United Methodist Church

General Church
From left, Bishop Chungsuk Kim, president bishop of the Korean Methodist Church; the Rev. Byung-bae Hwang, general secretary of its General Board of Missions; Roland Fernandes, top executive of United Methodist Board of Global Ministries; and Bishop Rosemarie Wenner, an ecumenical officer of the United Methodist Council of Bishops, mark the signing of a mission cooperation covenant Oct. 14 in Sokcho, South Korea. The agreement commits the churches’ mission agencies to annual consultations and deeper cooperation. Photo by the Rev. Thomas E. Kim, UM News.

United Methodists, Korean church renew ties

Building on 141 years of shared missionary heritage, leaders of The United Methodist Church and the Korean Methodist Church signed a new covenant committing their mission agencies to regular dialogue and deeper cooperation.
Local Church
Participants sing during the opening worship service of the first day of the 2023 special session of the National Association of the Korean American United Methodists at Korean First United Methodist Church of Wheeling, Ill., on Oct. 2. Pictured, from left, are Bishop Dottie Escobedo-Frank of the California-Pacific Annual Conference, Bishop Hee-Soo Jung of the Wisconsin Annual Conference, Dr. Dana Lyles, the Rev. MiRhang Baek, the Rev. Prumeh Lee and the Rev. Ju-Yeon Julie Jeon. Photo by the Rev. Thomas E. Kim, UM News.

Korean United Methodists gather to celebrate their passion and spirituality

The 2023 special session of the National Association of the Korean American United Methodists was held Oct. 2-5 in Northbrook, Illinois — its first in-person gathering since 2019.
General Church
A large crowd at a June 13 Celebrate UMC-sponsored event at Huntingdon College in Montgomery, Alabama, rises in applause. Celebrate UMC, which formed in the Alabama-West Florida Conference, is one of a handful of grassroots groups that are making an affirmative case for The United Methodist Church as some congregations decide whether to leave the denomination. Photo courtesy of Celebrate UMC.

Grassroots groups talk up The United Methodist Church

In a season of discussion and action about local church disaffiliation, coalitions such as Stay UMC and Celebrate UMC are challenging what they see as misinformation and making a case for remaining in The United Methodist Church.
General Church
A large crowd at a June 13 Celebrate UMC-sponsored event at Huntingdon College in Montgomery, Alabama, rises in applause. Celebrate UMC, which formed in the Alabama-West Florida Conference, is one of a handful of grassroots groups that are making an affirmative case for The United Methodist Church as some congregations decide whether to leave the denomination. Photo courtesy of Celebrate UMC.

Grassroots groups talk up The United Methodist Church

In a season of discussion and action about local church disaffiliation, coalitions such as Stay UMC and Celebrate UMC are challenging what they see as misinformation and making a case for remaining in The United Methodist Church.

Sign up for our newsletter!

Subscribe Now
Loading

United Methodist Communications is an agency of The United Methodist Church

©2026 United Methodist Communications. All Rights Reserved