Daily Digest - January 16, 2013

"Without them, I would really be lost." - Henry Enders, 87, of Long Island, talking about United Methodist volunteers after Hurricane Sandy swept through his home.

Swift reaction to bishop's gay marriage stand

CHICAGO (UMNS) - Since announcing her support for same-sex marriage, Chicago Area Bishop Sally Dyck said she has received numerous emails from United Methodists across the United States who agree and disagree with her stance.
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Long Islanders get Sandy relief

FREEPORT, N.Y. (UMNS) - Floodwaters from Hurricane Sandy went "all over the place" on the property of Henry Enders, 87, a member of Freeport United Methodist Church. But he finds solace in Christ and the volunteers who have helped with his house.
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Sandy's toll: Worse than you think

NEW YORK (UMNS) - If you live in the New York-New Jersey region, it's easy to see,more than two months later, that the recovery from Hurricane Sandy has barely begun, writes UMNS reporter Linda Bloom in her Bloombytes blog. Needed: donations to UMCOR and volunteers.
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Letter seeks advance notice on any restructuring

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (UMNS) - A group of United Methodists has sent an open letter to the Connectional Table requesting it publicly release a draft of any church restructuring plan by Jan. 31, 2015, more than a year before the 2016 General Conference. The Connectional Table, which coordinates the denomination's mission, ministry and resources, is meeting Jan. 15-17 in Nashville. The group that sent the letter is DreamUMC, a grassroots movement that arose out of the 2012 General Conference discussions on agency restructuring.
Read the DreamUMC letter
Learn more about DreamUMC

U.S. Western United Methodist group to meet

LAS VEGAS (UMNS) - A group of United Methodists in the U.S. Western Jurisdiction is gathering to follow up on the jurisdiction's statements that disapprove of the denomination's stance on homosexuality and on other issues. The first gathering of the "Western Methodist Justice Movement" is scheduled Jan. 30 to Feb. 1 at University United Methodist Church near the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. The group's nine "action areas" range from ministries tofully include gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people to immigration to the future direction of the denomination.

Seminary serves those who serve

WASHINGTON (UMNS) - United Methodist-related Wesley Theological Seminary was recently featured in a Huffington Post blog exploring simple ways to reach out to those serving others in our communities. The seminary recently organized a dinner for young people working in service around the Washington metro area including participants in AmeriCorps and Teach for America. The Wesley students are part of the Community Engagement Fellows program, an effort at eight seminaries to support young adults who want to connect their passion for service with faith formation.
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Read about how to do a similar ministry at your church

Faith leaders demand action on gun violence

WASHINGTON (UMNS) - On the birthday of the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., United Methodists joined more than 40 other religious leaders in sending a letter on gun violence to President Obama and Congress. The letter calls on political leaders to require every person who buys a gun to pass a criminal background check; remove high capacity weapons and ammunition magazines from our streets and make gun trafficking a federal crime.
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