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MIDDLE GROUND CONTINUED FROM PAGE 14

CONFERENCE NEWS

May 9 TH Save the date!

Various United Methodist organizations have weighed in on Trump’s plans: • In a statement Jan. 21, the Immigration Law and Justice Network — a United Methodist ministry that provides low-cost legal services to immigrants — said it “denounces” immigration measures President Trump put into place with executive orders. “Trump’s Day One invokes laws and policies from the most shameful corners of American history. He has reinstated the Alien Enemies Act via an executive order. This is the same law used to round up and imprison innocent Japanese American families here in the United States during World War II. Another horrific executive order makes any undocumented person a target by requiring everyone to register with our federal government. This is exactly what Arabs and Muslims were required to do post-Sept. 11.” • In a Jan. 13 statement, the United Methodist Board of Church and Society said it “vehemently opposes the mass deportation plans put forth by President-elect Trump. These proposals are not only antithetical to the foundational values of our democracy but also starkly contradict The United Methodist Church’s Social Principles on immigration and the Wesleyan theological tradition.” • In a Dec. 18 statement signed by Council of Bishops President Tracy S. Malone, the bishops said, “We are living in a dark time that more than ever calls us to be the light of Christ, people of faith who take our baptismal vow to ‘resist evil in all its forms’ with utmost seriousness. As United Methodists we have firmly declared through our Social Principles that we are called to actively welcome the migrant, immigrant and refugee among us.” • In a statement Dec. 2, Roland Fernandes, top executive of the United Methodist Board of Global Ministries and United Methodist Committee on Relief, said longtime work to support immigrants and refugees will continue. “As the United States faces … the likely mass deportation of thousands of migrants, Global Ministries and UMCOR will prioritize protecting migrants’ rights, reaffirming a longstanding commitment to core humanitarian principles. We will intensify efforts to amplify the voices of migrants and create pathways for integration.” Danilo Zak is director of policy at Church World Service, a United Methodist- supported ecumenical partner and one of the 10 refugee resettlement agencies in the U.S. under a cooperative agreement with the State Department. He hopes Christians know they can still make a difference. “In 2019, when the family separation crisis happened, it was faith leaders, alongside many others, who were calling out against family separations,” Zak said. “That ultimately stopped those actions from continuing.” Despite the passion reflected in statements to help undocumented immigrants and refugees, Crissman cites a 2024 Duke University study showing United Methodism in North Carolina still casts a wide net that includes people who likely are supportive of the Trump administration’s immigration stance. The same is likely true elsewhere, even though many conservative United Methodists left the denomination in a period of disaffiliations beginning in 2019, amid debate about the status of LGBTQ members in church life. “After a historic exodus of conservative pastors and congregations, remaining churches in the two annual conferences of the North Carolina United Methodist Church have become more rather than less politically diverse,” read a summary of the Duke Religion and Social Change Lab study. “With partisan conflict at an all-time high, the findings suggest a timely opportunity for the denomination to embrace its ‘Big Tent’ roots and seed communities where plurality without division can thrive.” There are United Methodists who are pleased with Trump’s election and plans to deport undocumented immigrants. “I would support the deportation of illegal immigrants who have committed a felony in the United States, but not the deportation of the ‘dreamers’ or other immigrants who are law-abiding and contributing members to the well-being of their communities, remembering the words of Jesus: ‘I was a stranger and you welcomed me’ (Matthew 25:35),” said the Rev. Kent Millard, president of United Theological Seminary. He said he was speaking for himself, not the seminary. “In our divided nation, we all need to remember the words of Jesus to ‘love your enemies and pray for those against you (Matthew 5:44).’” Crissman believes that Christians with opposing political views should seek out common ground. “We are a purple church,” she said. “We were before disaffiliation. We continue to be after disaffiliation.” Other United Methodist leaders also are calling for a more measured, respectful debate on immigration and other issues. United Women in Faith is asking its members to sign a pledge to work together toward “a long-term vision of racial justice, climate justice and gender justice, putting one foot in front of the other even when it’s an uphill climb.” The pledge also makes a commitment “to love kindness” and “to walk humbly with our God, in prayer and action.” Sally Vonner, top executive of United Women in Faith, said “it’s not limited to any particular (political) party.” “Certainly there are concerns, there are fears, there’s anxiety,” Vonner said. “But we feel like in this joining together to sign this pledge that we can move forward … to what the work and the mission for United Women in Faith has called us to for over 155 years now.” Crissman believes being purple “is something to celebrate.” “It is something that does need to help shape our life and ministry together, and presents specific opportunities on how we do that,” she said. Other annual conferences have checked in with her about the Purple Church Initiative, Crissman said. “We’ve had multiple conferences who have tapped in and utilized the antiracism resources,” she said. “We’ve actually had a (Catholic) diocese reach out as well as both Episcopal and Presbyterian churches. (Patterson is a UM News reporter in Nashville, Tenn.)

