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Young People
Jesse Aaron Felicitas of Antagan United Methodist Church in Isabela, Philippines, sings during worship at the Global Young People’s Convocation, held July 7-11 in Dublin, Ireland. About 600 youth and young adults gathered at the quadrennial forum to deepen United Methodist connectionalism among new generations. Photo by the Rev. M. Scott Hughes, Discipleship Ministries.
Jesse Aaron Felicitas of Antagan United Methodist Church in Isabela, Philippines, sings during worship at the Global Young People’s Convocation, held July 7-11 in Dublin, Ireland. About 600 youth and young adults gathered at the quadrennial forum to deepen United Methodist connectionalism among new generations. Photo by the Rev. M. Scott Hughes, Discipleship Ministries.

Young people's gathering energizes connection
The United Methodist forum gives young delegates, youth leaders space to foster fellowship, focus on discipleship and imagine the future church.

Editor's Picks

Leaders of La Trinidad United Methodist Church in San Antonio talk about the church’s 150th anniversary celebration on the morning television show “SA Live” on May 1. Pictured (from left) are Jen Tobias-Struski, host of the program; Carmen Gámez, chair of the church’s anniversary gala committee; the Rev. Nohemí Ramírez, pastor of La Trinidad; and Patricia Mejía, director of impact and inclusion for Spurs Sports & Entertainment. Photo courtesy of the Rev. Nohemí Ramírez.

Historic church embraces new era of ministry
La Trinidad United Methodist Church, San Antonio’s oldest Hispanic Protestant congregation, is marking its 150th anniversary while renewing its commitment to serving new generations and immigrant families.
Teens clap and sing during one of two UNITE youth retreats sponsored by the Missouri Conference in July 2025 at Central Methodist University in Fayette, Missouri. United Methodist conferences in the U.S. are seeing growth at annual youth retreats after years of slowdown following the COVID pandemic. File photo by Schaefer Photography.

Conference youth retreats make comeback
Promoting youth involvement in leadership and maintaining yearlong connections beyond the United Methodist events have been keys to success.
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

Theology and Education
Safe, comfortable campus housing for female students is in high demand at Africa University, given its rural location and the lack of reliable public transportation. The United Methodist Church’s Upper New York and Susquehanna conferences have approved a project to raise $1.5 million to build a new women’s dormitory at the university. Photo courtesy of Africa University.

Conferences team up to raise $1.5M for Africa University dorm
Faith Stories
Clara Ester of the Alabama-West Florida Conference addresses the 2016 United Methodist General Conference in Portland, Ore. Ester, who was a United Methodist deaconess and respected civil rights advocate, died July 9 at age 77. File photo by Mike DuBose, UM News.

Remembering civil rights advocate Clara Ester
General Church
The Leadership Gathering, organized by the Council of Bishops, is scheduled to be held Oct. 20-24 at Knox United Church Calgary in downtown Calgary, Canada. Both war in the Middle East and the Ebola outbreak in Congo have brought complications, but the gathering’s organizers are pushing forward with an event aimed at helping The United Methodist Church begin a new chapter. Photo courtesy of Knox United Church Calgary.

Leadership Gathering moves ahead amid challenges
Bishops
Bishop Héctor A. Burgos Núñez, who leads the Upper New York and Susquehanna conferences, distributes communion to participants during opening worship service on April 23, 2024, at General Conference in Charlotte, N.C. Next to him, also distributing communion, is Horizon Texas Conference Bishop Rubén Saenz Jr., who is now the Council of Bishops president. A United Methodist leadership body recommends that the U.S. have 34 bishops starting in 2028. File photo by Paul Jeffrey, UM News.

Group advises adding 2 more US bishops
Church Leadership
UM News is the official news gathering agency of The United Methodist Church. Map courtesy of Pixabay; graphic by UM News.

