Jesus to be on mission wherever they are and however they can do that," he said.

What is it?
An emerging church is not necessarily a new church start. A lot of "emerging" is taking place within existing congregations of all sizes and denominations and is especially being led by young adults. They relish a non-institutional approach to church and innovative worship but hold to traditional Christian beliefs. They also reconstruct and deconstruct those beliefs to accommodate and "do church" in postmodern culture. They create community.

According to United Methodists in the movement, the emerging church seeks to transform churchgoing from the inside out through questioning basic traditions. It is a movement about theology but is ambiguous and anti-programmatic. Conversations about an emergingumc, alternative ways of "doing church" and community building are occurring at http://emergingumc.blogspot.com/.

"Emerging church is a community of faith that is striving to be authentic to the Gospel and the culture," said the Rev. Jack Terrell-Wilkes, an ordained deacon in the Oklahoma Annual (regional) Conference.

Within a congregation might be two or three people passionate about discipleship and reaching people. Those individuals would create ministries from their passion and also begin to live their passion. "Church then happens," said conference attendees during focused discussions. "It is about getting back to the roots of Christianity."

"The emerging church has a heart for the poor, the last, the least and the lost," said the Rev. James Walker, the United Methodist co-leader of Hot Metal Bridge Faith Community in Pittsburgh. The church provides opportunity to experience church in new and unconventional ways, including drama, he said.

Conference presenters affirmed the belief that disciples of Jesus Christ are sent to be Christ's body in the world.

"Christianity is not just about a set of beliefs and propositions that we believe. It is about our lives and about how we live," Burton-Edwards said.

People studying Jesus' Great Commission often emphasize the command to "go make disciples" as the way mission is done. However, Burton Edwards says the emphasis should be on making disciples as you go. "Wherever you are, figure out what making disciples looks like there and do that there."

Making disciples for Jesus has to grow out of and be incarnate in each place, he said.

"Just as God became flesh among us, God's kingdom as it is working throughout the world takes on different forms. Our role is to figure what those are so that the good news of God's kingdom can be made known in those places," he said, adding that the look of those places will vary from place to place.

Characteristics of the emerging missional church are a revived mission or mandate; theological conversations that focus on the kingdom of God and the way of Jesus rather than denominational or ecclesial distinctiveness; spiritual formation using both personal and communal traditions and practices that "deeply" form disciples of Jesus; and worship that is experiential and connected to traditions of the Christian faith.

United Methodist roots
United Methodist followers say the concept harkens back to Methodism founder John Wesley, who in 18th-century England had a strong sense that the established Church of England was wonderful at worship and terrible at making disciples. It was wonderful at creating structures so that people could have the potential to make disciples but was terrible at delivering on that promise.

"What Wesley did was create systems that could make disciples alongside the Church of England and keep them in a symbiotic relationship so that the strength of the movement and the strength of the Church of England could both be leveraged for the better good," said Burton-Edwards.

Katie Dawson, a seminary student at Vanderbilt Divinity School and intern at West End United Methodist Church in Nashville, attended the gathering to become familiar with the emerging church and postmodern ideas as she works toward ordained ministry in the Iowa Annual Conference.

"Anytime the culture changes, the church changes in response," she said. "The church is a part of the world. It is not separate, above or better. It is a part of God's creation as well and we need to be aware of that to continue to be in ministry with people … in the city and in the rural areas."

While the emerging church has no concrete definition, Dawson suggests staying attentive to whatever local church you are in, learning its struggles and hopes and where its ambiguities lie, and then developing practices and theology that provide hope. "Emerging church is about connecting people with the reality of their lives," she said.

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

Sri Lankan Methodists find hope despite war, tsunami

The Rev. W.P. Ebenezer Joseph, president of the Methodist Church in Sri Lanka, addresses members of the United Methodist Board of Global Ministries Oct. 10 during their meeting in Stamford, Conn. A UMNS photo by Cassandra Heller.

By Linda Bloom*

STAMFORD, Conn. (UMNS) - The escalation of the war in Sri Lanka has made life very difficult, according to the president of the Methodist Church in Sri Lanka.

"Our own congregations are now being displaced from their areas," the Rev. W.P. Ebenezer Joseph, who is based in the capital city Colombo, told United Methodist News Service.

Because of the conflict, which has intensified since a ceasefire collapsed in 2006, at least eight Methodist congregations have been forced to move, along with the rest of their villages.

