United Methodist Reporter Blog

GC 2012—morning activities

General Conference hasn’t even begun officially, but the Convention Center is filling and a lot is happening.

This morning, Bishop Mary Ann Swenson of the California-Pacific Conference spoke at a United Methodist Kairos Response press conference, making a case for divesting church funds of three companies said to support the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories. Bishop Swenson said a trip she made to the Holy Land last year persuaded her that divestment was the right policy.

“I will be with you in this movement for as long as it takes, until we can truly see peace,” she said.

Other speakers included the Rev. Alex Awad, a Palestinian Christian, and Rabbi Brant Rosen, leader of a Jewish Reconstructionist Congregation in Evanston, Ill.

“You have friends in the Jewish community and we are ready to stand with you,” Rabbi Rosen said.

Later in the morning, there was a press conference highlighting the work of the United Methodist Global Aids Fund. The Rev. Donald Messer noted that the fund was created at the 2004 General Conference in a grassroots efforts, and has since raised $3.5 million.

Most people at General Conference are staying at very nice hotels. But Brandon Lazarus, a Perkins School of Theology student and a GC page, and Luke Wetzel, a Duke Divinity student and delegate from the Kansas East Conference, are staying at The Lake House—a nondenominational Christian community.

They both said they wanted to be in a different setting, one where residents live communally and do service to the poor in the area. Both said they have found a great welcome from residents at The Lake House, who have asked them about John Wesley and prayed for GC—and given them rides to and from the Convention Center. 

Here at GC, they met the Rev. Lorenza Andrade Smith, a UM clergywoman from San Antonio who lives on the streets in solidarity with and ministry to the homeless. She’s here to advocate on immigration and other issues, and she’s staying outside. She said that on Sunday night, she got moved from her spot near the Convention Center. Security told her she had to go because a church group was having a convention there, she said.

—Sam Hodges

GC 2012—opening day schedule

General Conference officially begins at 4 p.m. today with opening worship, and the preacher will be Bishop Larry Goodpaster, outgoing president of the Council of Bishops. A 400-plus member mass choir from the Florida Conference is scheduled to perform.

Tonight brings the organization of the General Conference—the first plenary session. The voting system will be tested, and the Commission on General Conference will bring its report.

This morning and afternoon, briefings continue, including one for women delegates, another for delegates under 30, and still another for racial and ethnic minority delegates.

Insufficient orientation? Well, there’s one more such session—for first-time delegates.

—Sam Hodges

From Sam Hodges at General Conference:

The plan to restructure the general church is undergoing, well, restructuring. Jay Brim of the Connectional Table—shown in conversation with North Georgia lay delegate Joe Whittemore (left)—said this morning that the Interim Operations Team proposal for creating a 15-person board to oversee program agencies of the church is now dead.

He said Bishop Greg Palmer, a leader of the IOT effort, sent an email yesterday acknowledging that there would have to be a bigger governing board.

Mr. Brim supports a 45-member board that would have proportional representation from the Central Conferences.

At a Connectional Table briefing today, delegates from Africa raised numerous questions about the restructuring of the general church, suggesting they need more time to study the various proposals.

David Muwaya, a delegate from the East Africa Conference,  told me afterward that he would support pushing back a decision on restructuring until 2016. He said many delegates from Africa haven’t had the Internet access to study proposals as thoroughly as other delegates.

 

Sam Hodges, UMR’s managing editor, reports from Tampa:

The weather is good, and the crowd is beginning to form for General Conference 2012, though the event doesn’t officially begin until 4 p.m. tomorrow with opening worship.

Late yesterday afternoon I caught up with the Rev. Alan Morrison, business manager for GC, before he met with UMCOM workers at the Tampa Convention Center.

Asked how things were going, he said, “It’s just normal start-up stuff, going from one fire to the other.” For the record, he was wearing a Cross and Flame shirt.

I also got to speak to the Rev. Lorenza Andrade Smith, the Texas UM pastor who lives among the homeless to show solidarity and support for them. She noted that she would be sleeping outside each night of GC,  and had been scouting out a few nooks and crannies near the Convention Center. But she posted this on Facebook in the wee hours:

“Just asked to leave my bay-view sleeping spot outside the convention center... They said they're getting ready for some church conference.” 

This morning, Ms. Smith is attending the “Lighten the Burden IV HIV/AIDS” event at Hyde Park UMC in downtown Tampa. That’s sponsored by the United Methodist Global AIDS Fund. Former President Jimmy Carter was on schedule to bring video greetings. Other speakers: Bishop Ivan Abrahams, newly elected general secretary of the World Methodist Council, Bishop Yvette Flunder, presiding bishop and senior pastor of the City of Refuge United Church of Christ in San Francisco, and the Rev. Lydia Munoz, senior pastor of PlumbLine Fellowship at Narbeth UMC, in Narbeth, Pa.

