“In the tradition of John Wesley, we were field preaching. The songs were our sermon.” — The Rev. Eric Little, a United Methodist pastor who with other clergy led a hymn sing to counter a white-supremacist rally.
Photos by Kathy L. Gilbert
NEWS AND FEATURES
Praying, singing as white supremacists rally
SHELBYVILLE, Tenn. (UMNS) — As the same hate groups that descended on Charlottesville, Virginia, came to Tennessee, United Methodists responded with prayers, hymns and chants of love. Heather Hahn and Kathy L. Gilbert have the story and photos.
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Court maintains stand on ministerial candidates
LOS ANGELES (UMNS) — In an Oct. 27 ruling on the duties of a conference board of ordained ministry, The United Methodist Church’s top court restated its earlier opinion that all qualifications of ministerial candidates must be examined. But Judicial Council also ruled against what it called “clear efforts to re-litigate” a previous complaint against an Iowa clergywoman. The council met Oct. 24-27. Linda Bloom reports.
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What it means to witness
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (UMC.org) — United Methodists promise to faithfully participate in a local congregation through their prayers, presence, gifts, service and witness. The word “witness” was added by the 2008 United Methodist General Conference to highlight the mission and evangelistic responsibilities of church membership. But members don’t have to be articulate theologically to witness, said the Rev. Mark W. Stamm. Julie Dwyer reports in the second in a five-part series on membership vows.
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Read Part 1: A promise to pray
Discipleship Ministries
Conferences embrace #SeeAllThePeople
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Conference leaders and clergy are embracing the #SeeAllThePeople initiative to be in relationship with the communities surrounding their churches as a way to fully embody the spirit of the Wesleyan tradition. Discipleship Ministries offers an overview of the response to its initiative.
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PRESS RELEASES
Board of Higher Education and Ministry
UM history course offered in Spanish
NASHVILLE, Tenn.—The Office of Clergy Formation at the United Methodist Board of Higher Education and Ministry is now offering La Historia de la Iglesia Metodista Unida, United Methodist history, for the beginning term in 2018, Jan. 15 to March 25. This is the first time the course has been offered in Spanish.
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To register
United Methodist Communications
Survey on missionaries
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — United Methodist Communications and Global Ministries are seeking United Methodist opinions on missionaries and their work. Your feedback will help shape programs and the way agencies communicate about missionaries. This survey should take about 10 minutes.
Take survey
RECENT HEADLINES
Special Report: Honduras and Guatemala 2017
Clergy network stands strong in Charlottesville
Liberian radio broadcasts hope
EVENTS
Here are some of the activities ahead for United Methodists across the connection. If you have a United Methodist event to share, you can add it to the calendar with this submission form.
Wednesday, Nov. 1
Lecture: “Between Fear and Hope: The Future of Interfaith Engagement”
Workshop: “Dismantling Bias and Hate"
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