DOCSLIB.ORG

Passing the Mantle: Pastoral Formation in the New Residency Program of the Arkansas Conference of the United Methodist Church

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Passing the Mantle: Pastoral Formation in the New Residency Program of the Arkansas Conference of the United Methodist Church PASSING THE MANTLE: PASTORAL FORMATION IN THE NEW RESIDENCY PROGRAM OF THE ARKANSAS CONFERENCE OF THE UNITED METHODIST CHURCH A Professional Project Submitted to The Faculty of Perkins School of Theology In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements For the Degree Of Doctor of Ministry By Blake R. Bradford B.A. Hendrix College, 1996 M.A., Vanderbilt University, 1998 M.Div. Iliff School of Theology, 2000 Dallas, Texas May 2014 Bradford 2 Table of Contents INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................... 5 A RESIDENCY PROGRAM....................................................................................................... 6 THE TRANSITION INTO MINISTRY .................................................................................... 13 BIBLICAL & THEOLOGICAL ISSUES .................................................14 ORDINATION AND THE LAYING ON OF HANDS ............................................................ 15 THE BIBLICAL AND THEOLOGICAL BASIS FOR THE RIM PROGRAM GOALS ........ 18 Goal 1: Tools For Evaluation By The Faith Community ....................................................... 18 Goal 2: Assist in the Transition into Ordained Ministry ........................................................ 21 Goal 3: Covenant Peer Groups as Means of Grace ................................................................ 26 ON TRIAL AND ON PROBATION ......................................................................................... 29 THEORETICAL ISSUES ...........................................................................31 TRANSITION FROM SEMINARY TO MINISTRY SETTING ............................................. 31 BECOMING A REFLECTIVE PRACTITIONER IN A COMMUNITY OF PRACTICE ...... 35 RESIDENCY PROGRAMS IN THE UNITED METHODIST CHURCH ............................... 38 ELEMENTS TO BE STUDIED ................................................................................................ 44 READINESS, EFFECTIVENESS, AND FRUITFULNESS .................................................... 47 PROJECT REPORT ...................................................................................50 CONTEXT, PLANNING, AND PREPARATION ................................................................... 51 Pre-2009 Ordination Process ................................................................................................. 51 Creation of a Residency in Ministry Program: Goals and Expectations ................................ 53 ELEMENT 1: SUPERVISION AND EVALUATION ............................................................. 56 Supervision by District Superintendents ................................................................................ 57 Expectations and Evaluation in the Local Ministry Setting ................................................... 58 Self-Evaluation ...................................................................................................................... 61 Reports from Assigned Mentors ............................................................................................ 61 Sharing Feedback ................................................................................................................... 63 Bradford 3 ELEMENT 2: COVENANT PEER GROUPS AND MENTORS ............................................. 63 Peer Group Creation and Goals ............................................................................................. 63 Composition of Residency Covenant Peer Groups ................................................................ 67 Content and Expectations of Covenant Peer Group Meetings ............................................... 68 Mentor-Facilitators of Residency Covenant Peer Groups ..................................................... 71 ELEMENT 3: THE RESIDENCY IN MINISTRY PROGRAM SUMMER RETREAT AS PASTORAL FORMATION AND CONTINUING EDUCATION .......................................... 74 Goals of Continuing Education during the Residency Period ............................................... 74 Strategic Partnerships ............................................................................................................. 76 Retreat Curriculum and Content ............................................................................................ 78 Ongoing Retreat Evaluation ................................................................................................... 85 ELEMENT 4: ASSIGNMENTS FROM THE BOARD OF ORDAINED MINISTRY ............ 86 Objectives of BOM Assignments .......................................................................................... 86 Assignment 1: Annual Ministry Goals (Formerly Ministry Plan) ......................................... 87 Assignment 2: Sermon Presentations ..................................................................................... 89 Assignment 3: Fruitfulness Project (Formerly Deacon’s Field Education Project) ............... 92 Assignment 4: Bible Study on Luke ...................................................................................... 95 Assignment 5: Doctrinal Examination ................................................................................... 97 Assignment 6: Other Additional Assignments ....................................................................... 98 THE RESIDENCY PROGRAM REVIEWED ........................................................................ 100 The Project Participants ....................................................................................................... 