News & Publications

Deadline extended for US-2, Mission Interns applications

If you are between the ages of 20 to 30 and feel called to address the root causes of injustice so that the gospel is lived out alongside communities and organizations seeking peace and systemic transformation, there is still time to apply to become a United Methodist US-2 or Mission Intern. The General Board of Global Ministries (GBGM) has announced that the application deadline for the positions has been extended to Feb. 19. US-2s serve in the United States for two years. Mission Interns...

Cokesbury announces new Sunday school program for children

Cokesbury has introduced a new Bible-based Sunday school curriculum for children titled Grow, Proclaim, Serve! that will be available beginning this fall. Grow, Proclaim, Serve! incorporates Bible stories, activities, crafts, media and games into a full faith experience for children. The curriculum is divided into age-appropriate programs for children from age 3 into the "tween" years. Programs are tailored for specific age groups or available as a "one-room" Sunday school...

Repair estimate arrives for historic church

According to Buffalo's WIVB TV station, the estimated repair bill for Albion's First United Methodist Church has come in: $420,000. The church was awarded a $50,000 Robert W. Wilson Sacred Sites Challenge Grant through New York Landmarks Conservancy to stabilize and restore roof trusses that were extensively altered in 1914 when the sanctuary was reconfigured to what is known as the Akron Plan – an architectural style popular in the late 19th-early 20th centuries that features an...

Having a 'Super' time at contemporary worship

On Sunday, an audience of over 100 million are expected to view Super Bowl XLVI when the National Football League championship kicks-off at 6:30 p.m. Although not held to specifically coincide with the Super Bowl, the Lansing United Methodist Church's contemporary worship service "The Fireplace" will embrace the sporting event with a "tongue-in-cheek Super Bowl party," said Laura Alexander, chair of The Fireplace Planning Team. On top of the worship band's play list for...

Program forges 'Pathways' for disadvantaged youth

Take a look into an Albany high school classroom, of every 100 black freshmen you see, odds are only 35 will graduate in four years. But a new ministry in the Capital Region is aiming to put urban minority youth on the path to work. "Pathways 2the Future,” created by The First Israel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Albany, with assistance from Syracuse University and the Albany United Methodist Society (AUMS), helps young adults find jobs, get their diploma or GED, or get...

CRM announces summer 2012 programs

The Upper New York Camp & Retreat Ministries (CRM) is excited to announce that the 2012 Summer Camp & Retreat programs are now available to view and open for early registration. Online registration is available immediately, and brochures are in the mail this week to past participants and campers as well as all Upper New York Annual Conference churches. To view programs, go to www.campsandretreats.org and select the site you are interested in. “We are excited about the high...

Churches must comply with new wage reporting law

The Upper New York Annual Conference Benefits Office is reminding churches they are required to comply with the recently enacted Wage Theft Prevention Act. Under the act, the New York State Department of Labor mandates specific information be provided to employees on each paystub; therefore, all employees must be provided a paystub for each paycheck they receive. It is also requires that employees be provided with a Wage Notice form. Wage Notices must be in the employee's primary language...

Episcopal candidacy forms due Wednesday

The UNYAC delegation to the Northeastern Jurisdictional Conference reminds those who wish to be considered for nomination to the episcopacy that the application deadline is Feb. 1. All candidates must submit their Episcopal Candidacy Application forms to Bill Gottschalk-Fielding by 4:30 p.m. The delegation will review all submissions prayerfully. Selected individuals will be asked to meet with the delegation for a time of conversation on Saturday, March 24. Scott Johnson, UNY head of...

Do you have to renew your Advocate subscription?

With some exceptions, which are listed below, all those who wish to receive the Upper New York Area Advocate delivered to their home or workplace must renew their subscription now. For your $15 you will receive delivery of the monthly Advocate and any special issues produced during 2012. Unfortunately, due to mailing costs, those who do not renew their subscriptions will be dropped from our at- delivery list. Those who will continue to receive the Advocate at no charge are: Retired...

GC 2012 Advance Daily Christian Advocate released

The Advanced Edition of the 2012 General Conference Daily Christian Advocate (DCA) has been released. The DCA serves as the official journal of the General Conference of The United Methodist Church. It contains records of those who have been elected to serve as delegate, the legislation submitted, and the decisions made by the General Conference. The Advance Edition is the publication of legislation submitted for consideration by the delegates. The official written languages of the General...

