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Ecumenism

Sunlight filters through old-growth redwoods, some as tall as 300 feet, at Armstrong Redwoods State Natural Reserve near Guerneville, Calif. United Methodists are joining with Christians across traditions in adding a shared feast day and season that focuses on God, the Creator. Photo by Mike DuBose, UM News.

Creation celebration added to church year

United Methodists are joining with Christians across traditions in adding a shared feast day and season that focuses on God, the Creator. The season coincides with an ecumenical focus on addressing climate change.

Editor's Picks

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.

Evangelism

Bishop Antoine Tambwe Kalema (center) poses for a photo with the 11 district superintendents from the Eastern Congo Conference who received new motorcycles as a gift from the bishop during the 2026 annual conference. Many of the church leaders had spent years traveling on foot or by bicycle to minister to their communities. Behind them is the Mgr. Gabriel Unda Yemba Multipurpose Hall at the Mama Lynn Center in Kindu, Congo. Photo by Chadrack Tambwe Londe, UM News.

Bishop purchases motorcycles for pastors in Congo

Bishop Antoine Tambwe Kalema presented 11 motorcycles to United Methodist district superintendents in Maniema to reduce travel time and make caring for their communities easier.

Annual Conferences

Annual Conference Reports

2026 United Methodist annual conference reports

UM News posts the official summaries filed by annual conferences from around the connection. Find the latest reports on our archive page.

Latest News

Disaster Relief

The Rev. Heather J. Zisengwe, superintendent for The United Methodist Church’s Bulawayo Midlands District in Zimbabwe, holds a baby at a transit camp set up by the Zimbabwe Council of Churches for migrants who have left South Africa amid anti-immigration protests. The temporary center in the sanctuary of the United Church of Christ in Southern Africa in Njube was the hub for humanitarian efforts by mainline churches in Zimbabwe. Photo courtesy of the Rev. Heather J. Zisengwe.

United Methodists respond to South African migration crisis

Disaster Relief

A disaster site hit by a massive debris flow along a tributary of the Bhotekoshi River is seen in Bidur, Nepal, on Aug. 28. Nepalese police said the death toll had reached 469 as of the morning of Aug. 28 after catastrophic flooding and debris flows struck the Nepal-Tibet border region. Photo by Yomiuri Shimbun, via AP.

Churches mobilize after deadly Nepal-Tibet floods

The Rev. Ronell Howard addresses attendees at the Greater New Jersey Conference’s “Prayerful Witness” outside Delaney Hall immigration detention center in Newark, N.J. on Aug. 15. She invoked Jesus’ second commandment, "Love your neighbor as yourself,” which became a recurring theme for the day. Photo by John W. Coleman, UM News.

‘Prayerful witness’ offered for immigrants

The Rev. Changhyun Kim, pastor of Bonfire United Methodist Church and chef at The Table Korean Cuisine in Olathe, Kan., talks with customers as he delivers a takeout meal to a table during Friday dinner service. Kim has turned his passion for his native cuisine into a successful outreach ministry for Bonfire, a new congregation supported by the Great Plains Conference’s church development ministry. Photo by the Rev. Thomas E. Kim, UM News.

Church sets the table to connect beyond its walls

Annual Conferences

The New England Conference is working with federal and local investigators after a cybersecurity incident resulted in the theft of $1.6 million earlier this month. Conference leaders also are taking steps to help fellow United Methodists prevent wire fraud. Photo courtesy of the New England Conference.

Conference confronts cyber theft with faith, resolve

Mission and Ministry

Living the vision

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The Rev. Matt Tuggle, senior minister of Highland Park United Methodist Church, speaks to the congregation Aug. 16 about a civil lawsuit filed by the Horizon Texas Conference against the church. Highland Park’s church council approved a resolution Aug. 20, declaring it no longer recognizes the authority of its bishop and conference to direct the congregation or its clergy. Screen shot courtesy of Highland Park United Methodist Church.

Highland Park leaders escalate response to lawsuit

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The Rev. Cosmas Chafanza (third from left) greets members after church service at Magamba Circuit’s new sanctuary in Rusape, Zimbabwe. The circuit is seeing growth through its evangelism and outreach efforts. Photo by Kudzai Chingwe, UM News.

Zimbabwe circuit offers model for evangelism, growth

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Social Concerns

In this 2024 file photo, a visiting delegation of church activists from the United States prays for Setrag Balian (center), a leader of the youth-led struggle to save the Armenian Quarter of Jerusalem's Old City. The delegation came to the Middle East to accompany threatened Christians and other Palestinians and call for a ceasefire in Gaza. A similar U.S. interfaith delegation traveling to Israel and Palestine to meet with Christians in the Holy Land was turned away at the Israel border on Aug. 13. The group included four United Methodists. File photo by Paul Jeffrey, Life on Earth Pictures.

United Methodists denied entry to Israel

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Mission and Ministry

The Rev. James T. Laney speaks during the Roundtable for Peace on the Korean Peninsula in Atlanta in 2018. Laney, former U.S. Ambassador to South Korea and lifelong advocate for peace and reconciliation on the Korean peninsula, died Aug. 13. He was 98. File photo by Mike DuBose, UM News.

Remembering James T. Laney, a lifelong friend to Korea

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The board of The United Methodist Church’s finance agency on Aug. 21 heard a midyear review on the state of denominational finances. The news was generally positive. Photo illustration by Kathleen Barry, UM News.

Church giving shows signs of stability

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Commentaries

An upswell of joy

The Rev. Christopher P. Momany. Photo by Kristen Schell.

On human dignity: People are ends in themselves

When screens become a theological question

A United Methodist call to healthy aging

Why I chose to remain in The United Methodist Church

Rising up and loving boldly

When the doors were not yet open

Pastor urges halt to troops’ presence in DC

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Multimedia

The Rev. Andrea Byer Thomas makes therapeutic soaps and creams to soothe skin allergies. Photos courtesy of Handmade Luxuries.

A ministry of healing

Faith, resilience and self-care come together in United Methodist pastor’s unique ministry, which includes a vegan skincare line.

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Disaster Relief

Lahaina United Methodist Church on Maui lost its sanctuary in the deadly Maui wildfires, but its congregation never lost its faith. Photo by Lilla Marigza, UM News.

3 years after wildfire, hope spreads in Lahaina

Mission and Ministry

The Rev. Betsy Singleton Snyder offers a blessing to Julia Sugarbaker, a mini goldendoodle, at Pinnacle View United Methodist Church in Little Rock, Ark. Snyder and co-author Gayle Fiser have written a book on how churches can start successful pet ministries. Photo from video by Lilla Marigza, UM News.

How churches can adopt their own pet ministries

Happy Fourth of July! Photo by Mike DuBose; graphic by Laurens Glass, UM News.

Social media graphics from UM News

Mission and Ministry

Holly Petti and her dog Paisley chat with people entering the Sanctuary at Pinnacle View United Methodist Church in Little Rock, Ark. The church has a designated dog greeter every Sunday in addition to numerous pet outreach ministries the congregation offers. Image from video by Lilla Marigza, UM News.

Dog church welcomes people and pets