News Stories from May 2016
Imagine No Malaria celebration rocks the house
May 19, 2016 / By Crystal Caviness and Barbara Dunlap-Berg
“Our God is able!” Celebrating the success of the Imagine No Malaria initiative, launched in 2008, speakers, singers and dancers offered even more for United Methodists attending General Conference 2016 to imagine – Abundant Health: Our Promise to Children. “Health is the ultimate design of God for humanity,” said Bishop Thomas Bickerton, Imagine No Malaria chair. “Health and wholeness have been a hope for Methodists since John …more
GC2016 puts hold on sexuality debate
May 19, 2016 / By Heather Hahn and Sam Hodges
General Conference delegates apparently have hit the pause button on the denomination's quadrennial debates related to homosexuality. Late afternoon May 18, the delegates voted by 428 to 405 to accept the recommendation of the Council of Bishops to delay a debate on homosexuality at this gathering of the denomination’s top legislative assembly and let a proposed commission study church regulations. The bishops asked for the …more
May 18 wrap-up: Sexuality dominates debate in unexpected ways
May 19, 2016 / By Joey Butler
Last week it was debating how to debate. Today, it was voting on whether to vote. A day of tension, frustration and confusion ended in a decision to “put a pin in it.” Delegates to General Conference 2016 spent most of the day deciding whether to move forward on dozens of petitions regarding the denomination’s stance on human sexuality, or whether to refer that difficult subject to …more
Offering a Way Forward: A Statement from the Council of Bishops
May 18, 2016 / By UNY Communications / .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Editor's Note: Below is a statement released by the Council of Bishops on Wednesday, May 18, 2016: "Your bishops were honored to receive the request of General Conference to help lead our United Methodist Church forward during this time of both great crisis and great opportunity. As far as we can discover, this is the first time that a General Conference has ever made such a request of the Council …more
Green light for new hymnal project
May 18, 2016 / By Sam Hodges
The United Methodist Church is on track to get its first new hymnal since 1989, and this one will be Internet-cloud based and print-on-demand — the first high-tech hymnal for a mainline denomination. General Conference 2016 approved on a consent calendar Tuesday, May 17, a petition authorizing the creation of a 15-member Hymnal Revision Committee. That was the big green light needed for the United Methodist Publishing House and Discipleship Ministries to move …more
Conference pleads with bishops for leadership
May 18, 2016 / By Kathy L. Gilbert and Sam Hodges
Delegates asked the Council of Bishops to lead the church out of the “painful condition” it is in after an address by Bishop Bruce Ough that called for unity but did not address full inclusion of LGBTQ people. The Rev. Mark Holland, a delegate from Great Plains, said the May 17 call for unity did not provide a path forward. He asked the Council of Bishops to meet today …more
Term limits for bishops fail at GC2016
May 18, 2016 / By Sam Hodges
Term limits for United Methodist bishops got strong support in a vote at General Conference 2016, but fell short of the two-thirds majority needed to change the church constitution. The vote on May 17 was 482 in favor of term limits and 332 opposed. The Association of Annual Conference Lay leaders introduced the petition, arguing that lifetime tenure for bishops in the United States “inevitably invites abuse of power and creates a mistrust …more
May 17 Wrap-up Schism rumors quashed
May 18, 2016 / By Joey Butler
General Conference 2016 may have started off slowly, but it’s full steam ahead now. On a day with a full docket, delegates considered whether to give $20 million to a group of church growth consultants, whether to eliminate lifetime tenures for U.S. bishops and whether it’s time to create a new hymnal. All that while the Council of Bishops president said the bishops are committed to church …more
Peace with Justice 2015 honor roll
May 17, 2016 / By Heather Smith
Peace with Justice Sunday is this Sunday, May 22! If you’re not ready, please feel free to reschedule it to suit the needs of your congregation. The special Sunday offerings are not just about money, but giving everyone an opportunity to support ministries they are passionate about. As for participation, even $1 counts! I wanted to take a moment to recognize two groups of churches who have made an impression …more
Clergy-related petitions pass GC2016
May 17, 2016 / By United Methodist News Service (UMNS)
A few petitions affecting United Methodist clergy either were approved by General Conference 2016 or are highly likely to be, having made it onto the consent calendar. But a renewed effort that would have begun the process to remove the constitutional bar to end guaranteed appointment for ordained elders failed in committee, as did an “early ordination” petition. Many petitions dealing with clergy came from the …more