Details announced for Up!Word '12 youth gathering

From April 20-22, the Holiday Inn in Liverpool will be the site of one of the year's largest gatherings of United Methodist youth as Up!Word '12 rolls into town. Hundred will be in attendance for this three-day conference-wide event that features worship services, workshops, fellowship, entertainment and many other activities. In 2011, over 75 churches from across the Upper New York Area were represented, and many of the youth - both speakers and attendees - gave personal testimonies...

Bike drive gearing up for spring collection cycle

Although winter cycling apparel includes an arsenal of warming layers, the summer season - and its definite lack of the phrase "sub zero" on riding wear - will be upon cyclists in just a few months. However, this is the season of giving when it comes to two-wheeled locomotion and one community has kicked their collection efforts into high gear with a Social Justice ministry that is also "green." The George F. Johnson Dream Center for Community Empowerment, a ministry of...

"Holy Spirit, Make Us One!": A Prayer for the Church

Why does a United Methodist school like United welcome theological and cultural diversity in our student body, faculty, programming and partnerships? This is an important question with both spiritual and practical implications. To look across the landscape of the Christian Church in the world is to see a house divided and at odds with itself. The Church is saddled with historic, denominational segmentation. Even more unsettling are the often bitter divisions within denominations...

Delegates, communicators ponder General Conference legislation

Church and secular journalists, delegates and other interested parties meet during the United Methodist Church's pre-General Conference news briefing at the Tampa Convention Center in Florida. UMNS photo by Mike DuBose. TAMPA, FLA. – More than 300 delegates and communicators gathered Jan. 19-21 in Tampa, Fla., for the Pre-General Conference news briefing, where they contemplated legislation that...

Board of Ordained Ministry meets with provisional elders

Provisional elders, from left, Jennifer Streeter, Kim Hines and Robert Dean, attend the BOOM retreat at Caswasco Camp and Retreat Center on Tuesday.  Photo by Maidstone Mulenga. For the two dozen provisional elders who gathered this week at Casowasco Camp and Retreat Center for a retreat with members of the Board of Ordained Ministry (BOOM), the experience likely eased some of the...

Retreats offered for clergy affected by Hurricane Irene, Tropical Storm Lee

The Upper New York Annual Conference is sponsoring “Passing Through the Waters," a free one-day retreat for clergy affected by Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee. Clergy will have two opportunities to attend: Feb. 10 at the Sky Lake Camp & Retreat Center, Windsor Feb. 28 at the Cobleskill United Methodist Church, Cobleskill According to the organizers of the “Passing Through the Waters" retreat, these one-day sessions will be an opportunity for...

It's time to renew your UNY Advocate subscription

It’s a new year, and that means it’s time to renew your subscription to the Upper New York Area Advocate. The Advocate is your source for news about the Upper New York Annual Conference as well as what’s going on with our members and in our local churches – and we don’t want you to miss a single issue. Click here to renew your Advocate subscription today. To renew online with your credit card, visit: http://unyumc.org/advocaterenewal. And if you don’t...

General Church lighting a spark in young adults

The United Methodist Church is hoping to spark some ideas for new social justice ministries. The initiative, Spark12, is an incubator that will give young adults, 18-35, 18 weeks to bring their ideas for life-changing social justice ministries to fruition with the backing of investors. A young adult team directed by the Council of Bishops’ Leadership Table began to develop the initiative in May of 2011. The team has secured initial investments totaling $175,000 from the Leadership...

Discover your spiritual and missional gifts

Finger Lakes District Lay Speaking Ministries invites those in the Upper New York Area to a lay speaking retreat March 23-24 at Casowasco Camp & Retreat Center in Moravia. The retreat, which will feature two advance courses, is an opportunity to discover your spiritual and missional gifts amid the natural beauty of Casowasco. The retreat begins 6 p.m. on Friday and continues through 7 p.m. Saturday. Courses are: Equipped For Every Good Work This is a four-tool process to help...

Let's save trees - and green!

The Upper New York Annual Conference wants to receive your church's newsletter. But we would also like to save you postage/printing costs (and save a few trees) by getting the electronic version, if one is available. Please email newsletters to news@unyumc.org and remove the conference office from your printed newsletter mailing list. If we're not currently receiving your newsletter, please do send us a copy. ...