A weekly news update from The Alaska United Methodist Conference
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Post-GC2019 Webinar with Bishop Elaine
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A webinar with Bishop Elaine Stanovsky will be held on Tuesday, March 19 at 6:00-7:00 pm via the Zoom platform. Information will be shared about the actions of the recent Special Called Session of the General Conference and the impacts on mission and ministry in Alaska, the Greater Northwest Area and the Western Jurisdiction. There will be a time for answering of pre-fielded questions. Please send your questions to
alaskaumc@gmail.com
by
Friday, March 15 at 10 am.
Our Communicator, Jim Doepken and Superintendent, Carlo Rapanut, who will be the moderators of this call, will collate/group the questions and send them to the Bishop for consideration. Due to constraints of time, it is possible that not all questions will be responded to during the webinar. Other means will be explored to respond to those questions after the webinar.
To encourage participation in the context of Christian community, local churches are being designated “Zoom sites". The Zoom call-in information will only be given to the churches and will be password protected. Support and test calls will be made available beforehand for those who have not used Zoom before. A list of all the Zoom sites will be published in next week’s e-Aurora.
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Annual Conference Registration is OPEN
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Annual Conference is coming up May 31 - June 1 at Christ First UMC in Wasilla. There will be workshops held on Thursday, May 30th at Christ First UMC as well. Please make sure these dates are on your calendar if you are the Lay Member to Annual Conference from your church. An email went out on Thursday of last week.
You can view that email here
.
There is one CORRECTION to announce: the Fact Sheet had an incorrect date (should say
May 30: Pre-Conference Workshops
- not May 31).
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Donations needed for Anchorage youth Easter baskets
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The St. John LGBTQIA+ Outreach Ministry Team is going to purchase, assemble and deliver Rainbow Easter Baskets to 80 (yes, 80!) youth in Anchorage! They are part of Identity's Q Club downtown and/or are residents of Covenant House.
We need your help! Our team will purchase the baskets and grass. We're hoping for donations of colorful/rainbow things to put in them: candy, stickers, pins, buttons, socks, pencils, notebooks, etc. The sky's the limit!
Please bring donations to St. John by March 31st. OR contact the church office (344-3025) and a team member will pick them up at your church or home.
You're also invited to help us assemble the baskets. Join us for Wednesday Night Supper at 5:15 on April 3rd (call the church office by Wednesday so that we know you're coming!). We'll be meeting after that to put them together and make plans to deliver them.
What better way to celebrate new life, resurrection, and God's love? Please join us!!!
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Visit with Missionary Katherine Parker
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Katherine T. Parker is a missionary with the General Board of Global Ministries of The United Methodist Church serving as a Health and Community Transformation Advisor with the United Mission to Nepal (UMN).
Katherine’s work in Nepal is focused in three areas: 1) Adolescent empowerment, including sexual reproductive health and rights and menstrual hygiene; 2) Maternal and child health; and 3) Water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH).
You can visit with her through technology and ZOOM on Wednesday, March 20 at 1:30 pm AK time.
To participate you need to contact
Fran Lynch
no later than March 15 with the exact email you will be using to participate. You will be sent an email invitation that you will utilize on March 20. It is best if you have a computer with a camera and speaker, but you can also participate without a camera. If you do not have access to a computer you may participate by phone.
Please invite others to join you for this presentation.
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CrossOver to Life! | Week 15
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RV Trips and the Invitation to the Unknown
By Rev. Jenny Smith
CrossOver reflection for
Week Fifteen
• Beginning March 10, 2019
When I was finishing up 7th grade, my parents thought it would be a brilliant idea to take two summer months to drive from Alaska to New York and back. Six of us sleeping in one contained vehicle sounded like a fairly awful idea to me. I was just getting comfortable with my group of junior high school friends and couldn’t bear the thought of being away from my newly budding social scene for two whole months. I liked my family, but come on. That’s a lot for a 7th grader.
They registered my complaint but it did not alter our plans. We hit the road and much to the surprise of my awkward 13-year-old self, we had a good time. Shh, don’t tell my parents. We stopped at funny landmarks, explored new cities, visited family and watched 4th of July fireworks at the Statue of Liberty.
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Judicial Council to review GC2019 actions
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Headline-making decisions by the legislative body of The United Methodist Church will be reviewed next month by the denomination's top court. The two items on the April 23-26 docket deal with constitutionality questions related to the Traditional Plan and an exit plan approved by GC2019.
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Korean clergy offer diverse perspectives on GC2019
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While many Korean clergy support the Traditional Plan adopted by General Conference, some expressed concerns and disappointment over the treatment of the LGBTQ community.
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Reaction to GC2019 remains strong
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United Methodists of varying perspectives continue to react to the General Conference decision to strengthen restrictions against ordination of openly gay clergy and same-sex unions. Protests have been widespread, and meetings by local churches and conferences to discuss the future are underway or planned.
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Lutheran bishop sends letter after GC2019
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The Rev. Elizabeth A. Eaton, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, sent a letter to The United Methodist Church following the special General Conference, assuring that "as the UMC takes its next steps, we in the ELCA will continue to walk with our full communion partner." The ELCA assembly in 2009 voted to allow those in same-gender relationships to serve as pastors.
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Bishops challenge constitutionality of disaffiliation petition
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The Council of Bishops of The United Methodist Church (COB) has asked the Judicial Council for a declaratory decision as to the constitutionality and the meaning, application, and effect of Petition 90066, which was approved by the Special Session of the General Conference on February 26.
In the request filed today (March 6, 2019) and signed by COB Secretary Bishop Mande Muyombo, the COB noted that bishops voted to make the request during their meeting in St. Louis, Missouri, on February 27, 2019, a day after the close of the Special Session.
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The beauty of the United Methodist connection is best seen in local churches ministering and thriving in unique ways. Every church is vital to our global mission! We have renewed our dedication to serving local churches by enhancing communication, outreach and marketing services designed just for YOU. Our menu of services can be tailored to fulfill specific needs of individual churches, such as social media support, website development, marketing consultation and more.
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11-15: WJ Leadership meetings
17: St. Patrick's Day
24-27: ADCM meeting
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5-6: Ordinary Revival in Anchorage
6-7: Ordinary Revival in Palmer
8-10: Methodist Missions Bicentennial Event
10-12: GNW Cabinet Meeting
11-12: GBGM Board Meeting
12-13: GNW Stewards Summit
14: Palm Sunday
15: Tax Day
21: Easter Sunday
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Upcoming Clergy Birthdays
April 3 -
Tim McConville
April 23 -
Karen Martin Tichenor
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Conference Office
907-333-5050
Superintendent Carlo
907-854-8340
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The Conference Office hours are:
Monday - Thursday: 9:00 am - 3:00 pm
Friday: 9:00 am - 11:30 am
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Submissions
- If you have an article or event that you would like to share with the rest of the conference, submit it to the conference office by Tuesday at 9:00 am for consideration.
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The mission of the United Methodist Church is to make disciples of Jesus Christ. Held and supported by the transforming relationship with God through Christ, we of the Alaska United Methodist Conference seek to be a community that creates a home for all peoples, finds our hope through grace and journeys together in God's preferred future.
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