Breaking from the legislative focus of past gatherings, the 2026 Global Young People’s Convocation shifted toward prioritizing discipleship, cross-cultural connections and authentic relationship-building.
The July 7-11 quadrennial forum brought together United Methodist young adults, bishops and youth leaders from across the worldwide connection for passionate worship and insightful workshops, offering wide spaces to foster fellowship and critical discussions about the connectional systems of the church.
“You are the church now, and you are the church of the future,” said Chris Wilterdink, director of Young People’s Ministries for United Methodist Discipleship Ministries, which organized the event.
“Discipleship begins with relationship, and we cannot legislate friendship. Legislation comes next; the friendships and the trust start now,” Wilterdink said during the July 8 opening session at the Crowne Plaza Dublin Airport Hotel.
The gathering, which drew about 600 people, comes during a crucial juncture in the life of The United Methodist Church as it rebuilds after a season of church disaffiliations and lives into historic changes made by the 2024 General Conference around LGBTQ inclusion.
Centered on the theological concepts of resilience and sanctuary, the convocation provided a vital platform for younger generations to celebrate, strengthen and actively lead the connectional ministries of the global church through these current transitions.
From the outset, church leadership challenged the traditional narrative that relegates young people to a future tier of church life.
“We must clearly recognize that young people are not merely the leaders of tomorrow,” said Horizon Texas Conference Bishop Ruben Saenz Jr., president of the United Methodist Council of Bishops. “They are active, vital leaders in the present church.
“In this season of transition, church connectional leaders urgently require their counsel, fresh perspectives and innovation to successfully navigate ongoing societal shifts. By fully including them and backing them up with institutional support, we ensure a sustainable roadmap to build the church for the long term,” he said.
Teenager Christopher O’Donnell from Towson United Methodist Church in Townson, Maryland, highlighted vulnerability as a core lesson necessary for leading an emerging church into its next chapter.
“I learned over the past few days that it is OK to be vulnerable. That has been a really impactful realization for me, and it has taught me to share my experiences and let other people know that everything will be OK,” he said.
Mele Malamala, a member of Tongan United Methodist Church in Mesa, Arizona, and the Desert Southwest Conference’s Pacific Islander Commission, said she felt deeply moved seeing the youth come together. “The energy that they bring makes this entire trip so much better and more meaningful for me.”
Phoebe Glover of Hamburg United Methodist Church in Hamburg, New York, was inspired by her peers who are living into The United Methodist Church’s new vision to “love boldly, serve joyfully, and lead courageously in local communities and worldwide connections.”
She said she sees “people of my generation in the church loving boldly by accepting everyone and learning more about their cultures and trying new things and taking people’s ideas into consideration.”
Mada Daniel Nkhoma, 31, of Galilea United Methodist Church in Mpenya, Malawi, said he especially enjoyed the bishops’ panel, which gave young people the opportunity to ask questions of the episcopal leaders in attendance.
“They answered a lot of questions that we had about the church, the future of the church and the vision,” he said.
Nkhoma is part of the Young People’s Connectional Network. The network is a diverse group of United Methodist youth, young adults and adult workers who guide the work of Young People’s Ministries staff and collaborate with representatives from general agencies of the church and bishops.
The Rev. Jeff Campbell, Discipleship Ministries’ top executive, noted that young people are uniquely equipped to model new ways of connection that bypass traditional institutional gridlock.
“What we’ve seen over the years ... is that we are noticing the fruits of that equipping. All these young people from decades of Discipleship Ministries doing this event ... are coming into greater spaces and conferences all around the world. But it takes events like this to help them connect and see how the systems work,” he said.
“In a way, these youth and young adults begin to lead us into new ways of being that the General Conference hasn’t even seen yet. That transformation usually starts here with these new leaders, these new young adults, saying, ‘There has to be a better way rather than legislating where there are winners and losers. How do we build relationships instead so we can live into what God calls us to be as disciples?’”
Cross-cultural connections
The gathering served as a stage for shared faith and cross-cultural solidarity, which included a presentation by young adults from the Yakama Nation in the Pacific Northwest. The presentation emphasized how diverse local traditions enrich global United Methodism. The young leaders led a July 9 presentation on deepening discipleship by honoring local traditions and cultural heritage within the connection.
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The Yakama Reservation in southwestern Washington State is the largest Indian Nation in the northwest and one of the largest in the United States.
Alonzo Miguel, 17, one of the speakers from the reservation, said he was excited for the opportunity.
“You should always be grateful for what you have, enjoy the moment and be present. I feel like being present is something we often take for granted, and it is such a beautiful, wonderful thing to just stop and enjoy the moment.”