Today at 1:30 p.m. there will be the dedication of the prayer room that will operate throughout GC at the Convention Center. Various briefings and training sessions will also be underway, including a lengthy briefing by the Connectional Table for international delegates.

African delegates are much in evidence, their number having grown as the UMC has grown on the continent. Typically, they flew 16 to 20 hours to get here. One delegate I spoke to had made six flights.

Look for a full UMR story later this week on the increased presence of African and other international delegates at GC.

If you have observations or story tips, message [email protected].

Bishop as Gadfly, in the April 27 'Reporter'

Greetings e-Readers!

Bishop Will Willimon was a UMC gadfly long before he became a bishop. He’s nearing retirement, and he’s out with a book called Bishop, an edgy, funny, challenging memoir. He takes some shots and tells some stories, including on himself. But he’s serious about why he thinks it’s Wesleyan for the UMC to focus on growth. We have a Q&A with him about the book, and we have some of the more memorable passages from it.  Example: “Our church is full of people who think of themselves as theological liberals but who are organizational reactionaries.”
 
The Church of the Resurrection, in Leawood, Kan.  is one of the largest UM churches, with 18,000 members. And now the Adam Hamilton-led church has become a presence in inner-city Kansas City, through the Resurrection Downtown. The branch campus meets in a former bar. Special contributor Nancy Hull Rigdon reports.
 
Ricky Harrison is just 20, but he was a top vote-getter for North Texas Conference delegate to General Conference. He’s been preparing rigorously, including tutorials in Methodism from Bishop Dan Solomon. Staff writer Mary Jacobs did this feature.
 
In commentaries, the Rev. Kent Millard argues that restructuring of general agencies of the UMC is a necessary step toward revitalizing the denomination. The Rev. Donald Haynes looks back to the early days of American Methodism, and finds lessons for today. And F. Douglas Powe, Jr., of Saint Paul School of Theology, argues that African-American churches too often “perpetuate an old-wineskins mentality.”
 
There’s plenty more in this issue, including C. Michael Hawn’s History of Hymns column, this time on gospel favorite “Up From the Grave He Arose,” and a Faith and Leadership interview with Melvin Butler, saxophonist and enthomusicologist, about music and religion in the Africa diaspora.
 
We also have a short piece noting that the United Methodist Reporter was a multiple winner in the Religion Communicators Council’s DeRose-Hinkhouse Memorial Awards competition. United Methodist agencies also won top honors.
 
As I write this, General Conference is a few days away. We’ll be there, providing coverage for print and our website.
 
We welcome your story tips, comments and brief, civil letters to the editor. Send to [email protected].
 
Thanks, as always, for keeping the faith with us.

Sam Hodges, managing editor

Big Event, in the April 20 'Reporter'

Greetings e-Readers!

General Conference 2012 is a few days away, and that means attention to last-minute details, as well as lobbying on key issues. Our story looks at the home stretch of the lead-up to the big event in Tampa, Fla., and previews the Episcopal Address by Bishop Peter Weaver.
 
At General Conference 2012, Bishop Larry Goodpaster will end his term as president of the Council of Bishops. UMR columnist Donald Haynes interviewed him for his reflections on the job and realities facing the UMC.
 
Nearly 30 UMC leaders involved in the Call to Action effort gathered in Chicago recently for two days of meetings on how to renew the denomination. Consensus: the UMC culture must change. United Methodist News Service has the story.
 
Reporter columnist Missy Buchanan worked with ABC TV’s Robin Roberts and her mother, Lucimarian Roberts, on the new book My Story, My Song. It’s published by the UMC’s Upper Room Books. Staff writer Mary Jacobs has a Q&A with Ms. Buchanan about how the project came to be.
 
In commentaries, the Rev. Jim Harnish of Hyde Park UMC in Tampa expresses hope that General Conference delegates meeting in his city will act boldly and shake up the denominational structure. The Rev. Andrew Thompson argues that Methodism is indeed endowed with strong doctrine, and that Methodists need to know and act on it. And retired Bishop Woodie W. White shares tips for obtaining civility in debate and discussion, and recommends them to General Conference delegates. 
 
There’s plenty more in this edition, including C. Michael Hawn’s History of Hymns column, about “Christ Jesus Lay in Death’s Strong Bands,” and a review of the smash hit film The Hunger Games by the Rev. Mike Baughman.
 
We’ll be in Tampa from the beginning to end of General Conference (April 24-May 4), so please look to us for news, features and commentaries.
 
We welcome story tips, comments and brief, civil letters to the editor. Send to [email protected].
 
Thanks, as always, for keeping the faith with us.

Sam Hodges, managing editor

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