A weekly news update from The Alaska United Methodist Conference | |
Annual Conference Related News | | |
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2022 Members register for Special Session by April 25
If you were your church's Lay Member to the 2022 Annual Conference and registered to attend, please make sure you register by TODAY, APRIL 25 to virtually attend the Special Session which will be held on May 6 at 4 PM. You should have already received an email regarding this with the link to register. If you did not receive that email, please contact the conference office immediately. All currently appointed clergy also need to register to virtually attend the special session. If anyone has questions, please feel free to reach out to the Conference Office, Superintendent Christina, or DCM Lisa.
Thanks!
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Annual Conference REGISTRATION is OPEN!
You are warmly invited to attend the 52nd session of the Alaska Annual Conference, June 4-6, 2023 at Fairbanks First United Methodist Church.
There is a MEMBER registration for any Lay Members to Annual Conference, Alternate Members attending, Clergy, and a few more. Even if you are participating via ZOOM, we ask that you register so that you will be able to receive the proper links when it is time.
The IN PERSON GUEST registration is for guests and anyone else that wants to attend that has no voting privilege.
If you are a guest that wants to watch online, please keep an eye out for the live stream link the week prior to Annual Conference.
If your child(ren) will be attending with you, please register them on the CHILD CARE registration form.
As always, if you have any questions, please contact the conference office.
Registration ends May 9.
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Hotel Information
The Conference has secured blocks of rooms at 6 various hotels in the Fairbanks area. You are not required to stay at any of these locations. We just wanted to provide you with some options.
The Treasurer and CFA have approved reimbursement for double occupancy at a hotel during Annual Conference for members. So, if you share a room with another delegate, then both of your costs are reimbursable. If you choose to have your own room, you would only be reimbursed for half the cost.
Hotel booking information
Remaining blocks of rooms will be released on specified dates. Most of which are the beginning of May. Please check the information sheet for specifics on each hotel.
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Memorial Roll information needed
Churches, please fill out the Memorial Roll list of the members and constituents that have died this past year from your church.
The last Annual Conference was held June 20, 2022 so any deaths since then can and should be included.
We ask for a picture as well for each of them so we can include it in the PowerPoint.
Names and pictures are due May 16.
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Ministry Display Requests
If your United Methodist related organization would like to have display space during this year's Annual Conference, please submit your request to the Conference Office for consideration.
Display requests are due May 7, 2023
Display Request
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Dates & Information
We want to keep the preliminary dates announced for clergy sessions, annual conference sessions and special-called sessions to consider church disaffiliations in front of you. More details on each session will be forthcoming.
Alaska Specific information is:
- Alaska Special Called Session, May 6 at 4 p.m., online only
- Service of Installation for Bishop Bridgeforth & GNW Opening Session, May 20, livestream only from Aldersgate UMC in Juneau
- Alaska Clergy gathering, May 25, online only
- Alaska Conference Session, June 4-6, hybrid from First UMC Fairbanks in Fairbanks
- GNW Closing Session, June 15, livestream only
Read more of this story on the GNW News site.
FORMS ARE POSTED ON THE CONFERENCE WEBSITE FOR ANNUAL CONFERENCE!
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Nome Community UMC thanks those that offered financial support during Typhoon Merbok.
The Nome Community United Methodist Church would like to thank the people and churches (especially those of the St. John Church in Anchorage who provided most of this support) that gave us gifts that we could then pass on to our members who suffered complete loss of their Subsistence camps and equipment in the storm that was the remnants of Typhoon Merbok. It was a very welcome surprise and reaffirmation that we are a community of faith that surpasses geographical divides. With their help we were able to give two of our members what we felt were substantial contributions to rebuilding their camps and equipment. All of us in Nome thank you for your generosity and making us feel a part of the UNITED church family.
-Members of the Nome Community United Methodist Church
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Job opportunity at First UMC Anchorage
First UMC is hiring! They are looking for a building maintenance technician. Must have building repair and maintenance skills and ability to coordinate work teams. 10 hours a week with option to increase to 20 hours a week to include some custodial. $15-18 per hour. See position description. Contact FUMC office to apply.
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Greater Northwest Area News | |
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Higher ed scholarship available for all in the GNW
Are you, or do you know a woman in the Greater Northwest Episcopal Area who is planning to pursue or is already pursuing post-graduate studies toward a career in the church, including, but not limited to ordained elder? The Dr. Gertrude Boyd Crane scholarship committee is now taking applications. Scholarship amounts vary but average about $2000 per year. The deadline to apply is July 5, 2023.
Learn more about this scholarship on the Oregon-Idaho United Women in Faith website.
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S.L.A.M. trips to offer GNW Area youth an opportunity to learn about native culture and perspectives
Youth (grades 7-12) and their leaders from across the Greater Northwest Area are invited to come together for a unique opportunity to get to know one another as they learn about and serve the Yakama community July 16-21 for a S.L.A.M. trip (Students Learning About Mission) on the Yakama Nation reservation in Wapato, Washington.
Learn more on the GNW website.
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Leadership resources for women
United Women in Faith has a new collection of resources to help women grow their leadership abilities. The 2023 Leadership Toolkit is available on the digital platform Bridge. To access the information, women need to establish an account with Bridge.
Read the press release
Start a Bridge account
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Heritage Sunday is May 21
The General Commission on Archives & History have announced that the 2023 Heritage Sunday will be May 21.
