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General Church
Christine Dodson asks a question at the General Council on Finance and Administration board meeting on July 18 in Dallas. Dodson serves as vice president of GCFA’s board and is treasurer of the North Carolina Conference. She and fellow board members discussed reduced giving across the church since General Conference 2019, a contentious event that underscored the church’s divisions over how accepting to be of homosexuality. Photo by Sam Hodges, UM News.
Photo by Sam Hodges, UM News

Apportionment collection rates down after GC2019
Denomination’s finance agency reports declines in giving through June across the seven general church funds.

Editor's Picks

Evangelism
Phyllis Terwilliger takes note of the height of tomato stakes at The Giving Garden, a ministry of Franklin (Tenn.) First United Methodist Church that donates the food grown there to people in need. She and her husband, the Rev. Mark Terwilliger, from Countryside Community Church, a United Methodist fellowship in Clarks Summit, Pa., were attending the 2019 United Methodist Creation Care Summit in Nashville, Tenn. Photo by Mike DuBose, UM News.

Urgency needed to combat climate change
United Methodists agreed at a conference on climate change that the church must be more systemic and aggressive to help keep the planet Earth supporting human life.
Annual Conferences
United Methodist conference reports. Find out what’s happening across the connection. Read official filings of annual and central conference meetings from around the world. Graphic by Laurens Glass, UM News; globe by Mediengestalter courtesy of Pixabay.

United Methodist conference reports
Find out what’s happening across the connection. Read official filings of annual conference meetings from around the world.
Mission and Ministry
International participants listen during a presentation at the United Methodist HIV/AIDS summit in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire. From left are Augustin Bahati, communicator and member of the Rwanda Provisional Conference’s health board; Pauline Roberts, HIV and AIDS counselor and coordinator for the Liberia Conference; and Dr. Madaki Micah Musa, chairman of the church’s health board in the Nigeria Conference. Photo by Isaac Broune, UMNS.

Strategizing to fight HIV, AIDS in West Africa
Thirty delegates from Côte d'Ivoire, Liberia, Nigeria, Rwanda and the U.S. attended a United Methodist summit in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire.

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Social Concerns
A United Methodist women’s choir sings during a consultation on peace and Christian unity in Uvira, Congo. Photo by Philippe Kituka Lolonga, UM News.

United Methodist women determined to restore peace in Kivu
General Church
Prayer is part of a morning business meeting during the 2019 East Ohio Annual Conference. Photo by Brett Hetherington, East Ohio Conference.

Conferences mull denomination’s future
Global Health
Children living on the streets of Malanje, Angola, enjoy a meal provided by young United Methodists during the International Day of the Child. Photo by João Gonçalves Sofia Nhanga, UM News.

Youth help impoverished peers in Angola
Mission and Ministry
The United Methodist Women Association of Cameroon has donated food and household items to internally displaced people, mostly women and children, who are living in the bushes in the southwest region of the country. Photo by Collette Ndobe, UM News.

Cameroon women assist internally displaced people
General Church
The Rev. Wayne Coffin, a former member of the United Methodist Judicial Council, died July 4 at the age of 95. Photo by Kristin Van Nort, Oklahoma Conference; cropped by UM News.

Coffin, former Judicial Council member, dies at 95
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Multimedia

Global Health
Rachael Porter and the Rev. David Johnston adopted two children who came from a home with opioid addiction. Johnston serves as pastor of Concord United Methodist Church in Athens, W.Va.
Foto Mike DuBose, Noticias MU.

Clergy embrace becoming foster parents
West Virginia has one of the highest rates in the nation of children removed from homes due to drug abuse, and one of the lowest rates of new homes for them. Clergy felt called to respond.

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Global Health
Kate Rhodes (left) leads students from House of the Carpenter back from a field trip on Wheeling Island in Wheeling, W.Va. Rhodes was serving as youth coordinator for the program's Pre-Work Camp, which teaches basic employment skills to middle school students. House of the Carpenter is a mission project of The United Methodist Church's West Virginia Conference.

