This Week's Current Week in Review

The Current Week in Review

September 23, 2022

Rodriguez selected as new IGRC Director of

Congregational Development

Bishop Frank J. Beard has announced that Sam Rodriguez has been named IGRC Director of Congregational Development, effective Nov. 1.

Rodriguez succeeds the Rev. Mike Crawford as head of congregational development. Crawford, who has led congregational development efforts in the conference since 2006, was named Spoon River District Superintendent July 1.

Rodriguez comes from the West Ohio Conference where he has served as Director of Faith Formation and Community Engagement for the past 3 ½ years. A layperson, Rodriguez has more than 22 years of experience leading in local church community engagement, discipleship-making, church planting and development.

He was introduced to the IGRC as one of the keynote speakers at the April 2 Better Together celebration event at Belleville Union UMC.

“Sam’s experience with the general church and Discipleship Ministries as well as his experience in the West Ohio Conference, will enable him to hit the ground running,” Bishop Beard said in his announcement. “His addition to the IGRC staff increases the diversity of our leadership team and helps us to model the diversity that is within our congregations.

“Our hope is that Sam will help us to ensure that our pastors and laity are growing in their cross-cultural competencies. The end result will be our ability to reach new people with the good news of Jesus Christ,” Bishop Beard continued. “I am thrilled to have another gifted lay person join our staff. We welcome him and look forward to working together to strengthen the ministries of the IGRC.”

Doolin new administrative assistant

Becki Doolin has started Monday on the IGRC staff as Administrative Assistant to Connectional Ministries and Congregational Development.

She succeeds Christy Blickensderfer, who retired Aug. 15 and will also assume the part-time responsibilities in Congregational Development, who retired July 31.

In this role she’ll be assisting the Directors, staff, and committees that relate to our Connectional Ministries and Congregational Development work areas. Becki comes to our team with a strong history in administrative work for Catholic Charities and public schools.

“We’re so excited to have join our staff team,” said the Rev. Dr. Curtis Brown, IGRC director of connectional ministries. “She is already beginning to help us get better organized, and she is a great ‘voice on the phone’ for our IGRC church leaders who reach out to our offices. I know that her work will be blessing to many of our ministries.”

Becki can be reached through the Office of Connectional Ministries at the IGRC Conference Center at bdoolin@igrc.org or 217-529-2473.

Grassroots groups talk up The United Methodist Church

In a time of church disaffiliations, some conferences have seen grassroots groups emerge to advocate for remaining in The United Methodist Church.

The groups go by such names as Stay UMC, Celebrate UMC, That We May Be One, Arkansans Staying United and Abide South Georgia.

Providing information and countering what they see as misinformation is a key goal for the groups.

VISIT STAY UMC

VISIT CELEBRATE UMC

VISIT THAT WE MAY BE ONE

VISIT ARKANSANS STAYING UNITED FACEBOOK GROUP

VISIT ABIDE SOUTH GEORGIA

VISIT PROUD TO BE UMC

RESOURCES FROM #BE UMC

United Methodist divorce is a mistake

Retired United Methodist Bishop William WIllimon writes in a recent Christian Century op-ed piece, "After just 40 years of debate on same-sex marriage and LGBTQ ordination—a mere twinkling of the eye in church history—some self-proclaimed traditionalists (and a very few progressives) say they’ve tired of arguing,

"At some point we Methodists began loving our caucus (we have dozens) more than our congregation. Political polarities overcame our biblically authorized identity, and we became a church in centrifuge.

"Caucusing is easy; church is hard.

Unable to convert you to my point of view, I’ll hunker down in my gated community of buddies who think as I do and call that ecclesia. We thereby say to the world that Jesus Christ can’t make and sustain community out of people whom I don’t like and are not my type. Rather than ask, “What’s Christ up to in our neighborhood?” we say, “I refuse to be part of a church that doesn’t reflect my values before I came to church.”

Old Mutare Hospital gets a facelift

As the economy of Zimbabwe continues to plummet, industries are shutting down and people are losing their jobs. God’s work, however, continues to shine at Old Mutare Mission Hospital.

A state-of-the-art outpatient department, kitchen and 120-panel solar system are among recent additions at the United Methodist mission hospital.

The United Methodist Board of Global Ministries’ Global Health unit provided $386,903 U.S. for the project. The funding was part of a larger collection of grants for Zimbabwe clinics and facilities, totaling $742,184, according to the agency.

“We are seeing God's hand in all these developments,” said the Rev. Tafadzwa Musona, Mutasa Nyanga District superintendent. “This has proved to us that God is not limited by economic conditions. He is capable of doing great developments, even in the midst of a harsh economy.”

Charge conference forms online

Forms for charge conferences which will be held in the fall are now available through your Church Portal Page.

To access the documents, click on Church Portal on the IGRC Homepage or go to: https://www.igrc.org/churchportal to find the log-in page. Select your District from the dropdown menu. This will trigger a second drop-down menu where you select your Church. The passcode is the church's six-digit GCFA number which can be found on the monthly remittance form for apportionment payments.

In preparation for charge conferences in the fall, the Finance Office has prepared two pages of information that will assist you in your budget building for 2023.

A document outlining the Clergy Benefits and Costs for 2023 includes action taken by the 2022 Annual Conference with regard to minimum salaries for full-time elders and full-time local pastors.

A second document Important Numbers for Charge Conference provides additional information and background. The Apportionment calculations and the Charge Conference forms will be published in the next few weeks.

Churches that have been identified as receiving an additional member to annual conference for equalization purposes should elect that person at the church's charge conference.