Joseph, who spoke during the Oct. 8-11 annual meeting of the United Methodist Board of Global Ministries, also thanked the board and its relief agency, the United Methodist Committee on Relief, for support after the devastating tsunami in late 2004.

"We need your visits to engage us. …We need your prayers, and also we need your support to be involved in international advocacy," he told the board's directors.

The tsunami displaced 16 congregations, destroyed nine churches, and accounted for the deaths of 166 church members, including 22 children who were in a church facility when the tsunami hit.

Afterward, Joseph said, "We were panicking. We really did not know how to respond to that."
Sri Lankan Methodists were grateful for the solidarity of people who came to visit after the tsunami, including two representatives from UMCOR. "Their presence gave us so much strength," he added.

Rebuilding communities
At the invitation of the Sri Lankan church, UMCOR-NGO - the relief agency's nongovernmental organization - set up an office to begin collaborating on relief work. The support from UMCOR and the Board of Global Ministries "definitely enhanced what we were able to achieve," Joseph said.

Those achievements have included the building of 775 new houses, with another 536 under construction and 300 planned in the future. Repairs have been completed on 178 homes, with 85 currently under repair.

The church has two vocational training centers and one handloom center and has restored livelihoods for 2,300 families. Livelihood restoration has been provided for 800 widows.

Nearly 5,000 children have started school again with the church's help. It sponsors three new homes for children, 18 nurseries and one day care center.

A "care for the caregiver" program, which receives support from the Board of Global Ministries, has provided "space for reflection," counseling and financial assistance for pastors, evangelists, church workers and lay leaders.

"Care for caregivers has really lifted up the spirit of the people on the ground," Joseph said.
But the renewed conflict between the rebel Tamil Tigers and the government, particularly in Sri Lanka's northern and eastern provinces, has both slowed down the tsunami recovery and created new needs as people are displaced from their homes.

The impact of war
Joseph said the long years of war have left one in 14 people internally displaced in Sri Lanka. "We had hope, but it was shattered last year, when the war resumed," he added.

The situation also has created new dangers. More than 30 aid workers have been killed in Sri Lanka since November 2005.

Methodists were among the 5,000 people attending the recent funeral of a Roman Catholic priest who was killed while bringing relief supplies to displaced people in the Kilinochchi area.

According to Ecumenical News International, the Rev. Nicholapillai Pakiaranjit often drove between areas controlled by the government and by the rebels in his role as coordinator of the Jesuit Refugee Service in Mannar.

Sri Lankan Methodists also cross the divide in their roles as relief workers and peacemakers. When a community is displaced by war, the congregation follows. "They see the church as a church that is ever present with them," Joseph explained.

"The last person to withdraw will be the church worker," he said.

For now, the peace process has been silenced. "I think the days ahead are going to be challenging," he said. "On both sides, the extremist voices are getting more and more hardened."

Methodists are part of an interfaith effort to start a campaign against violence. On Oct. 19, nearly 500 religious leaders will embark on a five-kilometer march bearing banners that say "Stop the War," according to Joseph.

He also is among those trying to organize a national seminar on peace next February. The event would bring in key figures from other countries where peace was achieved after a long struggle, such as South Africa and Northern Ireland. At the same time, a peace festival would occur in various regions to signal "that people are tired of the war," he added.

Goals for growth, witness
Started in the 19th century by the British Methodists, the Sri Lankan church was the first Methodist church in Asia, according to Joseph. Currently, it has 36,000 members, with 180 churches, 110 ministers and 80 evangelists. With its schools, nurseries and feeding centers, "about 11,000 children come into contact with the church daily," he said.

The official objectives of the Methodist Church in Sri Lanka include promoting personal and corporate evangelism; bringing back lapsed members through pastoral care and fellowship; strengthening worship, Bible study and prayer; and using Christian fellowship to promote commitment to the faith.

The church's tsunami work touches upon its objectives of peacemaking and social holiness, which means to "formulate appropriate forms of Christian witness to vulnerable and affected communities and in issues of justice, peace and integrity of creation."

Other goals are to harness existing potentials and resources, train youth and develop leadership, and strengthen ecumenical witness and unity with other churches.

"By the end of this year, every Methodist church in Sri Lanka will share with us their activity programs to achieve these goals," Joseph said.

Additional goals include doubling giving to churches and increasing membership within a two-year period. "We are asking every Methodist to bring another into the saving power of Christ in the next two years," he declared.

