Church Leadership

Faith Stories
Bishop Alfred F. “Fritz” Mutti III, who led United Methodists in Kansas from 1992 to 2004, died Sept. 1 at age 88. Alongside his late wife, he advocated for LGBTQ inclusion and helped establish the United Methodist Global AIDS Committee and Fund. Photo courtesy of the Council of Bishops.

Bishop Mutti, leader in AIDS fight, dies

Retired Bishop Albert Frederick “Fritz” Mutti, alongside his late wife, advocated for LGBTQ inclusion and helped establish the United Methodist Global AIDS Fund. The couple’s tireless advocacy came out of great personal loss.
Young People
High school students gather in Nashville, Tenn., for the Hispanic Youth Leadership Academy preparatory session, a program focused on nurturing the next generation of Hispanic-Latino leaders. Photo by the Rev. Gustavo Vásquez, UM News.

Equipping Hispanic-Latino youth for leadership

For more than two decades, the Hispanic Youth Leadership Academy has answered a call to help young people explore leadership, vocation and Christian service.
Church Leadership
The Rev. Adam Hamilton has led Church of the Resurrection in Leawood, Kansas, for 36 years. Hamilton is currently running for the U.S. Senate. Photo courtesy of hamiltonforkansas.com.

Hamilton honored for connectional leadership

The Rev. Adam Hamilton, United Methodist pastor and Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate, was honored for leadership on Aug. 4 during the 2026 installment of Discipleship Ministries’ School of Congregational Development.
Faith Stories
Clara Ester of the Alabama-West Florida Conference addresses the 2016 United Methodist General Conference in Portland, Ore. Ester, who was a United Methodist deaconess and respected civil rights advocate, died July 9 at age 77. File photo by Mike DuBose, UM News.

Remembering civil rights advocate Clara Ester

The lifelong United Methodist, who died July 9 at age 77, was inspired by the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. to fight injustice. She went on to inspire countless others as a deaconess and servant leader.

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