News Archives

Bishop Sharon Brown Christopher

By Tim Tanton*

LAKE JUNALUSKA, N.C. (UMNS) — The United Methodist Church’s bishops have chosen Sharon Brown Christopher to deliver their Episcopal Address when the denomination’s top legislative assembly meets in 2008.

Christopher, who leads the church’s Illinois Area, was chosen during the Council of Bishops’ Oct. 30-Nov. 4 meeting in Lake Junaluska. Christopher became the council’s first woman president in 2002, serving in that role for a one-year term. Elected in 1988, she is one of the council’s longest-serving active bishops.

The Episcopal Address is developed with direction and input from the entire council, and it’s a highlight of the church’s General Conference, which meets every four years. The 2008 assembly will be in Fort Worth, Texas.

The address is the council’s “prayer for the world and the church, uttered out loud before the General Conference,” Christopher said in a statement. “Such prayer requires the Council of Bishops to listen deeply to God, the world and the church.

A UMNS photo by Tim Tanton Bishop Don Ott hands out ballots during a business session at the Council of Bishops’ meeting.

During their fall meeting, the bishops addressed a wide range of other topics and issues, including the crisis in Darfur; World AIDS Day; the death penalty; the focus on making disciples for the transformation of the world; and participation in next year’s International United Methodist Clergywomen’s Consultation and a delegation trip to North Korea.

Making disciples

Continuing the work on their focus, “Making Disciples of Jesus Christ for the Transformation of the World,” the bishops adopted seven “vision pathways” along which they will lead the church:

• Developing new congregations.
• Transforming existing congregations.
• Teaching the Wesleyan model of forming disciples of Jesus Christ.
• Strengthening clergy and lay leadership.
• Reaching and transforming the lives of the new generations of children.
• Eliminating poverty in community with the poor.
• Expanding racial/ethnic ministries.

A UMNS photo by Tim Tanton Bishop Peter Weaver (right) leads discussion at the Council of Bishops meeting while Bishop Ernest Lyght listens.

After the meeting, Bishop Peter Weaver, president of the council and leader of the church’s Boston Area, described how the bishops are focusing on helping their congregations make disciples. “It’s amazing what’s happening in the annual conferences and in local churches as God moves through our work to connect us in that great mission,” he said.

Global concerns

Other areas addressed by the bishops included:

• Darfur – The bishops approved a resolution that the council continue to keep the people of Darfur in prayer, and that local churches be encouraged to take action to relieve the pain and suffering in that region of Sudan.
• World AIDS Day – The bishops received a draft letter that they may use as a model for urging church members to support the Global AIDS Fund. The 2004 General Conference committed to raising at least $8 million during the 2005-08 period. A gift of $1 per church member would meet that goal. Contributions can be designated for Advance No. 982345.
• Capital punishment – To support efforts to eliminate capital punishment, the bishops committed to visit death rows in their areas and to share the Gospel with inmates, inmates’ families and prison staffs. The council also requested that bishops meet with government officials and lawmakers to express the church’s official opposition to the death penalty, and that each bishop appoint a task force or charge the conference board of church and society with addressing the theological and ethical grounds for opposing capital punishment.
• Malaria – The Rev. Larry Hollon, top staff executive of United Methodist Communications, and the Rev. R. Randy Day, chief executive of the United Methodist Board of Global Ministries, briefed the bishops on the Nov. 1-3 TIME Global Health Summit in New York, where Bishop Machado participated in a panel discussion on eliminating malaria. Day spoke passionately about the denomination’s pilot program for eradicating malaria in Sierra Leone. “No one, absolutely no one, needs to die of malaria in the world today,” he said.
• Central Conference Pension Initiative – Bishop Ben Chamness, chairperson of the Central Conference Pension Committee, and Barbara Boigegrain, top staff executive of the United Methodist Board of Pension and Health Benefits, gave an update on the initiative, which is developing models for pension systems to cover retired clergy and church employees in Africa and, eventually, other parts of the world. Chamness thanked the bishops for leading their annual conferences in donating to the initiative and the Central Conference Pension Fund. “We now have more $1.2 million for this fund. That is a small amount but a very important step toward the $20 (million) or $30 million we anticipate needing.”
• Border report – Bishops Minerva Carcano, Max Whitfield and Mary Ann Swenson reported on ministries along the U.S.-Mexico border and the need for the church to respond to the life-and-death needs of immigrants and people in that region. The bishops lead conferences along the border.
• Moscow seminary – Bishop Hans Vaxby thanked the bishops for the church’s response to his call for funding help for the Russia United Methodist Theological Seminary in Moscow. The seminary was dedicated Sept. 10. With the commitments that have been made, he said there is reason to believe that by next summer, the seminary’s costs will be paid.
• Holy Communion – The bishops approved a recommendation that they preside at Holy Communion whenever they are visiting a local church in their area.
• Special events – The bishops approved funding from the Episcopal Fund for colleagues already going to next July’s World Methodist Conference in Seoul, South Korea, to make a side trip to North Korea, and for women bishops to attend the International United Methodist Clergywomen’s Consultation in August. The consultation will mark the 50th anniversary of full clergy rights for women in the church.

The Council of Bishops, with offices in Washington, comprises 69 active bishops and about 100 retirees from the United States, Africa, Asia and Europe. The bishops are the top clergy leaders of the nearly 11 million-member denomination.

The council’s next meeting will be in Mozambique in fall 2006. Because of the expense of the Africa trip, the bishops will not have a spring meeting next year. The meeting will be the bishops’ first council meeting in Africa and their second outside the United States.

*Tanton is managing editor of United Methodist News Service.

News media contact: Tim Tanton, Nashville, Tenn., (615) 742-5470 or newsdesk@umcom.org

Audio Interview

Bishop Peter Weaver: “Everything is about making disciples.”

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Resources

Council of Bishops

Russia United Methodist Theological Seminary

Death Penalty (UMC.org)

AIDS (UMC.org)