Dear Friends,
Over
the past nine months, I’ve been a part of the Northern Illinois Conference
General & Jurisdictional Conference Delegation. General Conference is approaching the end of
this month. For those who are not
familiar with General Conference—it’s the every 4 year gathering of the United
Methodist Church. This is the body that
writes our Book of Discipline and creates our priorities for the next 4
years. The conversations that happen cover
a wide range of topics and this year proves to be no different. There are some big proposals this year that
may not seem to affect the local churches initially, but because we are a
connectional church, everything is related.
Some of
the legislation being considered at General Conference will make national
news…Regardless of the outcome; they are stories being reported on and have
passionate feelings on both sides. Some
of this legislation is around issues of sexuality, divestment, and
marriage. If you are interested in what
the United Methodist Church says about some of the issues currently, you can
find our Social Principles in the Book of Discipline.
Other
pieces of legislation probably won’t make national news, but are pretty big
& important in the life of our denomination. These proposals include a dramatic overhaul
of the structure of our church including taking the current 13 General Agencies
in merging them into 1 board. In simple
terms, it’s taking 860 volunteers and creating a 15 member board that will make
decisions, allocate funds, and help us live into our mission to make disciples
of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world. While this won’t necessarily make national
news, it is sparking fierce debate and conversation across our connection.
I’ll be
attending General Conference as a resource/support person for the
delegation. Our Annual Conference has
selected a group of young adults to represent our conference in this capacity
at General Conference and I’m honored to serve.
This means that I’ll have a front row seat to much of the conversation
and will be able to give a report when I return. If you’re interested in following along with
what’s happening at General Conference, you can catch the live stream from www.umc.org or follow the twitter hashtag #gc2012
or visit the Northern Illinois Conference website www.umcnic.org where several of the delegates
& those attending General Conference (including myself) will be blogging
our experience.
More
than anything, your prayers are needed.
This is an important time for our church and one that needs to be bathed
in prayer. One of the things that I love
the most about the United Methodist Church is that we have a wide range of
diversity. Even though we may disagree
with one another, we are a part of the same church and continue to stay at the
table together.
If you
have any questions about General Conference or any of the legislation or just
want to chat about life…Stop by & see me at Panera (on LaGrange next to
Pier 1) on Tuesdays 5-7pm & Thursdays 11-1pm.
