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Assembly draws women in person and online

 
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11:00 A.M. EST May 5, 2010 | ST. LOUIS (UMNS)

The Della Lamb Children's Choir sings during opening worship at the United Methodist Women's Assembly in St. Louis. A UMNS photo by Mike DuBose.
The Della Lamb Children's Choir sings during opening worship at the United Methodist Women's Assembly in St. Louis. A UMNS photo by Mike DuBose.
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The Haitian-American women were not sitting in the dome of the St. Louis convention center, where about 6,500 United Methodist women had gathered for worship.

But their greeting to sisters in the faith from the pews of a Florida church was heard and seen via a Skype Internet connection.

For decades, the United Methodist Women’s Assembly has drawn thousands to a quadrennial event focusing on worship, education, advocacy and celebration. This year, with the help of technology, many more women were able to view selected portions of the April 29-May 2 assembly streamed live on the Internet and, in a few cases, the women could interact with on-site participants.

That was the case with the Haitian churchwomen, who were organized by Ruth Jean Pierre, the Florida Conference United Methodist Women language coordinator. Also beamed into the Friday evening worship were women from the Brooks Howell Home in Asheville, N.C., a UMW unit at a women’s prison in Topeka, Kan., and a student unit at Tarleton State University in Stephenville, Texas.

Taped video greetings came from women in Sierra Leone, Honduras, Costa Rica, Russia and El Salvador.

Inelda González (left) and Emily Innes greet a Haitian congregation in Florida via Skype. A UMNS photo by Mike DuBose.
Inelda González (left) and Emily Innes greet a Haitian congregation in Florida via Skype. A UMNS photo by Mike DuBose.
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Bishop Joaquina Nhanala of Mozambique, the first female United Methodist bishop elected in Africa, preached afterward and spoke about a program ministering to vulnerable women in her country. “My sisters, when we understand and realize how much God loves us, we translate that love in practical ways into our lives,” she said.

Harriett Olson, top executive of the Women’s Division, United Methodist Board of Global Ministries, reinforced that call to action as the assembly ended, urging participants to connect to the needs of the world. “In the economy of God, we don’t have limits,” she said. “There’s still more to do.”

Practical, spiritual and inspirational

The Women’s Assembly has always been a combination of the practical, spiritual and inspirational.

On the practical side, participants could learn how to spend or invest their money in a way to encourage corporate change, set up a Twitter account, attend a “green cleaning party” or march for immigrant rights.

 In a well-attended town hall-style meeting on April 30, Joycelyn Elders, a United Methodist who served as the U.S. surgeon general under President Bill Clinton, offered her perspective on health care reform.

Elders said she was not concerned that the law finally approved this year had some flaws in it. “We’ve been talking about universal health care since 1912,” she said. “At least we’ve got a start, and we’ve got something to work from.”

Harriett J. Olson, deputy general secretary of the Women's Division of the United Methodist Board of Global Ministries, sends forth United Methodist Women for a day of volunteer service. A UMNS photo by Mike DuBose.
Harriett J. Olson, deputy general secretary of the Women's Division of the United Methodist Board of Global Ministries, sends forth United Methodist Women for a day of volunteer service. A UMNS photo by Mike DuBose.
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She reminded United Methodist Women that they have the power to help fix a system that “costs too much, delivers too little.”

On the spiritual side, women could get advice on strengthening and transforming congregations, watch a liturgical dance performance and explore the biblical basis of the church’s position on immigration.

The Rev. Anita Phillips, a member of the Cherokee nation of Oklahoma and executive director of the denomination’s Native American Comprehensive Plan, drew from her background to underscore the “central interconnectedness of all creation,” which, she added, “tells us what our deepest yearnings are for.”

During a Bible study, she spoke quietly but movingly of her ancestors’ experience along the “Trail of Tears,” the 1,000-mile forced march in 1838 of the Cherokees from the Eastern and Southern United States to Oklahoma.

Even the tiniest of tears, she explained, can become the headwaters of mighty rivers. But those mighty streams of justice “will not flow without the vigilance of the handmaidens of the Lord,” Phillips said. “You and I are the handmaidens.”

Music and messages

Inspiration for assembly participants came from the arts, the people and the messages.

Dr. Joycelyn Elders, former U.S. surgeon general, speaks about health care reform and women during a forum at the assembly. A UMNS photo by Paul Jeffrey, Response.
Dr. Joycelyn Elders, former U.S. surgeon general, speaks about health care reform and women during a forum at the assembly. A UMNS photo by Paul Jeffrey, Response.
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Music and dance were key elements of praise and celebration at the assembly, which had its own house band and song leaders. Children from Della Lamb Children’s Choir charmed the crowd with their joyful exuberance, and two dancers spun high in the air above worshippers on silk ropes held by a wire.

Participants like Nhashara Locke, a student at Northwestern University, inspired by showing the connection between generations of United Methodist Women.

Locke is combining a dedication to service—passed down by her grandmother and aunt—with her interest in science to prepare for a career in medicine. She encouraged the organization to hold retreats for young women like her all over the country.

“Young people are great at generating ideas and they offer another perspective and eager hands,” she said.

Tayyibah Taylor, founding editor of a magazine for Muslim-American women, offered inspiring words and reminded assembly participants that “it is not our differences that cause the rifts and the enmity between us; it is the value we attach to those differences.”

The goal is spiritual evolution, Taylor said—beyond hatred to tolerance, beyond tolerance to understanding and acceptance, and beyond acceptance to love.

*Bloom is a United Methodist News Service news writer based in New York.

News media contact: Linda Bloom, New York, (646) 369-3759 or newsdesk@umcom.org.

 

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