Healthy Congregations and Effective Leaders in Every Place Making Disciples of Jesus Christ for the Transformation of the World
March 16, 2022 WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Bishops of The United Methodist Church in their March 15 called meeting discerned pathways for churches choosing disaffiliation and separation. The bishops have met two consecutive weeks to discern pathways forward in these changing times. The bishops affirmed by an overwhelming majority that paragraph 2553 in the Book of Discipline would… Continue Reading→
“Do not cast me away from your presence, and do not take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and sustain in me a willing spirit.” – Psalm 51:11-12 I write this reflection with a great deal of indebtedness to Jan Richardson, whose Ash Wednesday article “The Hands that… Continue Reading→
Dear fellow United Methodists: I trust that your Advent journey has prepared you for the coming of Christ into your life once again. As we set our sights on the holiest of nights in Bethlehem, on behalf of the Council of Bishops I want to wish you a blessed season filled with joy, hope, wonder… Continue Reading→
Dear United Methodist friends, Grace and peace to you in the name of Jesus Christ. I would like to share with you that Eric Stevens has accepted my invitation to serve as Chancellor of the North Carolina Conference for the next six months, through June 2021. We continue to mourn the sudden death of Wilson… Continue Reading→
Bishop Ward uses the Pilgrimage 2020 theme of “Claimed” to remind us of God’s promise in Isaiah – “I have called you by name and you are mine.”
The majesty of Mt. Ararat rises just beyond the eastern edge of Armenia. From Scripture, we know it as a place of hope and a sign of God’s providence, this grounding place for the cocoon of life that was Noah’s ark. This is the historical home place of Armenia, the oldest of Christian nations. Twenty-six… Continue Reading→
For Immediate Release Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2020 United Methodist Bishops meet to discuss church future, epidemic crisis. WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Council of Bishops of The United Methodist Church will meet November 2-5 in the midst of a pandemic, racial unrest, denominational and political anxiety. The more than 120 bishops serving in Africa, Asia, Europe,… Continue Reading→
For Immediate ReleaseMonday, October 12, 2020 U.S. Bishops call for full participation in November elections. WASHINGTON, D.C. – United Methodist bishops based in the United States today issued a statement on Faith and Democracy, calling on the people of The United Methodist Church to support voter registration and encourage people to vote in the November… Continue Reading→
The funeral for Bishop John Yambasu, the late resident bishop of the Sierra Leone Conference, set for Sunday, September 6, 2020, will be livestreamed on umc.org/bishopyambasu. Bishop Yambasu died in a road accident on August 16, 2020, on his way to attend a funeral of one of the pastors in the conference. The Service of… Continue Reading→