The Current

October 13, 2022

Videos from Annual Conference 2022

If you missed Annual Conference you can watch videos here

Charge Conference Schedule Announced

Charge Conference Schedule

Farewell/Retirement Gathering for Bishop Webb

You are invited to Upper New York (UNY) Area Resident Bishop Mark J. Webb's farewell/retirement gathering on Saturday November 19th 2022 from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. at the Upper New York Conference Center, 7481 Henry Clay Boulevard in Liverpool. Join others throughout the Conference to celebrate Bishop Webb's 10 years of ministry as Bishop of the UNY Conference.

Registration link can be found here

2022 UNY Journal Vol. I Available

for Download or Purchase

The 2022 Upper New York Conference Journal Vol. I is now available for download as a free PDF and for purchase through online publisher Lulu.com. This comprehensive book provides all the details of Annual Conference for the year 2022.

Click here for options to either view an online version or download a copy from Issuu or to purchase it for $5.06 (plus shipping and applicable sales tax) from Lulu.com.

Message from CAH

(Commission of Archives and History)

To All UNY Conference Churches:

The Commission of Archives and History's responsibility is to keep the history of the Conference. As churches close, their records come to the Conference Archives for safe keeping and reference. With churches closing each year and disaffiliations looming, we are running out of space.

Our existing rooms at the Conference Center are almost full already. Just since January we have received records from about 20 churches. They are filling the aisles as we go through them to discard the items we will not keep. For example, one church sent us 30 boxes of materials. After sorting through we kept 3 regular archival boxes and one small box. Most of the rest was recycled, trashed, or kindly taken to the local historical society by a CAH member who lived nearby. Another church sent in 5 boxes; we kept 1.

We don’t like throwing away items, but we have no choice. National GCAH Guidelines are clear on what we must keep, what is desirable to keep, and what is unnecessary to keep. Go to the Conference web site, to Resources, to UNY Archives and History and click on Church Closings.

To know what the Discipline says about what to keep, click the link below.

https://www.umc.org/en/content/book-of-discipline-2549-disposition-of-property-of-a-closed-local-church

This link tells how long to keep some records.

http://s3.amazonaws.com/gcah.org/Resources/Guidelines_Publications/Closed-Local-Church-Records-Guidelines-2017.pdf

Another link is more specific about what to keep and how long. You may skip over the first few pages for in depth information.

http://s3.amazonaws.com/gcah.org/Resources/Guidelines_Publications/Local-ChurchSched-2017.pdf

Several years ago, the CAH created a video you can watch to see “What to Toss and What to Keep”. You can also find it on the UNY Archives and History website

https://vimeo.com/303744535/ab78413ba8

One of the actions CAH recommends: If the item is not on the required list, see if some other group would like it, such as the local historical society as mentioned above. Be especially careful that you send all baptism, membership, marriage, and confirmation records. We constantly get requests to locate these records so copies can be made. Sadly, we often strike out. This includes digital (thumb drive-saved) records!

If there are still questions, please contact CAH with your full contact information, and one of the members will get back to you.

We are also in need of volunteers to help us on Tuesday afternoons!

Call 315-516-5289 if interested.

Pre-Retirement Workshop Scheduled

There will be an in-person pre-retirement workshop to highlight and explain the benefits available through The United Methodist Church to retiring clergy.

Please be aware that this workshop may be moved to an online format if COVID positivity rates warrant such a change.

The workshop is scheduled for Friday, November 11th from

10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. and is intended to assist persons in their later years of ministry understand the current pension plan, health insurance options, Social Security, and moving assistance available. You can schedule a private consultation with a benefits educator on the registration page.

Online registration is required in order to attend by October 28, 2022.

Click here to register and click here for more information.

Equitable Compensation Applications

Available Now

The Commission on Equitable Compensation has issued guidelines and application forms for salary grants to local churches for the period January to June 2023. Salary grants are available only to churches with a pastor under full time appointment.

To apply for salary assistance from the Equitable Compensation Fund, applicants should review the policies and procedures in the application document for guidance, and then complete the application according to the directions provided. Completed applications should be submitted to your District Superintendent by the October 14, 2022 deadline.

Please read through the application thoroughly and provide all required documentation. Lack of required information could result in the denial of your application.

Click here for more information.

Application

Supplemental Application

The 2022-2023 Church/Charge Conference and Annual Forms are now available to download.

All information can be found by clicking here.

On this page, you will find links to various reports, including Report of Pastor, the Safe Sanctuary Compliance Report, and more.

Opportunities to Disaffiliate from the

Upper New York Conference

During the upcoming session of the Upper New York Annual Conference (October 6-8), the Conference will receive its first requests from local churches to disaffiliate from the Conference under ¶2553 of the Book of Discipline. To be eligible to disaffiliate, a church must deposit with the Conference treasurer, all fees stipulated in the disaffiliation agreement at least one week prior to the start of Annual Conference. A complete listing of churches who have met this requirement will be posted on the Conference website on Oct 3.

During Annual Conference, members will be asked to ratify each disaffiliation request by a simple majority of members present and voting. This will be a simple up or down vote with no provision for amendment (see Judicial Council Decision 1379 and ¶ 2529.1_b_ (3)).

In addition to this year’s Annual Conference, there will be three other opportunities for local churches to request disaffiliation. These include next year’s regularly scheduled Annual Conference session in June as well as two special sessions – March 25, 2023, and Oct. 14, 2023.

Click here to learn more and to find needed forms for disaffiliation.

The Upper New York Conference is launching our #BeUMC campaign, highlighting clergy and laity in the Conference describing why they love being United Methodist. In a world that desperately needs positive stories, we hope this campaign will uplift you, reminding all of us of the mission of the United Methodist Church.

We are looking for positive stories to share about what it means to #BeUMC. If you can take a video of yourself explaining why you are proud to be a United Methodist, we’d love to share your story.

Email us at news@unyumc.org

Wesley Heritage Tour 2024

Join Pastor Brett Johnson on the trip of a lifetime to visit John and Charles Wesley’s homeland of England. We will be visiting sites of great importance to United Methodists, including the Wesleys’ hometown of Epworth, Oxford, Bristol, and worship in the Wesley Chapel in London.

We will also be stopping at Stonehenge and Stratford-on-Avon, the birthplace of William Shakespeare, and St Paul’s Cathedral. Tour dates are July 13-22, 2024. Please use the following link to register: https://portal.myfaithjourneys.com/ and use group code 24002.

Contact Rev. Brett Johnson, pastor.brett.johnson@gmail.com, with any questions.

Bishop Webb Announces Clergy Appointments

Upper New York Area Resident Bishop Mark J. Webb and the Upper New York Conference announce appointments and retirements pending approval of clergy session. View the full list of changes here.

Wondering how clergy appointments are made?

Click here to read about the process.