News Stories from February 2026

End of disaffiliation process in Upper New York Conference

February 3, 2026 / By Rev. Bill Gottschalk-Fielding, Assistant to the Bishop / .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

On November 18, 2025, the New York State courts approved the final disaffiliation request in Upper New York (UNY), marking the completion of an unprecedented chapter in our conference's history. Between October 2022 and December 31, 2023—when the limited right to disaffiliate under ¶2553 of the Book of Discipline expired—118 churches in Upper New York voted to disaffiliate, though the court approval process extended into 2025. This has been a challenging season …more