Leadership

Bishop Richard Byrd Wilke, who with his wife, Julia Wilke, developed the popular Disciple Bible Study, died on Easter, April 20, 2025. Photo by Mike DuBose, UM News.

Bishop Wilke, beloved Bible study creator, dies

United Methodist Bishop Richard Wilke died Easter Sunday. He and his wife, Julia, developed the popular Disciple Bible Study series. He also was a voice for LGBTQ inclusion.

Ecumenism

United Methodist Bishop Mary Ann Swenson greets Pope Francis in Geneva, Switzerland, in 2018, during the commemoration of the World Council of Churches’ 70th anniversary. The leader of the Catholic Church spoke about the significance of Catholic involvement in ecumenical work and pledged his commitment to the cause of Christian unity. United Methodists around the world are mourning Pope Francis, who died April 21 at age 88. File photo by Albin Hillert, World Council of Churches.

United Methodists remember Pope Francis

United Methodists were vocal in their praise of Pope Francis, who died Easter Monday at age 88. Church leaders noted that Roman Catholics and Methodists have been in continual dialogue since the Second Vatican Council in the early 1960s.

Social Concerns

Cheryl Lowe (left) and Andrea Gauldin-Rubio, both United Methodists, hold their signs based on Scripture and the teachings of John Wesley at the Hands Off! rally on April 5 outside the courthouse in Waynesville, North Carolina. They were among many United Methodists who used their lunchtime during the nearby Peace Conference to attend the nonviolent rally decrying government overreach. Lowe is a member of Mt. Pleasant United Methodist in McLeansville, N.C., and Gauldin-Rubio is the director of Christian education at Bunker Hill United Methodist Church in Kernersville, N.C. Photo by Heather Hahn, UM News.

Churchgoers rally against government overreach

United Methodists at the Peace Conference joined in one of the nationwide protests against the Trump administration’s impact on government services and human rights.

Social Concerns

The John Henry Ensemble, led by the Rev. John Henry on trombone (left), plays a jazz concert on the evening of April 5 during the Peace Conference in Lake Junaluska, N.C. Henry, a United Methodist pastor and director of the music program at A&T University in Greensboro, N.C., also sang and played trombone during the conference’s worship service. Photo by Crystal Caviness, United Methodist Communications.

Building peace in a dangerously polarized US

A United Methodist Peace Conference drew some 200 clergy and laity to discuss breaking down national divisions. Some joined a Hands Off! rally that drew a cross-section of people.

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