The Rev. Ismael Ruiz-Millán, executive director of connectional ministries for the North Carolina Conference, described how hearing these diverse testimonies reoriented the connectional perspective of his local youth. He shared how a poignant reflection from two young women from Ukraine opened the eyes of the youth participants from his conference.
“Our youth were reflecting deeply on that and how it puts things into perspective. It showed how, even in the midst of war, you can create spaces of belonging, places of connection, joy and fellowship.
“It was wonderful to see the youth receiving those stories and thinking about how they can do similar things back home,” he said.
For Elizabeth O’Donnell, who attends Calvary United Methodist Church in Lewiston, Maryland, one of the highlights was hearing different prayers spoken in various languages.
“That truly touched me. I think that when I go back to Maryland, it will be a lot easier for me to really connect with God at church now,” she said.
Victoria Blair, a youth leader from Towson United Methodist Church in Maryland, said she enjoyed getting to meet new people.
“I love getting to hear their perspectives of the world and what their life is like inside their churches compared to ours in the States,” she said.
Breaking down barriers
The celebration of global diversity faced a structural hurdle as stringent international visa policies prevented dozens of global delegates — particularly from Africa — from arriving in Dublin.
The physical absence became a central point of lament, underscoring how vital every member is to the connectional body.
Bishop Héctor A. Burgos-Núñez, president of Discipleship Ministries’ board of directors and bishop of the Susquehanna and Upper New York conferences, framed the gathering’s response as a call to stand in solidarity with the whole connection.
“Even amidst the celebration of bringing young people together here in Dublin, we are also learning that there were many who could not make it because of new restrictions being imposed that prevent people from certain countries from moving as freely as they used to …,” he said. “The church is not exempt from these policies that try to separate us and keep us apart.
“Because of this, I also see this kind of event as a profound act of resistance. When the world wants to fraction us, God is bringing us together. It lifts up how important it is for us to be voices for those who are not able to be here, to better understand what is preventing them from being part of our community in person, and to become advocates so that those barriers can ultimately be brought down.”
Caleb Mbaz, a music ministry leader from the South Congo Conference, said his delegation was severely diminished.
“Unfortunately, many of the young leaders from Africa could not make it, as our difficulties with securing visas created significant trouble. I was supposed to be here with 10 young people from South Congo who were meant to witness and also be blessed through this gathering, but they are not here,” he said.
“I am trying my best to reflect on this reality. These visa barriers are blocking the connection and the leadership that the church has built and works for,” he said.
In response to the geographical divisions, organizers utilized daily livestreaming platforms to ensure that youth unable to travel could still participate.
Becoming the sanctuary
The convocation culminated on July 11 with a powerful service of Holy Communion. Delivering the closing theological address, the Rev. Aleze M. Fulbright, former secretary of the General Conference, issued a prophetic charge to the young leaders to embody true connectional holiness.
“A sanctuary is where if we are broken, we are made whole. If we are strangers, we become completely welcomed ... One of the greatest gifts the Methodist church can give the world is connectionalism. John Wesley understood that there is no holiness but social holiness because grace always draws us into community,” she said.
“Friends, our connection is more than an organizational strategy; it is a theological statement ... When one part of the body hurts, everybody responds ... This is where we become a sanctuary — not because we built another church building, but because we become the hands and feet of Jesus.”
Fulbright strongly challenged the youth to alter how they report on the convocation to their annual conferences.
“When someone asks, ‘How was the Global Young People’s Convocation?’ please don’t only tell them about the music. Please don’t only tell them about the workshops, the stickers or the pins you collected … Instead, share with them: ‘I met the church, and I met people from nations I have never visited. The Holy Spirit reminded me that the church is bigger than my own annual conference, and I discovered a space where I truly belong.’
“When you return to the places where you live, I encourage all of us to become bridge-builders,” she said. “This world is not waiting for us to build more structures; the world is waiting for us to become the sanctuary, because somewhere out there, someone is praying for someone exactly like you.”
The response from the youth delegation indicated a deep readiness to embrace this connectional mandate.
Trisha Manns from Little Rock, Arkansas, said the message resonated.
“The group of college students that I brought with me has had incredible reflections on what it means to believe and what it means to pray. I think all of this is going to live with them for the rest of their lives.”
Vásquez is Hispanic-Latino Relations Coordinator for United Methodist Communications. Ben Ward, digital media specialist for UM News, contributed to this report. For inquiries related to UM News, contact [email protected]. To read more United Methodist news, subscribe to the free UM News Digest.
