Support UM News at General Conference: Your gift ensures that you and other visitors receive the latest updates, in-depth analysis, and diverse perspectives from General Conference.

Education

United Methodist Men
Steven Scheid (left), director of scouting ministry for United Methodist Men, bows his head in prayer Aug. 2 before introducing Roger Krone (right), CEO of Scouting America. Krone spoke Aug. 2 about scouting during the 2025 National Men’s and Scouting Ministry Gathering at Epworth-by-the-Sea, a United Methodist retreat center in St. Simons Island, Ga.  Photo by Jim Patterson, UM News.

Scouts, UM Men look to the future

United Methodist Men and the church’s Scouting America ministry held its first gathering since 2017. One big concern was reaching young men.
Faith Stories
Africa University graduate Panashe Banda displays buckets of mazhanje, an African wild fruit, he brought as a gift to the Zimbabwe West Conference head office staff. Banda has been sharing his family’s harvest with the staff each year as a thank you for the church scholarship he received to attend the United Methodist university in Mutare, Zimbabwe. Photo by Chenayi Kumuterera, UM News.

Church gift fuels student’s determination to succeed

Africa University graduate fulfills his dream through church scholarship and shows his gratitude with harvest gift to Zimbabwe West Conference staff.
Central Conferences
Tafadzwa Chingosho works in his fields in Hanwa, Zimbabwe, to keep the crops free from weeds. Chingosho, who left school to pursue his dream of being a farmer, gained skills through United Methodist programs including Zimbabwe Volunteers in Mission and the Yambasu Agriculture Initiative. Photo by Kudzai Chingwe, UM News.

Church programs help young farmer pursue dream

Despite struggling academically, 18-year-old Tafadzwa Chingosho is finding success in pepper farming after being trained by The United Methodist Church.
Theology and Education
A lawsuit over United Methodist control of Southern Methodist University in Dallas has reached the Texas Supreme Court. The South Central Jurisdictional Conference of The United Methodist Church filed the lawsuit in 2019 after the university’s board of trustees voted to change the university’s articles of incorporation without the jurisdictional conference’s approval. Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons, Creative Commons.

High court: Church can sue for SMU control

A Texas Supreme Court ruling deals a setback to Southern Methodist University’s move to gain independence from The United Methodist Church’s South Central Jurisdictional Conference.

Sign up for our newsletter!

Subscribe Now
Loading

United Methodist Communications is an agency of The United Methodist Church

©2025 United Methodist Communications. All Rights Reserved