This year, United Methodists mourned the passing of beloved bishops, committed evangelists, church pioneers and the pastor who taught many of the Civil Rights Movement’s most prominent leaders how to transform the U.S. nonviolently.
The Rev. Norest M. Nyakudanga became the first lay member in Zimbabwe to be honored with a posthumous ordination for decades of preaching in The United Methodist Church.
After a military coup forced him out of his native Liberia, United Methodist Bishop Bennie Warner began ministry anew in the U.S. He died at age 89 after serving in Oklahoma and Arkansas.
Members of the Connectional Table — most of whom are new to the United Methodist leadership body — met for an orientation that focused on regionalization, rejecting colonial attitudes and plans for “a new future.”