100 Evaluation Survey ................................................................................................................ 101 EVALUATION OF PROJECT ................................................................102 The Use of Participant Surveys ............................................................................................ 103 THE GOALS OF THE PROGRAM ........................................................................................ 103 Trust in the BOM and the Implementation of the Program Goals ....................................... 104 Goal 1: Evaluation by the Faith Community ....................................................................... 107 Goal 2: Assist in the Transition into Ordained Ministry ...................................................... 108 Goal 3: Creating Communities of Practice .......................................................................... 110 PRACTICUM DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION ............................................................ 114 Element 1: Supervision and Evaluation ............................................................................... 114 Bradford 4 Element 2: Peer Groups and Mentors .................................................................................. 116 Element 3: Continuing Education and Retreat ..................................................................... 121 Element 4: Assignments ...................................................................................................... 123 CONCLUSION ..........................................................................................125 RESIDENCY IN MINISTRY PROGRAM GOALS ............................................................... 126 FURTHER STUDY AND PROPOSED MODIFICATIONS TO THE RESIDENCY IN MINISTRY PROGRAM.......................................................................................................... 126 The Fruitfulness Project ....................................................................................................... 126 Peer Group Goals and Implementation ................................................................................ 127 Mentor Selection and Training ............................................................................................ 128 Structural Issue: The Role of the Board of Ordained Ministry In Pastoral Formation And Evaluation ............................................................................................................................ 129 Passing the Mantle ............................................................................................................... 131 APPENDIX A: 2013 RESIDENCY HANDBOOK .................................133 APPENDIX B: SURVEY OF RESIDENTS ............................................164 BIBLIOGRAPHY ......................................................................................187 VITA ...........................................................................................................192 Bradford 5 PASSING THE MANTLE: PASTORAL FORMATION IN THE NEW RESIDENCY PROGRAM OF THE ARKANSAS CONFERENCE OF THE UNITED METHODIST CHURCH INTRODUCTION The transition into ministry and entry into the ordination process is a time of new creation. “The first five years of parish ministry set an entire ministry. The habits, the inclinations, the dispositions, the way of understanding vocation is set in those first five years, and it lasts.”1 For new United Methodist clergy, this transition usually coincides with a time of discernment and assessment during which conference (regional judicatories) boards of ordained ministry are tasked with providing these new resident ministers with a residency curriculum of theological and practical education while also evaluating their effectiveness. Among United Methodist regional judicatories in the country, the Arkansas Conference has one of the highest percentages of young clergy.2 The
Load more

Recommended publications
  • United Methodist Bishops Page 17 Historical Statement Page 25 Methodism in Northern Europe & Eurasia Page 37
    THE NORTHERN EUROPE & EURASIA BOOK of DISCIPLINE OF THE UNITED METHODIST CHURCH 2009 Copyright © 2009 The United Methodist Church in Northern Europe & Eurasia. All rights reserved. United Methodist churches and other official United Methodist bodies may reproduce up to 1,000 words from this publication, provided the following notice appears with the excerpted material: “From The Northern Europe & Eurasia Book of Discipline of The United Methodist Church—2009. Copyright © 2009 by The United Method- ist Church in Northern Europe & Eurasia. Used by permission.” Requests for quotations that exceed 1,000 words should be addressed to the Bishop’s Office, Copenhagen. Scripture quotations, unless otherwise noted, are from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright © 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. Name of the original edition: “The Book of Discipline of The United Methodist Church 2008”. Copyright © 2008 by The United Methodist Publishing House Adapted by the 2009 Northern Europe & Eurasia Central Conference in Strandby, Denmark. An asterisc (*) indicates an adaption in the paragraph or subparagraph made by the central conference. ISBN 82-8100-005-8 2 PREFACE TO THE NORTHERN EUROPE & EURASIA EDITION There is an ongoing conversation in our church internationally about the bound- aries for the adaptations of the Book of Discipline, which a central conference can make (See ¶ 543.7), and what principles it has to follow when editing the Ameri- can text (See ¶ 543.16). The Northern Europe and Eurasia Central Conference 2009 adopted the following principles. The examples show how they have been implemented in this edition.
