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PROPOSED CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS

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Annual Conference to consider church constitutional amendments BY HEATHER HAHN

Discipline as missional needs and different legal contexts require. The constitutional amendments not only extend that same authority to the U.S. but also spell out what can be adapted. Among other things, each regional conference would be able to: • Publish its own hymnal, book of worship and regional Book of Discipline . • Set requirements for ordination and licensed ministry of pastors. • Set standards for lay membership. • Develop practices around marriage ceremonies, funerals and other rites in line with understanding of Scripture and the laws in each country. • Work with annual conferences to ensure policies and practices align with the laws in each country. Regionalization would require changes to more than 20 paragraphs in the denomination’s constitution. But just as at General Conference, annual conferences will vote on all of the amendments on a single ballot. General Conference supported the ballot containing the regionalization amendments by a vote of 586 to 164. The regionalization plan came about through cooperation among United Methodists around the world. Those who worked on the legislation include the Standing Committee on Central Conference Matters, a permanent General Conference committee; the Connectional Table, a council that coordinates denomination-wide ministries; and the Christmas Covenant, a grassroots group of United Methodists in the central conferences who saw regionalization as the best way to promote denominational unity. Among those who was a facilitator of the legislation is Benedita Penicela Nhambiu, a laywoman in Mozambique. She chaired the Connectional Table’s Worldwide Nature working group that initiated the proposal. “I believe that the worldwide regionalization in the UMC empowers both the U.S. church and central conferences by promoting contextual decision-making, equitable participation, enhanced mission focus, autonomy, strengthened connections and improved legislative efficiency,” she said. “This strategic shift aims to create a more inclusive and effective church that can thrive in diverse cultural settings, while remaining united in purpose, having only Christ at the center.” Inclusion in membership If adopted, this amendment would add “gender” and “ability” to the list of characteristics that do not bar people from membership in a United Methodist church. Specifically, the amended Paragraph 4, Article IV in the constitution would say: “All persons, without regard to race, gender, ability, color, national origin, status, or economic condition, shall be eligible to attend its worship services, participate in its programs, receive the sacraments, upon baptism be admitted as baptized members, and upon taking vows declaring the Christian faith, become professing members in any local church in the connection.” In short, this constitutional amendment means pastors may not deny a person church membership whether that person is male or female or has a disability. General Conference supported the amendment by a vote of 607 to 67. The United Methodist Commission on the Status and Role of Women submitted the legislation. The Rev. CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS CONTINUED ON PAGE 10

professor of the United Methodist Theological Seminary in Oslo and district superintendent. He also has longtime experience in ecumenical work. He has served as a senior executive officer and project leader for the Christian Council of Norway as well as the ecumenical council’s top executive from 2012 to 2018. He also has served on the board of The United Methodist Church’s Office of Christian Unity and Interreligious Relations and as a member of the Stakeholders’ Forum for the Methodist Ecumenical Office Rome. Since 2024, he has served as a pastor in Jeløy in the Church of Norway, the country’s Lutheran denomination. United Methodist clergy are eligible to pastor Lutheran churches. He is a prolific writer who has published sermons and devotions as well as other theological work. He has a Master in Theology from the United Methodist Theological Seminary in Oslo and has continued his education in business, personnel management, conflict management, leadership and religious studies. He and his wife, Åshild Skiri Refsdal, have three children: Andreas, Fredrik and Astrid. He knows Norwegian, Danish, Swedish, English and German. The Nordic-Baltic-Ukraine Episcopal Area encompasses the United Methodist presence in six annual conferences across eight countries: Denmark, Finland Latvia, Lithuania Norway, Sweden, Moldova and Ukraine. Annual conferences are church organizational bodies consisting of multiple congregations and other ministries. Earlier in the meeting, the central conference finalized the departure of four Eurasia annual conferences, the last step in a move approved at last year’s General Conference. The Eurasian annual conferences encompass churches in Russia, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan. Delegates from the Eurasia annual conferences joined online at the beginning of the central conference. After the vote on their annual conferences’ dissolution and final goodbyes, the Eurasian delegates left the meeting to reorganize as an autonomous Methodist church. In May, they rented a former printing house on the edge of Uzhgorod, transforming it into a shelter with space for 60 guests, later expanding to accommodate at least 100. The total number of internally displaced people (IDPs) sheltered has reached over 1,500. Some stayed for a night, some for more than 3 years. District Superintendent the Rev. Oleg Starodubets and his wife, the Rev. Yulia Starodubets, of the Ukraine Annual Conference, regularly visited the shelter and provided significant help, both spiritually and physically. They also partnered with UMCOR to provide a van to transport people and supplies and began regularly supporting the shelter financially. Bishop Christian Alsted of the Nordic-Baltic Episcopal Area and UMCOR staff members, Katie Hills and the Rev. Jack Amick, also visited the shelter, sparking discussions on establishing a permanent property for the UMC’s mission and ministry. UMCOR confirmed a significant grant to build or purchase property and, through local connections, negotiated the procurement of the “Under the Castle” (UTC) hotel, restaurant and event venue near Kam’yanytsya. The purchase was finalized in March 2024. While the UMC still uses the former printing house, the new UTC shelter hosts 40 IDPs and provides space for United Methodist conferences, training and community outreach. The long-term vision for UTC is to transform it into a rehabilitation center for war-related trauma. Under the Castle recently reopened its first-floor restaurant and began renting out its large hall for private

