Prayers, Petitions, Parties

What is General Conference all about? The title of a recent article summed it up this way: “Prayers, Petitions, Parties.” The 10-day global gathering of United Methodists in Fort Worth will involve each of these activities.

• Worship will begin and end every day’s session and prayer will punctuate all deliberations, presentations, debates and decision-making.
• General Conference will consider close to 1,600 petitions submitted by UMC lay and clergy members, local churches, annual conferences and church agencies dealing with everything from the creation of a new hymnal, changing the mandatory retirement age of clergy, approving the denomination’s proposed $642 million 4-year budget and wrestling with the UMC’s official position on gay and lesbian Christians.
• Several denominational anniversaries will be celebrated (that’s the party reference!): 100th anniversary of United Methodist Men, 40th anniversary of the merger which created the United Methodist Church and the 60th anniversary of the mission funding program the Advance for Christ and His Church.
  
  

During the first week of the General Conference delegates will meet in one of 13 sub-committees called legislative committees to consider the petitions related to a particular area. Pastor Bill is assigned to the “Ministry and Higher Education” legislative committee which will review the 229 petitions primarily related to ordained ministry.

Want more information? Go to http://www.gc2008.umc.org/.

General Conference 2008 - Who Cares?

On April 23 – May 3 The United Methodist Church will hold it’s General Conference in Fort Worth Texas. I'll be attending as one of four clergy delegates from our annual conference (the North Central New York Conference). As the top policy-making body of the international United Methodist Church, General Conference is the only body that officially speaks for our 11.5-million member denomination (13 million if including baptized children who have not become members). During the nine-day session, 992 delegates will revise the Book of Discipline, which regulates the manner in which local churches, annual conferences and general agencies are organized. The conference revises The Book of Discipline (book of church law) and Social Principles and adopts resolutions on current moral, social, public policy and economic issues. It also approves plans and budgets for churchwide programs for the next four years.

For United Methodists, General Conference is a big deal. That said, most of us know little about what goes on there or what impact General Conference might have on the day to day affairs of a local church like the Lansing United Methodist Church. I'd like to change this by sharing with you as much as I can about what General Conference is about. Look for articles here, in the “Church At Work” bulletin insert, and in our monthly newsletter (The Sunbeam). Also, during General Conference look for photos and daily reflections on on this blog while I'm in Fort Worth.

This is our Church and what happens in Fort Worth this spring will shape our future together. Let’s be informed.