General Conference authorizes study of United Methodist men May 5, 2004 By Melissa Lauber* PITTSBURGH (UMNS) - The mystery of why men are missing from United Methodist pews may soon be unlocked. On
May 5, General Conference delegates voted 469-443 to allocate $35,961
to implement a 2005-08 study on men across the denomination. The request
for funds will be reviewed by the Council on Finance and
Administration. That fiscal agency will present its budget
recommendations for all general church funds to the May 8 closing
plenary session for final action. The
study will be implemented by the Commission on United Methodist Men and
the research arm of the General Council on Ministries (or its
equivalent structure). According
to Bill Smith, a delegate from South Carolina, research shows that when
a man is the first one in a family to come to Christ, the family
follows him 93 percent of the time, compared to 17 percent when children
are the first to attend and 27 percent for women. "We need to find out why," Smith said. The
men’s commission reports that studies by researcher George Barna have
found that women are 54 percent more likely than men to be lay leaders,
54 percent more likely to be in a small ministry groups and 39 percent
more likely to have personal devotional time. The
study will enable the commission to "develop effective resources,
respond to current needs, challenge long-held assumptions and develop
effective strategies" for reaching men. The study committee will report
its findings to the 2008 General Conference. *Lauber is a news writer for United Methodist News Service. News media contact: (412) 325-6080 during General Conference, April 27-May 7. After May 10: (615) 742-5470.
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