2025 Annual Conference to be hybrid Participation offered on-site and online for June 5-7 event in Peoria ROMANS 5:5

Hope that Doesn’t Disappoint

Credentialed members will be sent information to access the virtual conference room. Persons online will use a lap- top, tablet or smartphone to access the voting system and vote. Those votes will automatically be sent to the voting system in the Peoria Civic Center for real time tabulation of votes. A training session on the online voting system will be held in the weeks prior to Annual Conference and after the May 15 deadline. The public live stream will be available to non-credentialed visitors at: https://www.igrc.org/ac2025live Theme The quadrennial theme for Annual Conference will be Rivers of Grace . Each of the four years will focus on a different aspect of grace, with the 2025 theme being Hope that Does Not Disappoint , taken from Romans 5:5. Agenda The 2025 Annual Conference will convene with Opening Worship at 10 a.m. on Thursday, June 5. Bishop Kennetha J. Bigham-Tsai will be the service preacher. Clergy and Laity sessions Concurrent sessions will be held for the Clergy and Laity sessions at 11 a.m. Thursday. Memorial and Celebration of Life Service The annual Memorial Service will remember clergy, clergy spouses and lay members of annual conference (past and current) that have died in the last year. In addition, there will be a time of remembrance for those churches that have completed their mission. Churches and individuals aware of past and current lay members who have died are asked to provide those names and their church to IGRC Director of Communication Minis- New to the agenda this year will be a Service of Ministry Celebration that will include recognition of individuals and churches. This year, Christina Krost of Mattoon: First UMC will be consecrated as a deaconess. Church Growth and evangelism awards will also be pre- sented during this service. Retirees Recognition Service Pastors retiring this year will be recognized in a special but it also gives us a touchstone for decisions we make in our local churches, our connected ministries, and our Conference organization. Our mission and vision statement has two parts: 1. Make disciples of Jesus Christ – this is the “what we do” of our mission. Discipleship is the act of following Jesus, of learning to be loved by God. The entirety of our local church and connected ministries exist to help people become new disciples and help people grow as disciples. To help us understand this, we’ve defined these terms: • A New Disciple is a person who by grace accepts the invitation to begin to follow Jesus. • A Growing Disciple is a person who by grace regularly takes a next step in becoming more like Jesus by loving God and loving others. 2. For the transformation of the world – this is the “why we do” of our vision. Following Jesus results in disciples whose lives are changed by God’s love and grace. These disciples then share this grace by loving their neighbors, churches, and communities. Their individual and communal discipleship bears fruit by transforming the world tries, Paul Black ( pblack@igrc.org ). Service of Ministry Celebration

service at 2 p.m. Friday, June 6. Ordination and Commissioning Service

BY PAUL BLACK PEORIA – Plans are well underway for the 2025 Annual Conference which will be held at the Peoria Civic Center June 5-7. Members of the Annual Conference Sessions Committee voted to make the Annual Conference a hybrid event and participants will need to declare whether they are register- ing to participate online or on-site. Registration will open April 1 and will close on May 23, but the first information will be coming to lay and clergy mem- bers around Feb. 1. All clergy, active and retired, are required to attend (2020/2024 Book of Discipline ¶ 602.8). Each local church should have one elected representative for each clergy ap- pointed to the church/charge. That name(s) should be on your 2024 Charge Conference forms from last fall. If there is a change, you need to notify Annual Conference Secretary, the Rev. Dr. Camilla Hempstead ( acsecretary@igrc.org ) AND Director of Communications Paul Black ( pblack@igrc. org ). If your church was granted an equalization member, that name should have already been submitted by Jan. 31. All lay people elected by their Charge Conferences are as- sumed to having made the commitment to attend. Registration information When registering April 1, lay and clergy members will choose whether to participate online or in-person. • Online Participation: We will be offering the option for lay and clergy to participate in our 2025 Session online. However, lay and clergy members who wish to participate with voice and vote online must register by May 15. There will be no late registration for online participants. Clergy under appointment within the bounds of the IGRC will need the ap- proval of their District Superintendent to participate online instead of in person. • Late Registration : Registration will be available April 1 at www.igrc.org/ac2025registration . Registration closes on May 23. Those who register after May 23 will be charged a $25 processing fee. Those who register on-site after June 4 will be charged a $50 process- ing fee. Exceptions to these fees may be made for emergencies and extenuating circumstances. The Illinois Great Rivers Conference Connectional Table is proposing a new vision and mission statement for the IGRC. Following over a year of work by the IGRC Vision and Mission Task Force which included input from over 400 additional people throughout the Conference, the IGRC Connectional Table approved a new vision and mission statement to be presented for discernment and decision by the Jun 5-7, 2025 IGRC Annual Conference session. United Methodists from across the IGRC will be invited into prayer and conversation about this proposed mission and vision statement in on-line discussion groups in March and April. The proposed mission & vision of the churches, people, and organizations of The Illinois Great River Conference would become “Make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.” The accompanying introduction and explanation document goes on to expand on this mission statement: “This statement is based in the mission statement of the entire global denomination of The United Methodist Church, found in The Book of Discipline. As such, we share this mission and vision with millions of United Methodists around the world. Our mission & vision statement helps unite us together in our shared work,