Probe ends of pastor who worked for Epstein
Faith Stories
(Top left) The Rev. Ralph Edwin “Ed” King Jr. (in a clerical collar) stands behind (left to right) John Hunter Gray (formerly John Salter), Joan Trumpauer (now Mulholland) and Anne Moody offering support as an angry mob attacks a sit-in on May 28, 1963, in the Woolworth’s in Jackson, Miss. King and others at Tougaloo College helped organize the nonviolent protest to segregation. (Bottom left) Another view of the sit-in and violent mob. (Right) In this June 25, 2016, photo, the Rev. Ed King, a former chaplain at Tougaloo College, sits in Woodworth Chapel at the liberal arts school in Jackson, Miss. Black and white photos by Fred Blackwell, courtesy of the Civil Rights Movement Archive; color photo: AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis.

Rev. Ed King, civil rights ‘icon,’ dies at 89
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Local Church
Rosemary Nyarugwe, the first female principal of The United Methodist Church’s Nyadire College of Education in Zimbabwe, is being remembered as a faithful and dedicated church leader and advocate for education in Africa. She died June 22 at age 64. Photo by Munyaradzi Matura for TV Ebenezer.

Leader of United Methodist teachers’ college dies
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Evangelism
Happy Fourth of July! Photo by Mike DuBose; graphic by Laurens Glass, UM News.

Social media graphics from UM News
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Social Concerns
The U.S. Supreme Court building in Washington. File photo by Clayton Childers, United Methodist Board of Church and Society.

Church cheers birthright citizenship ruling
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Mission and Ministry
Dr. Damas Lushima, wearing a mask and a Global Ministries vest, stands in front of the Ebola treatment center at the Rwampara General Referral Hospital in Bunia. As health department coordinator for the East Congo Episcopal Area, he oversees The United Methodist Church’s integrated response to the 17th Ebola outbreak affecting Ituri Province. Photo courtesy of the Eastern Congo Health Council.

Church steps up Ebola response in Congo
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General Church
A statue of John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, stands in the center of campus at Asbury Theological Seminary in Wilmore, Ky. The United Methodist Church’s University Senate has decided to no longer list Asbury and Northeastern Seminary in Rochester, N.Y., as approved theological schools for preparing United Methodist pastors. Photo by Mike DuBose, UM News.

Leaders drop Asbury from approved seminaries
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Commentaries

The Rev. Stephanie Vader. Photo courtesy of the author.

Pastor urges halt to troops’ presence in DC
The Rev. Keri Cress. Photo courtesy of the Tennessee-Western Kentucky Conference.

Love of neighbor drives advocacy in political spaces
Cliff White. Photo courtesy of the author.

Another United Methodist way to look at high court’s voting decision
Retired Bishop Peggy A. Johnson. Photo courtesy of the author.

Helping people ‘hear the Gospel’ in new ways
The Rev. Christopher P. Momany. Photo by Kristen Schell.

For every righteous ‘no,’ there must be a holy ‘yes’
Dr. Brett McKinley Pardue. Photo courtesy of the author.

Grace doesn’t grab: Why consent belongs in worship
John W. Coleman. Photo by Corbin Payne.

What comes next after ‘Faithful Resistance’ march?
Susan Clark. Photo courtesy of the author.

Winter guard meets Wesleyan warmth
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Multimedia

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

Social media graphics from UM News
Graphic for the Fourth of July available to download and share on social media.

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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
Local Church
Participants stretch during a yoga class at First Church Fort Pierce, a United Methodist Congregation in Florida. Photo by Lilla Marigza UM News.

Yoga ministry stretches beyond church walls
Social Concerns
Recipients of sun-powered ovens learn to adapt local recipes to the new cooking method. This photo was taken during a United Methodist Solar Oven Partners workshop for new oven owners in Bo, Sierra Leone, in December 2025. Photo courtesy of Solar Oven Partners.

Solar oven ministry changes lives
Social Concerns
Christians from many faith denominations join a Palm Sunday march through the streets of downtown Nashville, Tennessee, on March 29, 2026. The rally was one of about 30 events across 16 states. Image from video by Lilla Marigza, UM News.

United Methodists put faith into action on Palm Sunday
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