    [Show full text]
  • Texas Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church 2013 Pre
    Texas Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church 2013 Pre-Conference Journal Dear Member of the Texas Annual Conference, Grace and peace to you in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Welcome to the 2013 Texas Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church! Our planning team, staff and elected leaders have been working hard to bring you, what I hope you’ll agree is, our best Annual Conference yet. During our 2012 Annual Conference, delegates voted to adopt the Strategic Assessment Team Report that included a commitment to three focus areas of ministry: cultivate growing, fruitful, missional congregations, form transforming lay and clergy leaders, and invest in the young. Our theme for this year’s conference is Invest in the Young but we will also have presentations on the other two focus areas. You’ll be hearing stories from local churches on how they have “lived into” these focus areas and creatively reached out into their communities to “make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world. Conference will be held this year from May 26 - 29, 2013 at Hilton Americas – Houston, 1600 Lamar St. Houston, Texas 77010. We are very fortunate to present Rev. Kenda Creasy Dean as our keynote speaker. In line with our theme, Invest in the Young, Rev. Dean has extensive experience in ministry to the young including authoring several books on the subject. I am sure you’ll be both enlightened and entertained by her presentations. We are also blessed to have Dr. Jim Bankston of St. Paul’s UMC, Houston preach our Service of Remembrance & Thanksgiving on Monday evening and Rev.
    [Show full text]
  • Jurisdictional, African Elections Yield Three New UM Women Bishops
    9 6New Bishops Reflections 11Best Practices October–December 2008 Jurisdictional, African elections yield Volume 39, Number 4 three new UM women bishops www.gcsrw.org International, U.S. women of color still rare in UM episcopacy www.umsexualethics.org While United Methodists in the United States were finishing up electing and assigning bishops on this side of the ocean, a quiet revolution was happening this summer among our sisters and brothers in Mozambique. Mainline Christianity in Africa got one of its first woman bishops, Joaquina Filipe Nhanala, who now administers the mission and ministry in Mozambique, which is among the fastest-growing segments of The United Methodist Church. In fact, the denomination’s membership in that nation has more than tripled in size in the last 13 years, to 150,000 members in 170 congregations. Just a few days before, in the United States, two women were among the eight new bishops elected and assigned. Peggy Johnson, former pastor of Christ Church of the Deaf in Baltimore, is now bishop of the denomination’s Philadelphia Area. Elaine Stanovsky, a former district superintendent in Seattle, is assigned as bishop of the Denver Area. With these recent elections, the Council of Bishops now includes 12 active women bishops of the 69 active United Methodist bishops worldwide and Bishop Peggy Johnson blesses 10 retired female bishops of the 85 retired bishops. the communion elements during her consecration service The number of women bishops has steadily at the Northeastern Jurisdictional increased in the 28 years since the first female Conference. She is assigned to bishop, the late Bishop Majorie Swank Matthews lead the Philadelphia Area.
    [Show full text]
  • The Good Soil Process: a Strategic Missional Process for American Institutional Churches Keith Tilley
    Digital Commons @ George Fox University Doctor of Ministry Theses and Dissertations 11-1-2010 The Good Soil Process: A Strategic Missional Process for American Institutional Churches Keith Tilley This research is a product of the Doctor of Ministry (DMin) program at George Fox University. Find out more about the program. GEORGE FOX UNIVERSITY THE GOOD SOIL PROCESS: A STRATEGIC MISSIONAL PROCESS FOR AMERICAN INSTITUTIONAL CHURCHES A SEMIOTICS AND FUTURE STUDIES TRACK 02 DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF THE SEMINARY IN CANDIDACY FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF MINISTRY BY KEITH TILLEY NACOGDOCHES, TEXAS NOVEMBER 1, 2010 POATlAffrJ tENTER UnARY GEORGE FOX UUIVERSITY PORTLAND, OR. 17223 All biblical