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October 31, 2022 | "Transformed Lives Transform Lives"
We pray for all those involved in this week's NEJ Conference
The BWC, under the leadership of the Rev. Tony Love, is hosting the Northeastern Jurisdictional Conference this week at The Hotel in College Park. Delegates will be electing two bishops. Bishops Sudarshana Devadhar and Mark Webb will retire. Among the nine candidates for the episcopacy is the Rev. Giovanni Arroyo, an Elder in the BWC.

The NEJ Episcopacy Committee will assign active and newly elected bishops to their areas, where they will serve until the next Jurisdictional Conference meets in the summer of 2024. If there remain areas without assignments, the College of Bishops, in consultation with the COE, will assign bishops to cover those areas until 2024, as has been the case in the affiliation this past year after Bishop Peggy Johnson’s retirement. The Rev. T.R. Chattin and Delores Martin represent the BWC on the Episcopacy Committee.

The NEJ Episcopacy Committee will assign the bishops to their areas, where they will serve until the next Jurisdictional Conference meets in the summer of 2024. The Rev. T.R. Chattin and Delores Martin represent the BWC on the Episcopacy Committee.

To learn more, see the Advanced Daily Christian Advocate, an online publication with the news of the Jurisdictional Conference. Daily editions, updates, and other important files can be found on the NEJ website. Also, see a profile of the candidates for bishop. Watch the opening worship on live stream Monday evening and the plenary sessions Wednesday and Thursday at www.nejumc.org/2022conference.html.

The Baltimore-Washington Conference has a voting delegation of 12 clergy and 12 laity.
The BWC's clergy delegates and alternates:

  • Ianther Mills 
  • Joe Daniels 
  • Ginger Gaines-Cirelli 
  • C. Anthony Hunt 
  • Giovanni Arroyo
  • Sarah Schlieckert
  • Stacey Cole-Wilson
  • J.W. Park
  • Conrad Link
  • Leo Yates
  • Kirkland Reynolds
  • Bryant Oskvig
  • Edgardo Rivera
  • Malcolm Frazier
  • Laura Norvell
  • Melissa Rudolph
The BWC's lay delegates and alternates:

  • Cynthia Taylor
  • Melissa Lauber
  • Ken Ow
  • Daniel Colbert
  • Sarah Ford
  • Chris Schlieckert
  • Christie Latona
  • Tracy Collins
  • Sharon Milton
  • Nathan Jones
  • Chet Jechura
  • Mittie Quinn
  • Charlie Moore
  • Lutebula Danny Pembamoto
  • Heather Kraus
In preparation for the conference, the Council of Bishops has released a video on what the UMC needs from its future leaders.
Pathways offer new insights into congregational vitality
The "Intent to Apply" deadline for the BWC's three vitality pathways has been extended to Nov. 15. Do you want to see your congregation become more vital? Do you know what that looks like or how to get from where you are to a place of vitality? You are invited to submit your intent to apply for one of the three Vitality Pathways.

These initiatives offer in-depth learning and resourcing opportunities tailored to meet each church’s specific needs. They include the Launch, Catalyst, and Readiness Initiatives. Each initiative results in personalized missional actional plans based on the congregation’s current state of vitality and context. The deadline to submit your intent to apply form is Nov. 15.
New and Featured
Tomorrow is the deadline to apply for mission innovation grants for advocacy and action, wellness and missions, and young people’s ministry. Grants of up to $5,000 will be awarded to faith communities with a proven ministry idea in one of these ministries. Learn more and apply.

The BWC’s Commission on Disability Concerns is hosting an Accessibility Conversation webinar on Friday, Nov. 4 at 11 a.m. Register to obtain a Zoom link. The topic is "Best Practices of a Disability Ministry" with Rev. Kathy Lossau.

Meeting with rural pastors: Bishop LaTrelle Easterling will meet for a conversation with pastors who serve in rural settings on Dec. 8 (not Dec. 3 as formerly reported) from 1 to 3 p.m. at Otterbein UMC in Hagerstown.

The BWC’s Deaf Shalom Zone is seeking individuals or small groups to support food ministries at Christ Deaf Church. Examples of how you might help include hosting an actual or virtual food drive, or sending a small group one Sunday each month to help heat and serve the community meal. The church can supply the food and take care of prep work during the week, then two to five of your volunteers could arrive on Sunday at about 11 a.m. to heat and serve the food and help clean up. For more information, contact Kathi Jeffra at deafshalomzone@gmail.com

BWC Events at a Glance Calendar
Nov. 8, 7 to 8:30 p.m.
Examples of Intentional Discipleship Pathways with Rev. Jack Shitama
Early Response Team (ERT) Training
Nov. 12 – BWC Mission Center
Nov. 12, 1 to 3 p.m.
Online and at Calvary UMC in Annapolis
A conversation on the future of youth ministry
Nov. 15, 7 to 8:30 p.m.
Live and Love Like Jesus
First and third Wednesdays, noon to 12:30 p.m.
Discipleship Opportunities
The United Campus Ministries at Frostburg State University invites you to a time of fellowship and devotion as they celebrate 45 years of ecumenical campus ministry, and welcome the Rev. Trey Daniel, the university’s Protestant chaplain, on Nov. 10 at 1 p.m., at Frostburg UMC. RSVP by Nov. 7.
 
Oakland UMC in Eldersburg will hold its annual bazaar, Nov. 4 from 9 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. and Nov. 5 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
 
Lovely Lane UMC in Baltimore will host a choir festival to celebrate the church’s 250th anniversary on Sunday, Nov. 6 at 4 p.m. Dr. Barbara Baker will conduct.
 
A free Community Health Fair will be held at Glen Mar UMC in Ellicott City on Saturday, Nov. 12, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. There will be free COVID booster shots for 5-year-olds and up; annual flu shots for 6-month-olds and up; health screening; vision and hearing screenings and more. Register and learn more.

Save the Dates:
 
On Oct. 5, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the 2021 district court decision that ruled the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) policy unlawful. The court’s decision leaves DACA recipients in a very vulnerable position. Although the ruling allows the more than 600,000 DACA recipients to keep and renew their status, for the time being, the Supreme Court could very well strip these protections in the near future if they also rule the policy unlawful. The decision continues to prohibit the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) from issuing DACA protection to new pending applicants and prohibits eligible individuals who have not yet applied from seeking protection through the program.
 
The Dream Act of 2021 (S.264) was introduced in the Senate on Feb. 4, 2021, to provide a pathway to legal status for DACA recipients. Passing this bill aligns with our Church’s long-standing commitment to protecting immigrants. We have advocated for legal status for undocumented immigrants since 2009, and for passing the Dream Act since 2012, calling on Congress to pass “federal legislation that presents a pathway to citizenship for undocumented youth and young adults.”
 
Read more about the Dream Act and how you can take action to support DACA recipients at https://bwcaction.org/urge-congress-to-protect-daca-recipients-by-passing-the-dream-act/ 
Submissions?
Melissa Lauber, Director of Communications
11711 East Market Place, Fulton, MD 20759
 410.309.3455  |  mlauber@bwcumc.org