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Central Conferences

Bishops
The Rev. Knut Refsdal receives the episcopal pin from Bishop Dottie Escobedo-Frank after being elected a United Methodist bishop on April 4 at the Northern Europe and Eurasia Central Conference in Copenhagen, Denmark. Refsdal, a pastor in Norway, was elected on the 26th ballot. Photo by Karl Anders Ellingsen, UM News.

Knut Refsdal elected as bishop
The Rev. Knut Refsdal, a pastor in Norway, was elected a United Methodist bishop on the 26th ballot.
Central Conferences
Episcopal Elections of the Central Conference of The United Methodist Church. Graphic by Laurens Glass, UM News.

Northern Europe and Eurasia Central Conference Balloting 2025
Voting has ended for episcopal elections in the Northern Europe and Eurasia Central Conference. UM News tracked the balloting as it happened and has coverage.
Central Conferences
United Methodists at the Central and Southern Europe Central Conference stand together outside Winterthur United Methodist Church in Winterthur, Switzerland, where they met. Photo by the Rev. Jörg Niederer, Central and Southern Europe Central Conference.

Amid war, central conference practices ‘shalom’

United Methodists in a region that stretches from North Africa to Poland gathered for a meeting that focused on bringing peace in a time of strife.
Violence
Nurse on duty Bienfait Kabeya Ntumba (right) recounts how he was beaten during an attack on the United Methodist Irambo Health Center on the night of March 18 in Bukavu, Congo. Dr. Jimmy Kasongo (center), medical director of the health center, listens during a staff meeting. It is the second time in a month that armed gunmen invaded the hospital. Photo by Philippe Kituka Lolonga, UM News.

United Methodist hospital staff attacked in Congo
Armed men invaded two church health centers in eastern Congo, leading to violence and looting.

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