quotations are from the New Living Translation Unless otherwise noted. Copyright © 2010 by Keith Tilley All rights reserved DISSERTATION ACCEPTANCE CERTIFICATE KEITH TILLEY DATE: NOVEMBER 2, 2010 TITLE: THE GOOD SOIL PROCESS: THE DEVELOPMENT OF A STRATEGIC MISSIONAL PROCESS FOR AMERICAN INSTITUTIONAL CHURCHES WE THE UNDERSIGNED CERTIFY THAT WE HAVE READ THIS PROJECT AND APPROVE IT AS ADEQUATE IN SCOPE AND QUALITY TO COMPLETE THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DOCTOR OF MINISTRY IN LEADERSHIP IN THE EMERGING CULTURE DEGREE J' /7- )!o GEoRGE Fox EVANGELICAl. SEMINARY To Deb CONTENTS DIAGRAMS .................................................................................................................................... v ABSTRACT ..................................................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Catcher Greg Jones Joins Duke’S Global Team
    DUKE UNIVERSITY DIVINITYSPRING 2010 DREAM CATCHER GREG JONES JOINS Duke’s GLOBAL TEAM ALSO INSIDE: THE OLD NEW SANCTUARY JOURNEY PROUD TO A PLACE Of One’s Own IN HAITI, MIRACLES BEYOND MIRACLES FROM THE ARCHIVES Helen Clark D’31 on Soochow University Helen Clark D’31, who OUR CHARMING old city of Soochow, the Venice of Asia, has for centuries been famous served as dean of women at for learning; and today the boys and girls ... are fitting successors to the ancient tradition of Soochow University in China’s scholarship in Soochow. Jiangsu Province, filed a The courses which they have studied—and they really study—are very different, however, report (excerpted here) for from the rigid memorization of the Confucian Classics which was the main preparation for the the February 1937 edition of old imperial examinations. The Duke School of Religion … In some subjects you may find that the Chinese college student has a poorer background Bulletin. Soochow (now spelled than the American one—personally I believe that this is true in Western history (but what Suzhou) was founded in 1900 American college student knows anything about the history of the Far East?) and in geography; by Methodist missionaries from but in other subjects, … I’ll be surprised if you don’t find our students far ahead of American the United States and began college students. You may even find them ahead in English! admitting female students in But where does the missionary work come in? … I can’t pretend that our students are rush- 1928. Following the Communist ing to get into the church; the process of Christian nurture among sophisticated university takeover in 1949, Soochow students who are definitely committed to a philosophy of atheistic humanism or materialism is University closed.
    [Show full text]
  • Daily Proceedings of the Annual Conference
    150 Western North Carolina Conference IV. DAILY PROCEEDINGS A. PROGRAM OF THE 2019 ANNUAL CONFERENCE Bishop Paul L. Leeland Bishop Ruben Saenz Jr. Western North Carolina Conference Bishop J. Michael Lowry Great Plains Episcopal Area Charlotte Area Central Texas Conference Fort Worth Episcopal Area TRUST & OBEY ...,and teaching them to obey everything that Rev. Angela Pleasants I have commanded you.” Matthew 28:20a Bishop Janice Riggle Huie Catawba Valley District Leadership Formation Superintendent Texas Methodist Foundation THURSDAY 10:00 a.m. Executive Session of Clergy Members JUNE 20 ¶ 605.6 – “The actions of the clergy session shall be for and on behalf of the annual conference” Balloting for General and Jurisdictional Delegates 12:00 p.m. Lunch Recess 1.30 p.m. Clergy Session continues Balloting continues as needed 5:30 p.m. Dinner Recess 8:00 p.m. Laity Session: Introduction of Nominees FRIDAY 8:30 a.m. Laity Session JUNE 21 Balloting for General and Jurisdictional Delegates 11:00 a.m. Opening Worship: Service of Holy Communion Bishop Ruben Saenz Jr., Great Plains Annual Conference, preaching The offering will go toward Disaster Response from 2018 Hurricane Florence in Eastern North Carolina and 2018 Hurricane Michael in the Florida Panhandle 12:30 p.m. Lunch Recess 2:00 p.m. Conference Plenary – Business Session Balloting continues as needed Opening Hymn and Prayer Welcome from Lake Junaluska Procedural Matters, Elections for Conference, and Consent Calendar Committee on Nominations Plan of Organization and Rules Opening Remarks from Bishop Leeland 3:00 p.m. Break 2019 journal of the Annual Conference 151 3:30 p.m.