Joseph predicted 40 new Methodist churches will open within the next two years.

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

Bishop May Comes to Mission Agency from Unique Center at Historically Black College

New York, NY, October 12 -- Bishop Felton E. May comes to the position of interim chief executive of the General Board of Global Ministries, the mission agency of The United Methodist Church, from the leadership of a center unique among the mission and educational institutions of the denomination.

In 2004, following his retirement from the active episcopacy, he became the founding dean of the Harry R. Kendall Science and Health Mission Center at Philander Smith College, Little Rock, Arkansas, a United Methodist-related historically black college. The center has multiple relationships with the mission board.

"To have Bishop May as general secretary of Global Ministries continues and deepens the already strong ties between the board and Philander Smith College and its Kendall Center," said Bishop Joel N. Martinez of San Antonio, president of the mission agency. "We thank the college for lending us one of its valued faculty members."

Dr. Walter Kimbrough, Jr., president of the college, said that the "selection of Bishop May is very important for Philander Smith and for all of the historically black colleges and universities affiliated with the church. Bishop May's work is known internationally and has had a tremendous impact on the church."

Bishop May, who retired three years ago as presiding bishop of the Baltimore-Washington Annual (regional) Conference, was elected interim general secretary of the global mission board on October 9. He was introduced to and greeted the staff of the agency headquartered in New York City on October 11. He thanked the staff for its energy and enthusiasm and challenged all employees of the board to continue to "give life and lift" to global mission.

The facilities of the Harry R. Kendall Science and Health Mission Center at Philander Smith College were built in large part with a grant from an endowed fund managed by the mission board. The Kendall fund, named for an insurance company founder, provides grants for health services and training beneficial to African Americans.

The work of the center has college-based, community, national, and international components. It is an integral part of the college's program, relating to the Division of Natural and Physical Sciences. It promotes health and allied vocations and encourages in academic settings and the community the connection between healthy minds, bodies, and spirits.

Global health is an emerging priority of The United Methodist Church. The General Board of Global Ministries has decades of service in the health arena both in the United States and around the world.

The Kendall Center is part of a consortium of historically black colleges that works with the General Board of Global Ministries in addressing alcohol and drug abuse and addiction prevention among college students. This consortium is part of the United Methodist Special Program on Substance Abuse and Related Violence (SPSARV). Bishop May laid the foundations for the program while on special assignment by the Council of Bishops in the early 1990s.

Kendall also relates to the Memphis Methodist Hospital system and to the health care division of Africa University, a United Methodist-related institution in Zimbabwe with students enrolled from 26 African countries. Bishop May, along with his wife, Phyllis, has traveled extensively in Africa and is a member of the board of directors of the university.

Speaking of Bishop May and the Kendall Center, President Kimbrough of Philander Smith said, "All of us, especially our students, have benefited from his experience and connections that have enabled us to build credible programs related to health, link our students to internships with Methodist health care institutions, and facilitate the matriculation of students from the Congo in the college.

"I doubt that many of our Methodist-related institutions have had someone of his experience and expertise on their campuses, so his appointment will give the entire denomination a new found respect and appreciation for the quality of experience provided by Black College Fund institutions. There are jewels all throughout the Black College Fund institutions, so we must continue to support them all."

The Black College Fund provides assistance to the 11 historically black colleges and universities related to The United Methodist Church. It is managed by the General Board of Higher Education and Ministry.

President Kimbrough sees Bishop May's role at Global Ministries as a partnership through which the college can "continue to find new and creative avenues for our students to be involved in the work of the church as it relates to global initiatives, particularly related to health. Bishop May will be able to bring some of the new initiatives of the Kendall Center to the broader church, and likewise, link church initiatives for our involvement here. So while Bishop May will not be here as regularly, he still will be able to make a vital contribution to Philander Smith College."

Felton Edwin May was born in 1935 and grew up in Chicago, Illinois. He received the Bachelor of Arts degree from Judson College in 1961 and held pastorates in the Northern Illinois Conference following his ordination as deacon. He transferred to the then Peninsula Conference in 1968 and in 1970s received the Bachelor of Divinity degree from Crozer Theological Seminary, then located near Chester, Pennsylvania, and now merged to form the Colgate Rochester Crozer Divinity School in Rochester, New York.

