GCFA

General Church
Council of Bishops President Thomas J. Bickerton presides at the bishops’ spring 2023 meeting in Chicago. East Ohio Conference Bishop Tracy Smith Malone, at left, is the Council of Bishops president-designate. The bishops gathered April 29-May 5 for their first in-person meeting since 2019 and took on a variety of issues affecting the future of the denomination. Photo by the Rev. Todd Rossnagel, Louisiana Conference.

Bishops call for General Conference in 2026

United Methodist bishops see a need for the denomination’s top lawmaking body to hold an additional meeting to deal with changes resulting from church disaffiliations. Meanwhile, the denomination’s finance agency has its own concerns.
General Church
Members of the Connectional Table lay hands on Bishop Mande Muyombo (center), chair of the Connectional Table, and Judi Kenaston (fourth from right), interim chief connectional ministries officer, during the group’s meeting Feb. 24 in Atlanta. The leadership body helps determine the budget of The United Methodist Church. Photo by Jim Patterson, UM News.

Group plans for budget cuts, regionalization

Meetings of the Connectional Table in Atlanta were productive, with efforts to come up with a consensus budget, move toward a U.S. regional conference and streamline the leadership body’s own membership all moving forward.
General Agencies
Zainab Koroma collects the offering at a United Methodist church in Fulawahun, near Bo, Sierra Leone. Overall, The United Methodist Church saw a slight increase in giving to denomination-wide ministries in 2022, compared to the previous year. File photo by Mike DuBose, UM News.

Amid budget woes, church sees slight rise in giving

Overall giving to support The United Methodist Church’s denomination-wide ministries saw a small uptick in 2022, even in a time of rising church disaffiliations. However, worries remain — especially about funding for bishops.
General Agencies
Cynthia Bond Hopson leads a meditation for General Council on Finance and Administration board members and guests during a worship service at the Upper Room Chapel in Nashville, Tenn. Hopson called on the finance agency to be bold in a time of uncertainty. “Tomorrow is uncertain,” she said. “Today is all we have.” She serves as chief equity officer and assistant general secretary of the United Methodist Board of Higher Education and Ministry. Photo by Mike DuBose, UM News.

Amid church exits, work starts on record-low budget

United Methodist leaders agree that big changes are coming as the denomination grapples with rising church disaffiliations. But disagreements remain on how best to balance financial uncertainty with missional commitments.

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