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The Kern Building, owned by Discipleship Ministries and the United Methodist Board of Higher Education and Ministries since 1950, stands like a beacon in Nashville, Tenn. The two agencies sold the building to Vanderbilt University on July 15. Photo by Mike DuBose, UM News.

Agencies sell jointly owned building

Discipleship Ministries and the United Methodist Board of Higher Education are among the most recent agencies to consolidate space following the upheavals of COVID-19.

General Agencies

Spring flowers bloom in a farm field near Ashland City, Tenn., in 2020. Agencies of The United Methodist Church are committed to achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, a goal announced on Earth Day. File photo by Mike DuBose, UM News.

Agencies set greenhouse gas emissions goal

Most United Methodist general agencies are committed to achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, a goal announced on Earth Day.

General Church

The Discipleship Ministries office in Nashville, Tenn., is being renovated to be better equipped for use post-COVID-19. Although the staff is primarily working at home, the building is being used for small staff meetings as well as a daily prayer broadcast from the Upper Room Chapel. The 13 agencies of The United Methodist Church are facing budget cutbacks among uncertainty around a potential schism. Photo by Mike DuBose, UM News.

General agencies cutting back

Faced with an ongoing pandemic and denominational uncertainty, United Methodist general agencies are reducing staff while trying to stay true to their missions.

Mission and Ministry

Innocent Afful (third from left), a Ghanaian missionary who works with orphans and vulnerable children in Congo, has seen his job change during the COVID pandemic. Photo courtesy of Innocent Afful.

Missionaries cope with coronavirus challenges

Travel bans and fears of contracting COVID-19 complicated the service of United Methodist missionaries in 2020.

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