He was superintendent of the Easton District of the Delaware-Peninsula Conference from 1975 to 1981 and director of the conference council for three years, until he was elected to the episcopacy in 1984 by the Northeastern Jurisdiction of The United Methodist Church. Bishop May initially served the Harrisburg (PA) Area of the denomination. He retired in 2004 from the Baltimore-Washington Area.

During the years of his episcopal service, Bishop May was instrumental in organizing Communities of Shalom, a program of community building that emerged from the violent response to the acquittal of police officers caught on film beating motorist Rodney King while in police custody.

The bishop is a former director and vice president of the General Board of Global Ministries and has held many offices within The United Methodist Church. He has been a trustee of American University in Washington, DC, and a member of the Board of Governors of Wesley Theological Seminary, also in the nation's capital.

He has also held numerous civic posts, including in 1999 the White House Presidential Mission on Children Orphaned by AIDS in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Bishop May married the former Phyllis Henry, a native of Odessa, Delaware, in 1963. Phyllis May holds degrees from Bennett College and the Boston University School of Theology, both United Methodist-related schools, and is by profession a Christian educator. She is the founder of the Phyllis May Child Development Center in Washington, DC.

The Mays have two children, Felton E. May II and Daphne Endrea Sneed, and nine grandchildren.

'Holy conferencing' is 'means of grace,' bishop says

Bishop Sally Dyck speaks about holy conferencing to the Women's Division of the United Methodist Board of Global Ministries. A UMNS photo by Cassandra Heller.

By Linda Bloom*

STAMFORD, Conn. (UMNS) - Growing up in a Mennonite community, United Methodist Bishop Sally Dyck learned about peacemaking at an early age.

Now she and others would like to see an emphasis on peacemaking or "holy conferencing" implemented more widely across the denomination.

Dyck, of Minneapolis, spoke about the need for holy conferencing during the Oct. 5-8 annual meeting of the Women's Division, United Methodist Board of Global Ministries. "While The United Methodist Church has not been a historic peace church, it's had the emphasis for many, many years," she told directors of the division.

Dyck considers peacemaking to be a "major function" of Christian discipleship. She characterized holy conferencing as a "means of grace," a way of being open to what God has intended.

Noting that the word "confer" means "to mutually search for truth," she added, "How we make those decisions may be every bit as important as what they are."

Training to talk
As an example, the bishop recounted the story of how a difficult decision was made at a local church where she served for 13 years. To help church members, listening posts were set up, but the problem was that people spoke "without any thought to the consequences," she said.

"I realized that we needed some training about how to talk to one another," Dyck explained.

An outside organization, Compassionate Communications, helped the church set up rules for conversation. One day, after worship and a potluck lunch, members signed up to make 90-second statements about the decision, with each statement followed by 10 seconds of silence. "People listened and then we prayed and went home," she recalled.

The next week, a vote was taken. A few people complained about restrictions on free speech, Dyck said, "but people wanted, ultimately, to stay in community with each other."

As bishop, she employed a similar strategy when the Minnesota Annual Conference debated nine petitions on the issue of homosexuality in 2006.

Peacemaking, Dyck told the Women's Division directors, does not mean backing off from your own beliefs, but expressing those beliefs in a calm, respectful way - "to share your passion without that passion becoming an angry passion."

Dyck led a working group that refined "Guidelines for Holy Conferencing - What God Expects of Us," which was inspired by the denomination's young people and was based on guidelines emerging from a dialogue on theological diversity in 1998. The guidelines have been endorsed by organizers of General Conference, the denomination's top lawmaking body, which meets next April 23-May 2 in Fort Worth, Texas.

Guidelines for holy conferencing
.Every person is a child of God. Always speak respectfully. One can disagree without being disagreeable.

.As you patiently listen and observe the behavior of others, be open to the possibility that God can change the views of any or all parties in the discussion.
.Listen patiently before formulating responses.

.Strive to understand the experience out of which others have arrived at their views.
.Be careful in how you express personal offense at differing opinions. Otherwise dialogue may be inhibited.

.Accurately reflect the views of others when speaking. This is especially important when you disagree with that position.
.Avoid using inflammatory words, derogatory names or an excited and angry voice.
.Avoid making generalizations about individuals and groups. Make your point with specific evidence and examples.
.Make use of facilitators and mediators.
.Remember that people are defined, ultimately, by their relationship with God - not by the flaws we discover, or think we discover, in their views and actions.

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