Ministries help children affected by addiction
Evangelism
Wayne Worth (right) embraces Roger outside his home in Fisher, W.Va. Worth, a member of United Methodist Temple in Clarksburg, was passing out flyers containing information about local resources for anyone struggling with addiction, when he met Roger.

Outreach ministry for addiction is simple, effective
Disaster Relief
Isabel João (right) and Maria Lidia António salvage what they can of their corn crop, which was killed before it matured when their field was flooded by Cyclone Idai in Buzi, Mozambique. “Hunger is the number one problem now,” Joao said. Photo by Mike DuBose, UMNS.

After the cyclone, faith abides
Global Health
The Rev. Paula Napier lost her 32-year-old son, Lincoln Nutter, to a drug overdose in June 2018. Napier, who pastors Canaan United Methodist Church in Charleston, W.Va., says she lives in the midst of the opioid crisis. “I think people need to know it hits everybody,” she said.

Pastors cope with sons’ overdose deaths
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Commentaries

The Rev. Laceye C. Warner is Associate Dean for Wesleyan Engagement and the Royce and Jane Reynolds Associate Professor of the Practice of Evangelism and Methodist Studies at Duke University Divinity School, Durham, North Carolina. Photo by Les Todd.

John Wesley reminds us that grace is available to all
David F. Watson is Academic Dean and Vice President for Academic Affairs and Professor of New Testament at United Theological Seminary in Dayton, Ohio. Photo courtesy of United Theological Seminary.

Wesley would call modern Methodists to return to their roots
The Rev. Steven W. Manskar is pastor of Trinity United Methodist Church in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Photo courtesy of Trinity United Methodist Church.

Wesley would urge modern Methodists to stay Christ-centered
The Rev. Stephen Mannion. Photo courtesy of Rev. Mannion.

The Book of Discipline unites us as a church
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Ask The UMC

Theology and Education
Clockwise from top left: Detail from Butyka Mausoleum by Globetrotter19, courtesy of Wikimedia Commons; stained glass window by Kathleen Barry, UM News; Bible and cross by Mike DuBose, UMNS; detail of aanchor and two fish courtesy of Catacombe Domitilla; the Rev. George Miller by Mike DuBose, UM News.
United Methodist News Service

Ask The UMC: Why do missionaries wear an anchor cross?
When missionaries are commissioned for service, an anchor cross is placed around their necks, as a symbol of their call to mission service.

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Evangelism
World map, courtesy of Wikipedia Commons.

Ask The UMC: Is The UMC in Canada, Australia, Latin America, Asia?
Theology and Education
Eucharist is shared during the morning prayer held in the chapel of Sarum College during the 2016 Wesley Pilgrimage in England. Photo by Kathleen Barry, United Methodist Communications.

Ask The UMC: Is communion simply a ritual of remembrance?
Theology and Education
The Christian year includes the central seasons of Christmas and Easter followed by Ordinary Time. The colors associated with the different seasons express visually what is happening in the life of the church. Each color symbolizes the nature of the festival being celebrated. Graphic by Laurens Glass, United Methodist Communications.

Ask The UMC: What is Ordinary Time?
Theology and Education
John Wesley portrait from the U.S. Library of Congress, courtesy of Wikimedia Commons (altered from original)

Ask The UMC: Are we saved if accepting God's grace happens gradually and not in one specific moment?
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Categories

Local Church
Thanos, a prominent villain in Marvel comic books who was featured in several theatrical movies, was created by Jim Starlin with help from his roommate Mike Friedrich, who wrote the first stories featuring the character. Photo courtesy of Disney Movies.

Deacon went from superheroes to God
Tapiwa Nyawasha cuts strips from scrap pieces of plastic that she will use to make bed, bath and door mats as a way to increase income and empower widows and single mothers. Tapiwa is a member of Kuwadzana Extension United Methodist Church in Harare, Zimbabwe. Photo by Chenayi Kumuterera, UM News.

From trash to cash: Zimbabwe woman launches venture
The Rev. Nyenda Okoko (center), a district superintendent, leads a procession of church members as they welcome visitors to Oye United Methodist Church, south of Kindu, Congo, in October 2015. Providing exact membership numbers is difficult in a denomination that spans multiple countries, languages and cultural understandings of church membership. File photo by Mike DuBose, UM News.

