United Methodist Church

Korean Methodist President Bishop Chungsuk Kim (left) thanks United Methodist Bishop Lanette Plambeck (right) for attending the Korean Methodist Church’s 37th General Conference and for her gift of a wooden bishop’s staff shaped like a crane’s head and curved neck. At center is the Rev. Byung-bae Hwang, general secretary of the Korean Methodist Church’s mission board. Photo by the Rev. Thomas E. Kim, UM News.

Bishop’s visit strengthens ties with Korean Methodists

Bishop Lanette Plambeck’s visit to the Korean Methodist Church’s 37th General Conference reaffirmed a mission partnership rooted in 141 years of shared history and a commitment to serve together.

General Church

From left, Bishop Chungsuk Kim, president bishop of the Korean Methodist Church; the Rev. Byung-bae Hwang, general secretary of its General Board of Missions; Roland Fernandes, top executive of United Methodist Board of Global Ministries; and Bishop Rosemarie Wenner, an ecumenical officer of the United Methodist Council of Bishops, mark the signing of a mission cooperation covenant Oct. 14 in Sokcho, South Korea. The agreement commits the churches’ mission agencies to annual consultations and deeper cooperation. Photo by the Rev. Thomas E. Kim, UM News.

United Methodists, Korean church renew ties

Building on 141 years of shared missionary heritage, leaders of The United Methodist Church and the Korean Methodist Church signed a new covenant committing their mission agencies to regular dialogue and deeper cooperation.

Local Church

Participants sing during the opening worship service of the first day of the 2023 special session of the National Association of the Korean American United Methodists at Korean First United Methodist Church of Wheeling, Ill., on Oct. 2. Pictured, from left, are Bishop Dottie Escobedo-Frank of the California-Pacific Annual Conference, Bishop Hee-Soo Jung of the Wisconsin Annual Conference, Dr. Dana Lyles, the Rev. MiRhang Baek, the Rev. Prumeh Lee and the Rev. Ju-Yeon Julie Jeon. Photo by the Rev. Thomas E. Kim, UM News.

Korean United Methodists gather to celebrate their passion and spirituality

The 2023 special session of the National Association of the Korean American United Methodists was held Oct. 2-5 in Northbrook, Illinois — its first in-person gathering since 2019.

General Church

A large crowd at a June 13 Celebrate UMC-sponsored event at Huntingdon College in Montgomery, Alabama, rises in applause. Celebrate UMC, which formed in the Alabama-West Florida Conference, is one of a handful of grassroots groups that are making an affirmative case for The United Methodist Church as some congregations decide whether to leave the denomination. Photo courtesy of Celebrate UMC.

Grassroots groups talk up The United Methodist Church

In a season of discussion and action about local church disaffiliation, coalitions such as Stay UMC and Celebrate UMC are challenging what they see as misinformation and making a case for remaining in The United Methodist Church.

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