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (UMNews) – General Conference delegates had their say last year. Now, annual conference voters must decide whether amendments approved by the 2024 lawmaking assembly will become part of The United Methodist Church’s constitution. The United Methodist Church is organized into more than 120 annual conferences — geographic bodies consisting of multiple churches and other ministries that typically meet once a year. In the coming months, lay and clergy voters at each of these conferences will consider changes that: • Carry out the restructuring plan called “regionalization.” • Stand against racism and colonialism.

BY FRED VANDERWERF KYIV, Ukraine (GBGM) — “It was a chaotic time. Nobody knew what was happening! The war started, people were dying, and our main purpose was our family’s safety,” recounts Pavlo Osypenko of Life Spring UMC in Kyiv. Pavlo and his friends—Slava Zinchuk, Evgen Boshov, Serge Shvets, and Maksym Pryhodko—moved their young families to the Slovakian border on the day Russia invaded Ukraine, Feb. 24, 2022. A Baptist church in Ternopil provided shelter, food and a place to sleep on their first night. Thankfully, along the journey, they encountered numerous acts of kindness. Once the five men neared the Slovakian border and ensured their families’ safety in Slovakia, they were welcomed in Kam’yanytsya, Ukraine, by pastors Vasily and Alla Vuksta through the United Methodist connection. With their life savings in backpacks, the displaced men decided to establish a shelter for others. They began by visiting a local administrator in Onokivtsi, where they were given keys to a school. By the night of Mar. 6, they were sheltering 12 displaced people, which increased to 120 by the fifth night. The community generously provided pillows, mattresses, blankets and food. Support poured in from United Methodists and other Christian friends worldwide, enabling the purchase of beds, sleeping bags, washing machines and more food. About 600 people passed through that school before it had to resume classes.

BY LAURA BUCHANAN AND JOE IOVINO NASHVILLE, Tenn. (ResourceUMC) – Annual conference lay and clergy delegates are accustomed to voting on important items each year, such as budgets and strategies. But every four years, voting can take on extra weight. After General Conference gathers, there might be constitutional amendment ballots awaiting annual conference delegates as well. Constitutional amendment votes are handled differently and require special attention. It is vital that every voting member of annual conferences across the United Methodist connection cast their ballot. Constitutional amendments up for vote The 2020/2024 General Conference voted in favor of four amendments to the United Methodist Constitution. Annual conference delegates will vote on the amendments in 2025. Who votes and how? All lay members and clergy in full connection are eligible to vote on ratification of constitutional amendments. While amendments can be debated at annual conferences, they cannot be changed, amended, perfected or altered in any way. Delegates must vote on them as they are written. Vital votes Unlike other annual conference items up for a vote, constitutional amendments require a two-thirds majority of every individual vote cast across the globe. Each vote contributes to the overall outcome in the aggregate vote count. This means that votes on constitutional amendments are counted globally, not within individual annual conferences. A two-thirds majority in your conference alone does not determine the outcome. Each delegate’s ballot will be tallied by the Council of Bishops while the denomination waits to see if 66.67 percent of worldwide voters are in favor of a constitutional amendment. Every vote matters greatly in an aggregate vote count. When will we know the results? The results of constitutional amendment votes will not be available immediately. After all annual conferences have completed voting, the Council of Bishops must certify the results before the final outcome is announced. This process ensures accuracy but also means it may take some time before results are made public. The results of the ratification votes are expected to be announced in November 2025. (Laura Buchanan and Joe Iovino work for United Methodist Communications) Every vote is important: your role in constitutional amendments

events as ways to support the shelter’s residents on the second floor. Today, the residents are mostly women, children and the elderly, with many having stayed for years because of the war’s ongoing devastation. Pavlo, now residing in the Netherlands with his family, reflects on his experience: “I want this story to be told, it was the most important part of my life – for God’s glory and power. I witnessed many amazing testimonies during this two and a half years.” See a video Pavlo created sharing the story here. Watch an interview of Pavlo Osypenko here. (The Rev. Dr. Fred Vanderwerf is a United Methodist pastor in the Minnesota Annual Conference and serves as the partnership coordinator for In Mission Together – Ukraine General Advance #14053A -- for Global Ministries.) Photo by Rev. Yulia Starodubets Bishop Christian Alsted and the Rev. Oleg Starodubets dedicate Under the Castle UMC mission center near Kam’yanytsya, Ukraine.

