Video of this Webinar here.
March 21, 2024, Centennial, CO—Rev. Adam Hamilton & Bishop Karen Oliveto Keynote UM General Conference Webinar
Following all the turmoil of denominational disaffiliations and church schism, will United Methodism overcome its historic anti-LGBTQ+ policies and embrace a more inclusive mission and ministry for the future?
Exploration of these and other questions will be the subject of a free Zoom webinar sponsored by the United Methodist Association of Retired Clergy and Friends (UMARC) on Tuesday, April 9, two weeks before the opening of General Conference in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Keynoters include Rev. Adam Hamilton, senior pastor of the 24,000 member Church of the Resurrection, Leawood, Kansas, and Bishop Karen P. Oliveto, episcopal leader of the Mountain Sky Conference, Denver, Colorado, and the first openly lesbian bishop in the denomination.
Register now for the Zoom webinar at www.umarc.org for a conversation focused on “The Resurrection of an Inclusive Church: United Methodism’s Upcoming General Conference.” The two-hour session begins at 5 pm Mountain Standard Time (7 pm. Eastern).
Other well-known speakers include Rev. Dr. Israel Alvaran of the Philippines Annual Conference, Rev. Dr. Lydia Muñoz of the National Hispanic/Latino Ministry, Rev. Dr. Mark R. Holland of Mainstream UMC, and Dr. Randall Miller, a leading layman from the California-Nevada Conference. Facilitators will be UMARC Co-Chairs, Rev. Dr. Harvey Martz, retired senior pastor, St. Andrew United Methodist Church, Highlands Ranch, and Rev. Dr. Donald E. Messer, Executive Director, Center for Health and Hope, Centennial, Colorado.
Martz and Messer note that “United Methodism was created in 1968 to move the church beyond segregation and exclusion towards inclusiveness. But that dream got curtailed by persistent racism and anti-LGBTQ+ legislation. The upcoming General Conference offers a hopeful window of opportunity for the resurrection of an inclusive community of faith.”
Submitted by Rev. Dr. Donald E. Messer,