    [Show full text]
  • Legislation and Reports 2009Legislation and Reports
    NORTH CAROLINA CONFERENCE THE UNITED METHODIST CHURCH legislation and reports 2009legislation and reports • OUTREACH MINISTRY TEAM Advance Specials Criminal Justice and Mercy Ministries Committee on Disability Concerns Disciple Bible Outreach Ministries Golden Cross MERCI Methodist Home for Children Missions Peru Refugees and Immigration, Committee on United Methodist Women • CHRISTIAN FORMATION TEAM Archives and History Campus Ministries Church and Society Education and Nurture, Committee on Evangelism, Commission on Media Center, Committe on Older Adult Ministries, Committee on Safe Sanctuaries, Committee on United Methodist Youth Worship, Committee on 151 • LEADERSHIP TEAM Academy for Leadership Excellence Laity, Board of Lay Ministries of the Year Christian Unity, Committee on Clergy Care, Committee on Clergy Counseling and Consultation Conference Relations, Committee on Continuing Education, Committee on Enlistment, Committee on Hispanic and Latino Ministries, Committee on Ministerial Education Fund, Committee on Monitoring and Accountability, Committee on NC Pastors School and Duke Divinity School Convocation Psychological Testing and Background Residency in Ordained Ministry, Committee on Sexual Ethics Support Team Strengthening the Black Church, Committee on • STEWARDSHIP TEAM Communications, Committee on Equitable Compensation Finance and Administration, Council on Incapacity, Committee on Insurance, Committee on Itinerant Clergy Moving Expense, Committee on Pensions, Board of, Stewardship, Commission on Trustees, Board of 152
    [Show full text]
  • The Book of Discipline
    THE BOOK OF DISCIPLINE OF THE UNITED METHODIST CHURCH “The Book Editor, the Secretary of the General Conference, the Publisher of The United Methodist Church and the Committee on Correlation and Editorial Revision shall be charged with edit- ing the Book of Discipline. The editors, in the exercise of their judgment, shall have the authority to make changes in wording as may be necessary to harmonize legislation without changing its substance. The editors, in consultation with the Judicial Coun- cil, shall also have authority to delete provisions of the Book of Discipline that have been ruled unconstitutional by the Judicial Council.” — Plan of Organization and Rules of Order of the General Confer- ence, 2016 See Judicial Council Decision 96, which declares the Discipline to be a book of law. Errata can be found at Cokesbury.com, word search for Errata. L. Fitzgerald Reist Secretary of the General Conference Brian K. Milford President and Publisher Book Editor of The United Methodist Church Brian O. Sigmon Managing Editor The Committee on Correlation and Editorial Revision Naomi G. Bartle, Co-chair Robert Burkhart, Co-chair Maidstone Mulenga, Secretary Melissa Drake Paul Fleck Karen Ristine Dianne Wilkinson Brian Williams Alternates: Susan Hunn Beth Rambikur THE BOOK OF DISCIPLINE OF THE UNITED METHODIST CHURCH 2016 The United Methodist Publishing House Nashville, Tennessee Copyright © 2016 The United Methodist Publishing House. All rights reserved. United Methodist churches and other official United Methodist bodies may re- produce up to 1,000 words from this publication, provided the following notice appears with the excerpted material: “From The Book of Discipline of The United Methodist Church—2016.
    [Show full text]
  • The Protestant Episcopal Church in the South, 1760-1865
    University of Mississippi eGrove Electronic Theses and Dissertations Graduate School 1-1-2013 Christ and Class: The Protestant Episcopal Church in the South, 1760-1865 Ryan Lee Fletcher University of Mississippi Follow this and additional works at: https://egrove.olemiss.edu/etd Part of the History Commons Recommended Citation Fletcher, Ryan Lee, "Christ and Class: The Protestant Episcopal Church in the South, 1760-1865" (2013). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 1417. https://egrove.olemiss.edu/etd/1417 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at eGrove. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of eGrove. For more information, please contact [email protected]. CHRIST AND CLASS: THE PROTESTANT EPISCOPAL CHURCH IN THE SOUTH: 1760-1865 A Dissertation presented in partial fulfillment of requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of History The University of Mississippi by RYAN LEE FLETCHER MAY 2013 Copyright © 2013 by Ryan Lee Fletcher All rights reserved ABSTRACT This dissertation examines the emergence, practices, religious culture, expansion, and social role of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the American South from 1760 to 1865. The dissertation employs three major research methodologies by: (1) centralizing the role of social class in the Episcopal Church's history, (2) seriously considering the Episcopal Church's distinctive theology, and (3) quantifying the connections that linked the Episcopal Church to the South's economic structures prior to the Civil War. Archival research, periodicals, and published records related to the Protestant Episcopal Church provided the primary evidence used in the formulation of the dissertation's interpretations and conclusions.
