"We had a big group hug up here before COVID. We've got to do that again." — Pat Thurmond, a member of Oakton United Methodist Church in Clinton, Kentucky.
NEWS AND FEATURES
Rural churches emerging from coronavirus
CLINTON, Ky. (UM News) — In rural Kentucky, the members of Oakton United Methodist Church are savoring the return to in-person worship services as coronavirus precautions fall away. The congregation in Hickman County numbered seven at a recent worship service. Jim Patterson reports, with photos by Mike DuBose.
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Tennessee Conference
After tornado, churchgoers give family hope
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The Whitehead family considered themselves fortunate to survive Nashville's devastating 2020 tornado. But to rebuild, they found they needed help from a joint ministry of the Tennessee Conference and the United Methodist Committee on Relief. Cindy Solomon reports.
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Greater New Jersey Conference
$1 million going to recognize Native Americans
NEPTUNE, N.J. — The Greater New Jersey Conference is allocating $1 million to preserve a Native American church and burial ground and return land and buildings to a tribe. "This is a promise that has promise," said Cynthia Mosley, a member of the Lenape tribe who chairs the conference Committee on Native American Ministries. She and other United Methodists also are working to call attention to the unsolved cases of missing and murdered indigenous women and girls. Heather Mistretta has the story.
South Georgia Conference
KILT ministry supports young men's faith
MIDLAND, Ga. — To a group of young men, receiving a kilt is an honor — a distinction earned for years of commitment, service and leadership. Kara Witherow has the story on Pierce Chapel United Methodist Church's Knights in Leadership Training program for high school males.
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AL.com
Retiring pastor goes from pulpit to tractor
DECATUR, Ala. — After 48 years of preaching, the Rev. Hughey Reynolds plans to start his retirement by restoring antique tractors. He has found that pastoring United Methodist churches can be like keeping a tractor running. Greg Garrison has the story.
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No Daily Digest on June 23-24
There will be no Daily Digest on Wednesday, June 23, and Thursday, June 24, so that the UM News staff can attend a team retreat. The Friday Digest will resume June 25.
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.
Social media enables community around news
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (UM News) — Social media has extended The United Methodist Church's reach and revolutionized the way UM News reports. However, those advances come with challenges. Tim Tanton, chief news officer, writes about the impact of social media on news and what it means to be a neighbor.
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Learn about Social Media Day and explore resources
RECENT HEADLINES
Online gamer ministry offers unique outreach
Cicadas show up for church, testing clergy
EVENTS
Thursday, June 24
Webinar series: Engaging the Community for Social Transformation
Wednesday, June 30
Social Media Day Q&A hosted by United Methodist Communications
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