“The church needs to be about compassion. Our society tends to posit things in a binary fashion of good and evil. We can inject mercy into the public debate.” — The Rev. Jeff Allen, executive director, West Virginia Council of Churches.
NEWS AND FEATURES
Pastors push to help addict offenders rejoin society
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (UM News) — Some say religion should stay separate from politics. Others feel the church is called to advocate for mercy and justice. This is the eighth in an ongoing series about churches in West Virginia dealing with the opioid crisis. Joey Butler reports, Mike DuBose has photos.
Read story
Evangelism crusades enrich lives in Zimbabwe
CHIREDZI TOWN, Zimbabwe (UM News) — The United Methodist Church in Zimbabwe is still working to penetrate remote, impoverished areas with the Gospel. Recently, the first of three crusades took place in a resettlement area 270 miles from Harare. Four teams of evangelists and pastors went into the villages to participate in door-to-door campaigns and mission work. Kudzai Chingwe has the story.
Read story
Virginia Conference
Moving forward from Charlottesville violence
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — The people of Charlottesville continue to remember the violence that erupted during a white supremacist rally on Aug. 12, 2017, which “uncovered the implicitly sustained racial injustice in our community,” says Bill Clarke, lay leader at First United Methodist Church. Events are planned at First Church and elsewhere as part of the city’s “Unity Days 2019.” Forrest White reports.
Read story
UM News: Charlottesville clergy hope for peaceful weekend
Deaf and Hard of Hearing Ministries
Grants assist hearing-impaired, larger community
ATLANTA — Several recent grants made through the deaf and hard of hearing ministries committee of the Global Health unit, United Methodist Board of Global Ministries, will help local congregations connect with and impact their wider communities in innovative ways, writes the Rev. Leo Yates Jr.
Read blog post
Indiana Conference
Flood experience leads church to plan ahead
FRANKLIN, Ind. — Grace United Methodist Church has strengthened ties with the United Methodist Committee on Relief, Red Cross, local emergency response and law enforcement agencies after suffering a major flood 11 years ago. After UMCOR training, the church formed its own task force and a disaster response team. Leintz Belony reports.
Read story
PRESS RELEASES
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
Lutheran body declares itself a sanctuary church
MILWAUKEE — The 2019 Churchwide Assembly, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, voted Aug. 7 to declare itself a sanctuary church body — making a commitment to serve and support migrant children and families in communities across the country. Earlier in the day, the Rev. Elizabeth Eaton, the ELCA’s presiding bishop, joined more than 700 assembly members and others in a march and prayer vigil to the Milwaukee Immigration and Customs Enforcement office.
Read press release
UM News: Immigrant in United Methodist church fined $214,000
COMMENTARIES
UM News includes in the Daily Digest various commentaries about issues in the denomination. The opinion pieces reflect a variety of viewpoints and are the opinions of the writers, not the UM News staff.
World Council of Churches
Gun violence challenges US churches
GENEVA — How are churches to respond to gun violence in the United States, which over the last weekend alone took three dozen lives? J. Michael West offers perspectives from several church leaders, including the Rev. Deanna Hollas, installed last month as the Presbyterian Church (USA)’s first minister of gun violence prevention.
Read commentary
RECENT HEADLINES
Seminary professors are ideological adversaries, unlikely friends
Sewing center nurtures girls, women in Congo
EVENTS
Wednesday, Aug. 14
Summer preaching seminar
NEWS AND FEATURES
Pastors push to help addict offenders rejoin society
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (UM News) — Some say religion should stay separate from politics. Others feel the church is called to advocate for mercy and justice. This is the eighth in an ongoing series about churches in West Virginia dealing with the opioid crisis. Joey Butler reports, Mike DuBose has photos.
Read story
Evangelism crusades enrich lives in Zimbabwe
CHIREDZI TOWN, Zimbabwe (UM News) — The United Methodist Church in Zimbabwe is still working to penetrate remote, impoverished areas with the Gospel. Recently, the first of three crusades took place in a resettlement area 270 miles from Harare. Four teams of evangelists and pastors went into the villages to participate in door-to-door campaigns and mission work. Kudzai Chingwe has the story.
Read story
Virginia Conference
Moving forward from Charlottesville violence
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — The people of Charlottesville continue to remember the violence that erupted during a white supremacist rally on Aug. 12, 2017, which “uncovered the implicitly sustained racial injustice in our community,” says Bill Clarke, lay leader at First United Methodist Church. Events are planned at First Church and elsewhere as part of the city’s “Unity Days 2019.” Forrest White reports.
Read story
UM News: Charlottesville clergy hope for peaceful weekend
Deaf and Hard of Hearing Ministries
Grants assist hearing-impaired, larger community
ATLANTA — Several recent grants made through the deaf and hard of hearing ministries committee of the Global Health unit, United Methodist Board of Global Ministries, will help local congregations connect with and impact their wider communities in innovative ways, writes the Rev. Leo Yates Jr.
Read blog post
Indiana Conference
Flood experience leads church to plan ahead
FRANKLIN, Ind. — Grace United Methodist Church has strengthened ties with the United Methodist Committee on Relief, Red Cross, local emergency response and law enforcement agencies after suffering a major flood 11 years ago. After UMCOR training, the church formed its own task force and a disaster response team. Leintz Belony reports.
Read story
PRESS RELEASES
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
Lutheran body declares itself a sanctuary church
MILWAUKEE — The 2019 Churchwide Assembly, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, voted Aug. 7 to declare itself a sanctuary church body — making a commitment to serve and support migrant children and families in communities across the country. Earlier in the day, the Rev. Elizabeth Eaton, the ELCA’s presiding bishop, joined more than 700 assembly members and others in a march and prayer vigil to the Milwaukee Immigration and Customs Enforcement office.
Read press release
UM News: Immigrant in United Methodist church fined $214,000
COMMENTARIES
UM News includes in the Daily Digest various commentaries about issues in the denomination. The opinion pieces reflect a variety of viewpoints and are the opinions of the writers, not the UM News staff.
World Council of Churches
Gun violence challenges US churches
GENEVA — How are churches to respond to gun violence in the United States, which over the last weekend alone took three dozen lives? J. Michael West offers perspectives from several church leaders, including the Rev. Deanna Hollas, installed last month as the Presbyterian Church (USA)’s first minister of gun violence prevention.
Read commentary
RECENT HEADLINES
Seminary professors are ideological adversaries, unlikely friends
Sewing center nurtures girls, women in Congo
EVENTS
Wednesday, Aug. 14
Summer preaching seminar
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