How accurate are church membership numbers?
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Evangelism
Young adults from the Mozambique South Annual Conference donate blood to benefit to help alleviate a shortage at the general hospital of Mavalane. Photo by João Filimone Sambo, UM News.

Mozambique young adults save lives by donating blood
The Zimbabwe Episcopal delegation stand in front of Joli Site Church in Galilee during their visit in the South Congo Episcopal Area. Photo by Chenayi Kumuterera, UM News.

Church members donate salaries to build church
Janet Mutsengi, 85, arrives in an ox-drawn cart to seek medical care from the staff at the Dindi United Methodist Clinic in Zimbabwe. The United Methodist Church is helping provide health services to underserved communities through an outreach program. Photo by the Rev. Taurai Emmanuel Maforo, UM News.

Clinic patients come in carts, wheelbarrows, on foot
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Social Concerns
The Rev. Joel Hortiales, a United Methodist missionary with the Board of Global Ministries, visits with Lizbeth and her three children, Bridgette, 3, Caleb, 4, and Alvaro Jose, 10, at the Hosanna Refugio Para Mujeres, in Mexicali, Mexico, in December 2018. The family was part of a migrant caravan from Central America. The United Methodist Immigration Task Force is urging support for migrants living in sanctuary churches who have been fined by the federal government. File photo by Mike DuBose, UM News.

Immigrant in United Methodist church fined $214,000
An engraving from 1830 depicts the slave trade in the United States. The U.S. Capitol is visible in the background. To mark the 400th anniversary of the first African people being brought to the U.S. as slaves, a study guide and other resources have been prepared to help United Methodists better understand that haunting legacy. Engraving from the Library of Congress.

Slavery anniversary leads to new discussions
Clergy and lay members from the East Ohio Conference use their voting cards during the 2019 annual conference held at Lakeside Chautauqua. They use cards to cast votes for motions, resolutions and petitions but secret ballot for delegate elections. The conference elected a mix of delegates who support and oppose the Traditional Plan. Photo by Brett Hetherington, East Ohio Conference Communications.

US elections see shift in GC2020 delegates
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Mission and Ministry
Youth from the East Zimbabwe Annual Conference participate in team-building exercises as part of their training in learning to promote drug-free communities. Photo by Eveline Chikwanah, UM News.

Zimbabwe church trains youth leaders to avoid drugs
Dr. Damas Lushima stands outside the former Osio Health Center. Lushima served as the general coordinator of the new center. Photo courtesy of the Equator and Oriental Annual Conference.

First health center opens in rural Congo village
Bishop Eben K. Nhiwatiwa (center, with foot on ball) celebrates with youth teams after playing an exhibition soccer game together at Avonlea Primary School in Harare, Zimbabwe. The Zimbabwe Episcopal Area has put a focus on sports and fitness as a way to get members healthy and bring new souls to Christ. Photo by Kudzai Chingwe, UM News.

Zimbabwe United Methodists focus on sports and recreation
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General Church
Delegates attend opening worship at the 2019 United Methodist General Conference in St. Louis in February. Given escalating conflict in the denomination over LGBTQ inclusion, two bishops are pushing a plan to create two or three self-governing church groups, with The United Methodist Church remaining as an umbrella organization. File photo by Kathleen Barry, UM News.

2 bishops offer plan for denomination’s future
The California-Nevada Conference Cabinet issued a statement rejecting disaffiliation or withholding of apportionments in response to the Traditional Plan passed by the 2019 General Conference. Photo of the California-Nevada Conference United Methodist Center in Sacramento, Calif., courtesy of the conference.

California-Nevada says no to withholding funds, disaffiliation
The California-Nevada Annual Conference service of commissioning and ordination included six LGBTQ elders, deacons and local pastors. Front row, from left are: The Revs. Emily Pickens-Jones and Caiti Hamilton. Back row, from left are: The Revs. Tara Limbaugh, Rob Herrmann, Jacey Pickens-Jones and Kenneth Schoon. Photo by The Rev. Israel I. Alvaran.

California-Nevada has 6 new LGBTQ clergy
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