Ordination

The Rev. Dr. Javier A. Viera. Photo courtesy of Garrett Seminary.

To revitalize the church, we must invest in deacons

The United Methodist Church cannot continue to treat deacons as a second class within the ordination hierarchy.

The Rev. Karen Jeffcoat gives instructions to Yves Kinangwa, pastor at Coffeyville-Edna, before lunch break during the Great Plains Conference Board of Ordained Ministry credentialing process. Photo courtesy of the Great Plains Conference.

Conference sees record 50 clergy candidates

The Great Plains Conference Board of Ordained Ministry — or BoOM for short — has seen a boom of its own this year. A record 50 candidates interviewed from Jan. 31 to Feb. 2 at Topeka First United Methodist Church as part of the credentialing process that will lead to ordination.

Discipleship

Mission leaders and guests from the U.S. and Korea gather to celebrate the 20th anniversary of United Methodist ministry in Mongolia during the Mongolian Mission Initiative’s annual gathering on Oct. 3. Photo courtesy of the Asia Regional Office, United Methodist Board of Global Ministries.

Celebrating 20 years of mission in Mongolia

The Mongolia mission, initiated by the Korean United Methodist Church in 2003, now has 12 United Methodist churches, two mission centers and various outreach ministries serving the Mongolian community.

Annual Conferences

Draped chairs symbolize that Florida Conference candidates for provisional membership — an important step toward ordination as elder or deacon — failed to get approved by the conference clergy session. The controversial decision, made during the conference’s gathering in Lakeland, Fla., illustrated denominational division over LGBTQ inclusion. The decision also altered the June 11 concluding service, where the 16 were to be commissioned. Photo by Esther Rodriguez via Facebook.

Clergy session vote highlights LGBTQ divide

Controversy embroiled the Florida Conference as its clergy session narrowly voted not to approve for advancement on the clergy track a slate of 16 persons, some openly gay.

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