Mt. Bethel UM Church and North Georgia Conference Remain at an Impasse
Statement from Mt. Bethel UM Church, Marietta, Georgia: The Mt. Bethel members authorized by the church’s Administrative Council to mediate, along with legal counsel, met [August 28, 2021] in good faith with legal representatives of the North Georgia Annual Conference...
Bright Light In Montgomery
By Steve Beard - The sun was bright and unforgiving as I paid my respects at the gravesite of Hank Williams on a bluff in Montgomery, Alabama. A cowboy hat would have helped. The heat was a far cry from the dreary night of January 1, 1953, when much of the South was...
What to Teach
By Duffy Robbins As I confessed in the last issue of Good News, somewhere around the 10 year point in my own youth ministry experience, I began to realize that I was teaching on some of the same topics over and over again, and there was really no plan guiding me....
Malaria: The Great Invitation
Each and every day, God sends out invitations, invitations to make a difference in someone’s life. These invitations are delivered in many different ways, but often times we miss them. We’re too busy, too distracted. What if the invitation were more obvious? What if you were reading one now? You Are Cordially invited to save lives today. Could you ignore it?
“Advisory group on steriods” tackles reform
United Methodist leaders have created a team to put the finishing touches on a plan aimed at increasing the number of vital congregations in the church. The new Interim Operations Team will be an “advisory group on steroids,” said Neil Alexander, president and publisher of the United Methodist Publishing House and co-chairperson of the Call to Action Steering Team, which includes clergy and laity.
UM Mission Agency Discusses Budget and Theology
The United Methodist mission agency, faced with negative budget projections in the coming decade, is considering substantive cuts in both programmatic and administrative sectors in order to maintain what it regards as its “core competencies.” This year’s GBGM Annual Board Meeting convened in Stamford, Connecticut, to discuss, among other things, the possibility of a dramatic downsizing of the Board from 89 directors to a potential 30, and a revision of its Theology of Mission Statement and its associated Mission and Vision statements.
African Bishops Urge Theological Education
The United Methodist Church in Africa is growing, but the number of trained and licensed clergy is not keeping pace. In addition, money allocated for African theological education has been slow to filter down.
Court upholds pastor’s right to withhold membership
A United Methodist pastor has the right to determine local church membership, even if the decision is based on whether the potential member is gay or lesbian. Annual (regional) conferences cannot limit that right or ask the church’s top court to set policy, the United Methodist Judicial Council ruled during its October 27-30 meeting.