    [Show full text]
  • RESILIENCE in PASTORS the Hardest Change Is to Change Ourselves
    Singining at hSe Ltorardng’se SLonagnd A CALL FOR RESILIENCE IN UNCERTAIN TIMES BY BISHOP JANICE RIGGLE HUIE | OCTOBER 2018 PROLOGUE I first learned about resilience from my father, a South Texas farmer. When I was about six or seven years old, one of my favorite activities was to be invited by my dad to go out late in the afternoon to check the cows. We were in the worst of the 1950s drought. Everything was dry and brown. Wide cracks revealed deep fissures in the earth. It was as hot as the blue blazes. At that time, Dad rented some land across the road from where we lived. Perhaps as much as a hundred acres was in cultivation. The rest was in brush – thorny, scraggly, parched brush. Probably no more than 30 skinny old cows roamed that pasture looking for anything green; Dad burned prickly pear for them to eat. FROM MY DAD, I LEARNED ABOUT CLARITY OF PURPOSE AND COURAGE. I LEARNED ABOUT TAKING RISKS, FAILING, AND TRYING AGAIN. IN A TOUGH SEASON OF LIFE, I SAW RESILIENCE FACE TO FACE. The rule for going with Dad was “Be still and be quiet.” If you didn’t follow the rule, you didn’t get asked again. Of course, the pickup wasn’t air conditioned, so the windows were rolled down to catch the afternoon gulf breezes. 2 One afternoon we were there in the pasture – sitting and looking. Dad asked me, “Janice, what do you see?” It seemed obvious. I said I saw brush – black brush, bee brush, cat claw, mesquite, huisache.
    [Show full text]
  • Tjieodore W. Jennings, Jr. the Meaning of Discipleship in Wesley and the New Testament
    Quarterly Review/Spring 1993 55.00 A Journ.il of Theological Resources for Ministry TJieodore W. Jennings, Jr. The Meaning of Discipleship in Wesley and the New Testament Diedra H. Krieivald The Baptism of the Holy Spirit: Water-Washuig, Spirit-Anoiiiting, and Confirmatioti K. James Stein Baptismal Regeneration: Is It an Option for United Methodists? Editorial Board Lloyd R. Bailey Robert C. Neville Duke Divinity School Boston University School of Theology Wilfred Bailey Casa View United Methodist Church Judith E. Smith Dallas, Texas General Board of Higher Education and Ministry Pamela D. Couture The United Methodist Church Candler School of Theology Emory University Marjorie Hewitt Suchocki Claremont School of Theology Fred B. Craddock Candler School of Theology John L. Topolewski Emory University District Superintendent Wyoming Conference Brita Gill-Austern Andover Newton Theological School Donald H. Treese General Board of Higher Education Janice Riggle Huie and Ministry Manchaca United Methodist Church The United Methodist Church Manchaca, Texas F. Thomas Trotter Roger W. Ireson, Chair Alaska Pacific University General Board of Higher Education and Ministry The United Methodist Church Sharon J. Hels, Editor Neil M. Alexander, Editorial Director J. Richard Peck, Production Editor Sheila W. McGee, Composition Editor Quarterly Review A Journal of Theological Resources for Ministry Volume 13, Number 1 A Publication of The United Methodist Publishing House and the United Methodist Board of Higher Education and Ministry Quarterly Review (ISSN 0270-9287) provides continuing education resources for scholars, Christian educators, and lay and professional ministers in The United Methodist Church and other churches. QR intends to be a forum in which theological issues of significance to Christian ministry can be raised and debated.
    [Show full text]
  • Governor Signs Sudan Divestment Bill Into Law Story and Photos by Daniel R
    Hoosier Imagine Indiana see pages 7-10 United Methodists 1 www.inareaumc.orgHOOSIER UNITED METHODISTS together May/June 2007 Open hearts. Open minds. Open doors. Volume 37 The people of The United Methodist Church® Number 5 Hundreds of Hoosiers support Darfurians in State House rally Governor signs Sudan Divestment bill into law Story and photos by Daniel R. Gangler INDIANAPOLIS – In the quiet of his State House office, Governor Mitch Daniels signed the Sudan Divestment bill into law the afternoon of May 3, bringing an end to a four-month quest of hundreds of Hoosiers led by Beth Reilly, a member of Alder- sgate United Methodist Church in Fort Wayne, the Rev. Darren Cushman Wood of Speedway and a handful of interfaith leaders to help end the witnessed genocide in Darfur, a region of Sudan under siege by the current government based in Khartoum. A public signing of the bill will come probably later this month after Daniels trip to Europe, according to his staff. Reilly said both Chambers of the Indiana Gener- al Assembly considered the final conference report for the bill on April 26. After the Senate unanimously voted in favor the bill, the House came back into session and also debated the bill. Rep. Cindy Noe of Indianapolis, one of the bill’s sponsors, reminded lawmakers, “the situation in Dar- fur continues to deteriorate and Indiana can send a strong message to Sudan by divesting from targeted companies supplying money to the government.” The House again gave unanimous support for di- vestment. More than 800 activists jammed the north atrium of the State House April 15 in Indianapolis supporting Darfurians living under Overwhelming support for the Sudan Divestment the oppression of the Sudanese government.
    [Show full text]