news stories
May 11 wrap-up: Episcopal address, more Rule 44 debate
May 12, 2016 / By United Methodist News Service (UMNS)
A day after the celebratory tone of opening worship came a reminder that General Conference is one big, long meeting. As delegates got down to business, debate over one of the Rules of Order will stretch into a third day while the episcopal address urged United Methodists to “trust God and go.” In the episcopal address on May 11, Bishop Gregory V. Palmer laid out a path …more
Bishop Palmer: Trust God’s promise and go forth
May 12, 2016 / By United Methodist News Service (UMNS)
Bishop Gregory V. Palmer laid out a path for the 2016 United Methodist General Conference: humility, humility, humility. “Everyone here is a child of God. Any behavior to the contrary of that truth undermines the gospel and is a choice to live beneath our privilege,” Palmer, who serves the West Ohio Episcopal Area, said in the episcopal address on May 11. The Council of Bishops chose Palmer to deliver this …more
At GC2016, Rule 44 still a question mark
May 12, 2016 / By United Methodist News Service (UMNS)
Whether General Conference delegates adopt a new way of dealing with tough issues remains to be seen. For a second time, a vote on the much-debated Rule 44 — a proposed Group Discernment Process — has been deferred a day. The delay this time is to allow the lawmaking assembly’s Rules Committee to make recommendations regarding five amendments that came from the floor. The Rules Committee …more
GC2016: May 10 wrap-up: Opening worship, rules debate
May 11, 2016 / By United Methodist News Service (UMNS)
With a drum welcome from indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest, United Methodists gathered for the 2016 General Conference, the top legislative body of the denomination, joined in a cacophony of “alleluias” in many languages during opening worship. Meeting May 10-20 at the Oregon Convention Center, the 864 delegates will consider 1,000 petitions that will determine how the 12.3-million-member denomination orders its ministry, structures its agencies and addresses social justice …more
General Conference 2016 officially begins
May 11, 2016 / By United Methodist News Service (UMNS)
With a drum welcome from indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest, United Methodists gathered here for the 2016 General Conference, the top legislative body of The United Methodist Church, joined in a cacophony of “alleluias” in many languages during opening worship. Meeting May 10-20 at the Oregon Convention Center, 864 delegates will consider 1,000 petitions that will determine how the 12.3-million-member denomination orders its ministry, structures its agencies and addresses social …more
GC2016 briefs
May 5, 2016 / By UNY Communications / .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Young People at General Conference 2016: Throughout the decision-making process at General Conference, there will be a lot of rhetoric about what young people say, think, want, do, wish, etc. These young people don't speak with one voice; young people are diverse in thought and belief, and so are these young people delegates. Delegates from Zambia, Florida, North Georgia, Great Plains, Virginia, Texas, Rocky Mountain, California-Pacific, Great Britain, Illinois Great …more
Important General Conference 2016 links
May 5, 2016 / By UNY Communications / .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
There are plenty of ways to stay connected to the 2016 General Conference Session and the Upper New York Conference's General Conference delegates. Below are some important links to help you stay connected. For more information about General Conference, click here. To view a live stream of General Conference, click here. To read blog entries written by UNY delegates, click here. Follow Upper New York at GC on Instagram by …more
From the Advocate: Why I chose to volunteer at the Skye Farm Camp & Retreat Center
May 4, 2016 / By BJ Stewart
For the first 15 years of our marriage, I heard countless stories about the Skye Farm Camp & Retreat Center; my husband attended throughout his childhood and loved it. Then he had the opportunity to volunteer; he started out as a counselor and then transitioned to directing audio-visual – first photography and then branching to more AV, including computer use. Time marched on, until an Annual Conference session one year when …more
From the Advocate: Why I chose to donate to the Skye Farm Camp & Retreat Center
May 4, 2016 / By Lauri Nair
I loved the Skye Farm Camp & Retreat Center from the moment I first set foot on the property in 1974. I grew up in a family where we spent lots of time in the woods on weekends and vacations in rustic cabins in Canada. I love the outdoors, especially mountains and lakes. I enjoy swimming, fishing, and boating. I feel especially close to God in that environment. As a …more
From the Advocate: Why I chose to donate to the Casowasco Camp & Retreat Center
May 4, 2016 / By Peg Shields
In the mid-1950s, fellow Carnegie Mellon University student Bob Shields and I joined other Methodists from the Northeastern Jurisdiction for a conference in a remote area of Central New York. We had never heard of “Casowasco on Owasco Lake.” During that first week, I had a “mountaintop experience ... a recommitment of my religious faith.” Bob and I were married after graduation. We began our ongoing …more