News & Info

Statement on Immigration to Governor Bryant from MS from Religious Leaders

Statement on Immigration to Governor Bryant and the Mississippi Legislature from Religious Leaders in Mississippi United Methodist people are called to personal and social holiness. We anticipate not only a "new heaven" but also a "new earth." In this spirit of this call toward a gentle and just world, this statement has been drafted and signed. It may be useful to you as you engage the issue of immigration in your church and community. Click here to read the full...

Sowing promise for developing countries

A UMNS REPORT By Carrie Madren* (From left) Bob Sefrit, Rick Hansen, Lee Hansen and Keith Wensel stand by Sefrit’s plot where corn was harvested for the Fairfax FRB Growing Project. A UMNS photo provided by Fairfax United Methodist Church. Photo by Roger Cary. When Bob Sefrit of Fairfax, Mo., decided to plant 10 acres of corn as part of a Foods Resource Bank “growing project” with his church’s United Methodist Men, he insisted on a dedication service. “As soon...

Supreme Court shields church from bias laws

A UMNS Report By Heather Hahn* The U.S. Supreme Court in a landmark unanimous decision on Jan. 11 recognized a “ministerial exception” to employment discrimination laws. File photo by Franz Jantzen, Collection of the Supreme Court of the United States. A landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision this month establishes that The United Methodist Church and other religious groups are free to set their own rules for choosing and dismissing leaders without government interference. The...

Home nourishes body, soul of Nigerian young

A UMNS Report By Hassan Audu *   Children from a United Methodist-related Nigerian orphanage stand in welcome at the entrance along with coordinator Simon Benjamin. UMNS web-only photos by Hassan Audu. One day in the spring of 2011 a baby boy was found lying beneath his dead mother in Makong Danburam, a community in Nigeria. Danburam is in the far north and about 50 kilometers from Jalingo, the capital of Taraba State. The majority of the community is women. Many of the young females...

Briefing previews General Conference issues

By United Methodist News Service* Editor’s note: This is a look at issues explored at a recent Pre-General Conference News Briefing in Tampa, Fla. A separate story, Preview to church restructuring debate, focuses on the proposal to restructure the church. The Rev. Jay Williams (left) listens during a panel discussion about clergy effectiveness at The United Methodist Church's Pre-General Conference news briefing at the Tampa Convention Center in Florida. With him are the Revs. Tom Choi...

Young adults lead social justice startups

A UMNS Report By Tita Parham* The Executive Team of Spark12 are (from left) the Rev. DJ del Rosario, Patrick Scriven, the Rev. April Casperson, and Joseph Kim. A UMNS photo illustration by Kathleen Barry. The United Methodist Church is taking a page from the tech startup world, and the resulting initiative enables young adults to be leaders in ministry. Called Spark12, it is an incubator for social justice ministries developed and implemented by young adults. It is one way the denomination...

'Exploring Differences, Deepening Faith'

A UMNS Commentary By Teresa Mueller* HARTFORD, Conn. (UMNS)  The author enjoyed a very multicultural, multifaith experience while living on campus at the Hartford Seminary. A web-only photo illustration by iStockphoto.com/Alex Max. Stepping out of our comfort zones to follow God’s calling on our life is risky, but full of unimaginable rewards. Six years ago, I did something I considered crazy: I quit a job I loved to follow a calling on my heart into ministry.  I am not...

UMTV: World Record Female Bodybuilder

   Download: QuickTime (MP4) | Windows Media (WMV) INTRO: A United Methodist woman isn’t just fighting to stay young. She’s winning. Seventy-five-year old Ernestine Shepherd holds the Guinness record as the world’s oldest female bodybuilder. How does she do it? Physical, and spiritual, fitness. SCRIPT: (Locator: Baltimore, Maryland) Ernestine Shepherd: “My joy is working out, running. It makes me feel great and I love to inspire and motivate...

Group proposes alternative restructure

A UMNS Report By Heather Hahn* A UMNS photo illustration by Kathleen Barry Uneasy with the Call to Action’s proposed restructuring, leaders of one special-interest group have submitted an alternative reorganization for The United Methodist Church’s top lawmaking body to consider. The Methodist Federation for Social Action, an unofficial progressive caucus, has submitted legislation for a proposal titled “A New UM Administrative Order.” The group is the only one of...