This year’s theme is “Local Church Histories: The Cornerstone of our Faith.” Each congregation has a story, one rich with history and details of ministry to its community and one another. We want to recognize that our shared stories undergird our denomination and serve as
the foundation of our connectionalsim. Every congregation contributes to the overarching narrative of United Methodism.
To celebrate the 2023 theme, the General Commission on Archives and History is asking local churches to submit their histories to GCAH for consideration to be chosen as one of a dozen histories to be highlighted on the agency website, social media channels and in Heritage Sunday
resources.
Additional resources to support Heritage Sunday will be available at ResourceUMC.org/ArchivesandHistory.
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36 General Board of Church and Society resolutions unanimously adopted
Church and Society’s board approved 36 petitions to General Conference to readopt resolutions that would expire under the Book of Discipline’s eight-year rule (¶510.2a). The resolutions, which had been adopted by the 2016 General Conference but without action, would expire due to the delay in holding the 2020 General Conference.
The Book of Resolutions articulates the official policy statements and our ethical aspirations for United Methodists. The Book of Resolutions contains dozens of statements that relate to our Christian witness to the world.
Click here for the full list of 36 petitions that were unanimously approved.
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New webinar on White Allyship
Becoming a white antiracist ally requires more than being a nice Christian who believes that racism is “wrong.” It requires critical thinking, a heart change, and an expansion of discipleship. Join us Wednesday, May 17, at 3 pm Eastern (2 pm Central; 12 pm Pacific) for this important virtual conversation on white allyship.
Learn more & register
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Honoring Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders
The United Methodist Commission on Religion and Race has created two free, downloadable resources, “10 Things to Know about Asian Americans” and “10 Honorable Traits of Pacific Islander Culture,” for churches to use during Asian American & Pacific Islander Heritage Month in May. Both infographics are available at the agency’s R-Squared resource hub.
View the resources
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National Day of Prayer service planned
Lake Junaluska, a United Methodist conference and retreat center, plans to hold a National Day of Prayer service at 10 a.m. U.S. Eastern time May 4. The service will be one of many held throughout the U.S. on this annual day of prayer. This year’s theme is “Pray fervently in righteousness and avail much,” based on James 5:16b.
Learn more
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Resources for Trinity Sunday
Trinity Sunday (June 4th) is a day in which we celebrate our love and faith (and mystery) in the Holy Trinity – Father*, Son, and Holy Spirit. This year’s Trinity Sunday, we provide resources that provide a theological understanding of how the Imago D.E.I. (Image of Diversity, Image of Equity, Image of Inclusion) which is foundational to the work of the Trinity.
Read more
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Conferences approve 374 church departures
Three annual conference special sessions, meeting on April 22, ratified the disaffiliations of 374 churches. The Florida and Oklahoma conferences each approved 55 church withdrawals. The Holston Conference, which encompasses eastern Tennessee and parts of Virginia and Georgia, approved the departures of 264 churches. The Florida and Holston conferences report on the special sessions.
Read Florida Conference story
Read Holston Conference story
Disaffiliation tally by conference
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Clergy reportedly face complaint, church trial
The Rev. Paige Swaim-Presley and the Rev. Elizabeth Davidson say a formal complaint has been filed against them, allegedly for officiating a same-sex wedding. The couple they married identify as nonbinary. The Mississippi Conference confirmed the complaint and said the parties involved were “properly informed of the complaint and their rights to respond under church law.”
Read the story
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Kids help plant trees to fight climate change
Addressing climate change is a priority in Zimbabwe, and The United Methodist Church is among those looking for solutions. United Methodists recently accepted a $3,000 grant from the ecumenical All Africa Conference of Churches to fund a joint tree-planting program alongside the United Church of Christ in Zimbabwe. With the help of schoolchildren and their teachers, The United Methodist Church planted 425 trees at Murewa Mission.
Read the story
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Understanding inclusive language for God
How should United Methodists use names and pronouns for God and people? Explore how United Methodists have evolved on these questions since the early 1980s in a new article from Ask The UMC.
Read the story
Read more Ask The UMC
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UWF names James-Vickery interim lead
Mollie James-Vickery was elected as interim chief executive of United Women in Faith and will move to that post on May 8. Current leader Harriett Jane Olson, who announced her pending retirement in October, will exit on May 5. James-Vickery, a United Methodist deaconess, will continue in her job as operations officer until a permanent chief executive is named.
Read the press release
UWF: Harriett Jane Olson to retire
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United Methodists help fuel news reporting on World Press Freedom Day
2023 marks the 30th anniversary of World Press Freedom Day. UM News, the official newsgathering agency for The United Methodist Church, has been championing trustworthy reporting and freedom of expression for much longer. On the May 3rd benchmark day, United Methodists are invited to celebrate the news service by experiencing specially curated content and supporting UM News’ mission.
Read more
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Missionary remembered as a light for vulnerable children
Innocent P. Afful, a missionary with the United Methodist Board of Global Ministries, is being remembered as an energetic servant of God and dedicated mentor for orphans and other vulnerable children. He died April 17 at age 49.
Read the obituary
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25-27: Cabinet Meeting in Idaho - Christina and Lisa attending
27: Alaska District Task Force meeting
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1: First Day of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month
4: Leadership Team meeting
5: Cinco de Mayo
6: Alaska Special Session
14: Mother's Day
20: Bishop Bridgeforth's Installation & Annual Conference Opening Session
25: Alaska District Task Force meeting
29: Memorial Day - Office Closed
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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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