The Service of Ordination and Commissioning will be on Saturday, June 7, beginning at 9:30 a.m. The service will conclude with the Fixing of Appointments for the 2025-26 conference year. Bishop David Alan Bard will be preaching. Plenary session The first plenary session of the 2025 Annual Conference will begin at 3:45 p.m. Thursday. Legislative materials All 2025 pre-conference and legislative materials will be posted online at: www.igrc.org/ac2025downloads . Resolu- tions must be received by March 7 if legislation impacts finances, pension and health benefits, or changes to the standing rules. All other resolutions must be received by April 1. All resolutions should be sent to acsecretary@ igrc.org . In addition, all pre-conference materials will be available for download at the 2025 annual conference web page by April 15. If you wish to receive paper copies of conference materials through the mail, make your request by completing the online form before April 1 at: https://www. igrc.org/ac2025printmaterials Annual Conference and Secretary Websites The websites will be key resources for you. Information on absentee forms, hotel blocks, legislation, and more can be found at www.igrc.org/secretary and www.igrc.org/ac2025 Information on each of these will be posted as available. Constitutional amendments Since this is the year following General Conference, all constitutional amendments passed by General Conference with a 2/3 majority vote are sent to the annual conferences for ratification. Four constitutional amendments will be considered. The amendments can be debated but cannot be amended. Lay and clergy members will cast their Yes or No vote and the totals will not be disclosed since they are sent to the Council of Bishops for canvassing. In order for a constitutional amendment to pass and become part of The Book of Discipline , the amendment must receive a 2/3 vote in the aggregate of ballots cast by all annual conferences in the denomination. Information on the four proposed amendments will be published as part of the pre-Conference materials. around them to better reflect Jesus’s vision of God’s family. Fruitful discipleship bears witness to Christ and invites others to join in following Jesus. This world transformation most commonly happens in two ways: • Transforming the world through Mercy & Compassion • Transforming the world through Justice & Peace-Making Our Conference shares a common set of values and principles that guide our organizational culture. These are the ways that we come together, the implied ethics that guide our decisions, and the passions that drive energy throughout our churches, connected ministries, and Conference. The Guiding Principles of the Illinois Great Rivers Conference describe us as: • Christ following • Community reaching • People centering • Intentionally welcoming • Relationship building Those we questions, comments, or feedback about this proposal can reach out to IGRC Director of Connectional Ministries, Curtis Brown at cbrown@igrc.org .

Proceeds Benefit:

California Wildfires and Hurricane Recovery in the Southeast and Midwest Mission

Edgewood Golf Course | 16497 Kennedy Rd, Auburn, IL 62615 | 217-438-3221 | Tee time at 11am

UMRC

UNITED MEDIA RESOURCE CENTER Lenten DVD studies available to borrow from the UMRC!

Connectional Table proposes new mission, vision statement

Items can be sent to your church or home address and can be requested from the online catalog: www.igrc.org/umrc or by email: umrc@igrc.org No rental fee – the only cost to churches is return postage. #106106 Finding Jesus in the Psalms: A Lenten Journey (6 sessions) #108061 He Chose the Nails (5 sessions) #109070 In the Footsteps of the Savior: Following Jesus through the Holy Land (6 sessions) #112137 Last Supper on the Moon: The Ocean of Space, the Mystery of Grace, and the Life Jesus Died for You to Have (5 sessions) #112138 Luke: Jesus and the Outsiders, Outcasts, and Outlaws (6 sessions) #116110 Passion Play: Living the Story of Christ’s Last Days (6 sessions) #119182 Savior: What the Bible Says about the Cross (6 sessions) #119183 Seven Words: Listening to Christ from the Cross (6 sessions) #123115 Why Easter Matters (4 sessions) #123125 Witness at the Cross: A Beginner’s Guide to Holy Friday (6 sessions)

The UMRC is now located at Kumler Outreach Ministries, a ministry of the Kumler United Methodist Church in Springfield. The new mailing address is:

Kumler Outreach Ministries, Attn: United Media Resource Center303 E North Grand Ave, Springfield IL 62702-3822

The new phone number is 217-523-2269 , which is the number for Kumler Outreach Ministries. When the receptionist answers, ask for the United Media Resource Center. Questions, comments? Contact us at umrc@igrc.org If you are interested in volunteering at the UMRC during weekday hours, please call 217-523-2269 and ask for Sharon Brown.

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