• Expand inclusiveness in church membership. • Clarify who can vote for clergy delegates.

To be ratified, a constitutional amendment first requires at least a two-thirds majority at General Conference, which happened in April and May 2024. The amendment next must win at least two-thirds of the aggregate vote at annual conferences. Put another way, the threshold for passage is not a two- thirds vote at each annual conference — but two-thirds of all annual conference votes. That means the results won’t be known until after all 127 United Methodist annual conferences in Africa, Europe, the Philippines and the United States have held a vote. The ballot language is available in English, French, Portuguese and Swahili — the official languages of General Conference. Annual conference voters may debate each ballot but may not alter any of the language. Each conference can choose whether voting takes place by paper ballots, electronic voting devices or a show of hands. The Rev. Aleze M. Fulbright, the secretary of General Conference, urges conferences to give “strong consideration for equity, accessibility, and count accuracy” in choosing the manner of voting. “The number of persons voting ‘yes’ and the number of persons voting ‘no’ will be recorded and submitted on an official certification of action,” she said in a public letter to annual conference secretaries. Conference votes are scheduled to take place between February and October this year. The Council of Bishops expects to tally all votes and certify any amendment ratifications at its fall meeting in early November. Here is an overview of the four ballots containing the amendments, in the order submitted to annual The most discussed and far-reaching of the measures coming before annual conference voters is worldwide regionalization — a package of legislation that gives The United Methodist Church’s different geographic regions equal decision-making authority. Under regionalization, the U.S. and each central conference — church regions in Africa, Europe and the Philippines — would become regional conferences with the same authority to adapt parts of the Book of Discipline, the denomination’s policy book, for more missional effectiveness. Just as is now the case in the U.S. and each central conference, each regional conference would consist of multiple annual conferences. At present, only central conferences have authority under the denomination’s constitution to adapt the conference voters. Regionalization

Knut Refsdal elected bishop of Northern Europe and Eurasia BY KARL ANDERS ELLINGSEN

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (UMNews) – The Rev. Knut Refsdal, a pastor in Norway, has been elected as a United Methodist bishop by the Northern Europe and Eurasia Central Conference. Refsdal, 55, was elected April 4 by delegates meeting in Copenhagen. After seven hours and on the 26th ballot, he received 30 votes out of 40 valid votes cast. He needed 27 to be elected. “I feel first and foremost a sense of gratitude for the trust that the church has shown me,” Refsdal said upon his election. “I have mixed feelings right now. I am overwhelmed, tired and grateful. ... It is a privilege to be part of the church’s leadership. I believe we have many opportunities in the time ahead, and I have great expectations. The church is a movement of hope, a hope that we bring to the world. “We are entering a time of change in the Methodist landscape in Europe, and we want to work for a closer community. If we want to come together in a single central conference, I think that could be a good challenge for us.” Asked if he has a Scripture that has followed him, Refsdal says that he has carried Psalm 37.5 with him since he was 15 years old. "Commit your way to the Lord! Trust in him, and he will act.” Refsdal will lead the Nordic-Baltic-Ukraine Episcopal Area, succeeding Bishop Christian Alsted, who is retiring. Refsdal is scheduled to take office May 25. In the Northern Europe and Eurasia Central Conference, bishops are elected to an eight-year term and can be re- elected to a second term of four years. A bishop who has served a second term and will reach the official retirement age in his or her country within the following four years can be re-elected for a third term of four years. Refsdal, an ordained elder in the Norway Conference since 1994, has previous experience as a pastor in Sarpsborg and Moss, assistant to the bishop, affiliate

The United Methodist Church has eight central conferences — church regions in Africa, Europe and the Philippines — with Southern Africa and East Africa as the newest additions. Central conferences, which each consist of multiple annual conferences, elect bishops and have the authority to adapt parts of the Book of Discipline, the denomination’s policy book, as their missional contexts require. In The United Methodist Church, bishops are ordained elders who are called to “lead and oversee the spiritual and temporal affairs of The United Methodist Church.” Bishops are responsible for appointing clergy. They also are the first stop when clergy face complaints under church law. In addition, bishops serve as board members or chairs of general agencies and other denomination-wide ministries. Refsdal was consecrated a bishop on April 6 near the conclusion of the central conference session. An offering was collected for The United Methodist Church in Ukraine. (Ellingsen is head of communications for The United Methodist Church in Norway) UMNews photo by Karl Anders Ellingsen The Rev. Knut Refsdal receives the episcopal pin from Bishop Dottie Escobedo-Frank after being elected a United Methodist bishop on April 4 at the Northern Europe and Eurasia Central Conference in Copenhagen, Denmark. Refsdal, a pastor in Norway, was elected on the 26th ballot.

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