Racism still stings, bishop tells King

A UMNS Feature By Bishop Woodie W. White* Editor’s note: Bishop Woodie W. White, the first chief executive of the United Methodist Commission on Religion and Race, writes a “birthday letter” each year to the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. in which the bishop reflects on the progress of racial equality in the United States. Bishop Woodie W. White pens his annual “birthday letter” to the late Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in advance of the civil rights...

Conference trains church planters

A UMNS Report By Holly McCray* (From left) Sunrise Ross, Jeff O’Dell and the Rev. Bernadine Dowdy take part in a small-group project in Oklahoma City during Lay Missionary Planting Network training in the Oklahoma Indian Missionary Conference. A UMNS photo by Holly McCray Working in trios on a Saturday morning, the men and women decorated puzzle pieces to represent segments of The United Methodist Church: general agencies, annual (regional) conferences and more. Then they connected...

Methodists cooperate in Haiti's recovery

A UMNS News-feature By Linda Bloom*   For Methodists, the recovery process since the Jan. 12, 2010, Haiti earthquake can easily be measured by statistics: dollars raised, churches and schools repaired, volunteer teams sent. What is less measurable —  but ultimately more important — are the new or renewed relationships forged among Haitian Methodists, Haitian communities, The United Methodist Church and other global partners, both large and small. “Generally...

Breadfruit flour effort aims to enrich Haiti

A UMNS Report By Lilla Marigza* Download: QuickTime (MP4) | Windows Media (WMV) Eighty-nine-year-old Hank Garwick has a heart for mission work. He has made 21 trips to India and 19 trips to Haiti. For more than a decade, Garwick has been the driving force behind a project of the Hennepin Avenue United Methodist Church in Minneapolis, a congregation that helps find sustainable ways to feed people who do not know where they will get their next meal. Members of Hennepin Avenue Church...

Black leaders talk about church changes

A UMNS Report By Amy Forbus*   The Rev. Ronnie Miller-Yow, national president of Black Methodists for Church Renewal and pastor of Wesley Chapel United Methodist Church in Little Rock, Ark., shares his perspective at the Can We Talk? gathering. UMNS photos by Amy Forbus. View in Photo Gallery //--> Proposals for change across the denomination drove the discussion at a gathering of African-American church leaders from the South Central Jurisdiction. The main question that had...

New report connects farmers, the hungry

A UMNS Report By Linda Bloom* Low-income families need better access to nutritious foods, says Bread for the World in its 2012 Hunger Report. Photo courtesy of Bread for the World/Laura Elizabeth Pohl. View in Photo Gallery Darin Greear of Riner, Va., loves farming so much that he uses income from his full-time job as a real estate agent to subsidize his passion. Raised on a family farm, he leases out most of the 450 acres he still owns with his father but cultivates an alfalfa...

Board screens out private-prison stocks

A UMNS Report By Heather Hahn* Angela Moyo protests outside the Nashville, Tenn., headquarters of Corrections Corporation of America on Nov. 14. UMNS photos by Kathleen Barry. Private prison companies are big business. But, is it moral for United Methodists to make a profit from the incarceration of people? The United Methodist Church’s pension agency has pondered that question since May. The Board of Pension and Health Benefits announced Jan. 3 its decision to prohibit investments in...

Science can help church keep its young folk

A UMNS Commentary By Gary B. Sherman* An article, “Six Reasons Young Christians Leave Church,” highlights results from a study by the Barna Group. The findings were reported in the recently published book, “You Lost Me: Why Young Christians Are Leaving the Church ... and Rethinking Faith” by David Kinnaman. This nationwide study found evidence that for too many young folk, “Churches come across as antagonistic to science.” The study found “three out...

How congregations can reach job seekers

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Soul changing prayer

10 ways to improve your prayer life Hint: Listen Carefully 5 ideas for helping your child talk to God Rule 1: Make time each day Revive prayer ministries Churches share success stories The Lord's Prayer revisited ...

UMTV: Church Drive-Thru Prayer

  Download: QuickTime (MP4) | Windows Media (WMV) INTRO: A drive-thru prayer service is gaining traction near Atlanta not just for the convenience, but for the connection it offers. Drivers stuck in rush hour along busy Highway 78 can pull in for some stress relief. For many, praying in the comfort of their cars can be easier than walking into a traditional church. SCRIPT: (Locator: Snellville, Georgia) (Horns honking) Voice of The Rev. Julie Schendel: “We are...