A weekly news update from The Alaska United Methodist Conference |
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Annual Conference Survey
Dear Annual Conference Members,
Thank you so much for your participation in Greater Northwest Area Annual Conference sessions this past month! As clergy and lay members of the Alaska Conference, your feedback is essential to analyzing our annual conference sessions this year to prepare for 2023 and beyond.
Please complete this short survey no later than Friday, July 22, 2022!
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BSA Update - UMC & BSA announce new affiliation and facility use agreements
United Methodist leaders and the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) have reached an agreement about new Affiliation and Facility Use Agreements between congregations, scouting units and the BSA. The new documents linked below replace the charter agreements used in the past.
Over the last year, leaders of The United Methodist Church engaged in the Boy Scouts of America reorganization because of sexual abuse in scouting programs over the last 80 years. United Methodist Leaders and the BSA each have worked toward ending sexual abuse and the number of cases have decreased dramatically in United Methodist scouting programs to the point that only 1% of all the claims involving United Methodist scout troops occurred in the last 20 years. But one case is too many. The United Methodist Church does not tolerate child sexual abuse. We are all called to continue to work toward ending child sexual abuse.
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Annual Conference Apportionments
The apportionment report through June has been posted to the conference website. The treasurer's office produces a new report monthly. You can view where churches are in paying their apportionments.
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Certified Lay Servant classes offered
Rev. Andy Bartel will be offering the Certified Lay Ministry BASIC and PREACHING courses again this fall on Wednesday evenings from 6-8 p.m., both in-person in Anchorage and via Zoom.
The Basic class will run Sept 14, 21, 28, Oct 5, and 12. The Preaching class will run Oct 19, 26, Nov 2, 9, 16. Space is limited, and is open to all Alaska United Methodists.
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Ask the UMC: Is the United Methodist Church really...?
Ask The UMC, a ministry of United Methodist Communications, has received many questions from congregations wondering about the future of the denomination and whether they should consider disaffiliating from it. These have included recurrent questions that reflect misperceptions or misinformation that congregations are receiving as they discern their next steps. This is the first of a series of articles offering accurate responses to such misperceptions or misinformation.
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Let's unite to help United Methodist students
It is not too early to be thinking about our students and United Methodist Student Day. As they journey from high school to next-level studies, we can show our support. Let’s give them the gift of hope. Help spread awareness and encourage giving with resources such as offering talks, sermon starters, liturgies, age-level resources and more. Core resources are available in multiple languages.
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3 churches vandalized, 2 set on fire
Authorities are investigating vandalism and possible arson at North Bethesda United Methodist Church as well as fire at a nearby Catholic church and additional vandalism at a nearby Baptist church. “We cannot know the hurt of the person or people who vandalized churches in our neighborhood, and so we lift their hurt and our own hurt up to God,” said the Rev. Kara Scroggins, the United Methodist congregation’s pastor.
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As statue installed, Bethune honored in her church
A statue of Mary McLeod Bethune is scheduled to be installed July 13 in the U.S. Capitol Building’s Statuary Hall. People touched by the legacy of the Methodist civil rights leader and educator kicked off a week of celebration with worship at Asbury United Methodist Church, the congregation Bethune joined in 1937.
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19: Crystal out of the office
24-28: Christina at DS/DCM Training out of state
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4: AUMC Professional Church Workers Check-in
4-5: Crystal out of the office
16-19: GNW Cabinet Retreat - Christina & Lisa attending
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Upcoming Clergy Birthdays
July 21 - Lisa Talbott
August 13 - Bennie Grace Nabua
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Conference Office
907-333-5050
Superintendent - Christina DowlingSoka
Director of Connectional Ministries - Lisa Talbott
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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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We acknowledge that the Methodist Church is complicit with and rooted in the colonization of Alaska and recognize that we live in that ongoing legacy. We lament the harm and trauma that our faith community causes. John Wesley, founder of the Methodist Movement, summarized God’s directives with three Rules: do no harm, do good, and attend to the ordinances of God. We also celebrate the grace, the love, and the good that our church does that calls us to re-imagine mission through intentional discipleship with one another.
We will live into the transition to a Mission District committed to:
Alaska Conference Values
- The love of God, neighbor, and self, demonstrated by the deliberate embracing and valuing of differences, the leveling of imbalances between people and systems, and the intentional dismantling of inequities in whatever forms they present themselves.
- Healing, grace-filled mission with communities and churches that prioritizes local experiences and shares resources across time and distance through equitable relationships.
- Living into connectionalism by belonging to and trusting in one another to nurture relationships that celebrate the gifts each of our communities bring, allowing us to move forward in a decolonized way.
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