"We have signed this agreement as a reminder of our commitment to each other at a time of considerable uncertainty in the European family." — The Rev. Gareth Powell, secretary of the British Methodist Conference, on the signing of an agreement among Methodist, Wesleyan and Uniting churches.
European denominations agree to closer ties
LONDON (The Methodist Recorder) — A new era in European Methodist relationships began with the signing of an agreement to find ways for closer cooperation among Methodist, Wesleyan and Uniting churches. Moira Sleight has the story.
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Strengthening mission in the Americas
PANAMA CITY, Panama (UMNS) — Methodist and United Methodist leaders in Latin America are meeting to discuss how to bolster their mission across the American continents. They also heard an update on what’s happening in Puerto Rico. The Rev. Gustavo Vasquez reports.
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Church repents for racism of its history
WASHINGTON — Mount Vernon United Methodist Church observed the 100th anniversary of the laying of the church cornerstone with a formal call to remembrance and repentance of the racist history of the church. The church was built by white slaveholders as “the representative church” of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, the denomination that was the result of an 1844 schism over the issue of slavery. Melissa Lauber reports for the Baltimore-Washington Conference.
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Philippines United Methodists decry government killings
MANILA, Philippines (UMNS) — The Philippines Board of Church and Society has released a statement to reiterate its denouncement of killings stemming from President Rodrigo Duterte’s violent war on drugs. Gladys Mangiduyos has the story.
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As sanctuary is repaired, congregation is renewed
MUSCATINE, Iowa — The beautiful sanctuary of Wesley United Methodist Church here continues to undergo repairs for extensive damage from a March 6 tornado. But meeting for worship in the Family Life Center has had benefits. “We have learned — and are still learning — what is at the heart of worship,” said Katie Roquet, Wesley’s director of media ministries, in a reflection for the Iowa Conference.
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Well Project saves lives, transforms communities
FARMINGDALE, N.J. (UMNS) — Members of Farmingdale First United Methodist remembered Alice Hassard as a local unsung hero with a heart for mission. When Hassard passed away in August 2009, the church started funding water projects in developing nations in her honor. To date, “Alice’s Well” has completed two wells in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Ethiopia and just sent payment for construction to begin on a third well, in Malawi.
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10 suggestions for preaching after disaster
DURHAM, N.C. (UMCOM) — Catastrophes come in all sizes. Some are local like the burning of a church. Others are national or international in scope. Richard Lischer, a professor emeritus at United Methodist Duke Divinity School, briefly offers 10 recommendations for preaching on the world’s heartache.
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Looking ahead
Here are some of the activities ahead for United Methodists across the connection. If you have a United Methodist event to share, you can add it to the calendar with this submission form.
Thursday, Oct. 12
Service of Word and Table: Veterans Recognition — 11 a.m.-noon EDT, Cannon Chapel, Candler School of Theology, 515 South Kilgo Circle, Atlanta. United Methodist Candler School of Theology will have a Service of Word and Table to recognize veterans. Guest preacher Rear Admiral Margaret Kibben, chief of chaplains of the U.S. Navy, will be the guest preacher. Details
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