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By Linda Worthington
UMConnection Staff

Though most of the 323 laity at John Wesley UMC in Hagerstown probably didn’t know much about the Western Region hosting the Laity Session of Annual Conference May 17, by the time they settled into their seats for the daylong session, everyone had a better understanding of what it does and is.

They got the story directly from District Superintendent, the Rev. Conrad Link, who has served in the region for 35 years.

Keeping with the theme of this year’s annual conference, “Building Bridges … Be Love,” Link spoke about the bloody battle of Antietam and the role of the Antietam Bridge, which was built by peace-loving Dunkards, at which a few soldiers held off thousands. 

“Jesus is our bridge, a bridge between what should be and what is,” Link said.  We, the members of the church, he said, are on one side of the bridge and the world is on the other.  “We can’t just say come on in … so, we have to go back over the bridge and bring someone across with us,” just as the Good Samaritan showed mercy to the wounded man.

“Go and do likewise,” Link said, quoting Jesus.

The Laity Session is a Pre-Conference session to make manageable the time at the annual conference session, May 29-31, in Baltimore. An Executive Session was held with the clergy a couple days earlier, which was a closed meeting.

Budget for 2015 reviewed

Charlie Moore, standing in for the Rev. Ann LaPrade, chair of the conference finance and administration committee, explained the 2015 budget, apportionments and recommendations.

“The budget is a living document that helps our hopes and dreams through God in us to come alive,” he said. “Apportionments are bridges between money and ministry.”

Through a series of slides, the financial groundwork of the conference was explained, showing an improvement in giving by the local churches in spite of a slight reduction in the collection rate.  Moore noted that 82 percent of the BWC churches gave 100 percent of their apportionments in 2013, or 571 of the 636 churches in the conference. 

The Cabinet is implementing new ways for working with churches that do not meet their apportionments or are in arrears regarding pension and health benefits. They must develop a three-year action plan.

On the expense side, overall expenses in 2013 were $500,000 less than 2012, but were $48,000 over budget. In the 2015 proposed budget, salaries are slated to increase by 2 percent, and there will be substantial increase in money spent on new church starts.  A new Global Initiative Coordinator is coming onto the staff and the campus minister for the University of Maryland-College Park is slated to become full time. These increases will be offset by expense reductions.

The proposed 2015 budget sets the benevolence factor at 17.75 percent, the same as the 2014 budget; collection rate is 92 percent, which, if kept, will allow for a .2 percent increase in apportionment income. The 2015 budget, as proposed, based on total income of $17.3 million, is an increase of 3.1 percent over the 2014 budget.

The PowerPoint presentation on the proposed 2015 budget is posted on the conference website at http://www.bwcumc.org/sites/default/files/5CFAbudget.pdf.

In addition to the budget, other changes in the administration and operation of the conference were spelled out. Francess Tagoe of the Pension and Health Benefits office introduced the new United Methodist Insurance Plan for local churches.  Forty-eight churches have already opted in, she said.

Jim Johnson gave the equitable comp recommendations, setting the housing allowance at $19,866 and a 2.6 percent increase in minimum salary. The Rev. Jackson Day, chair of the Pension and Health Benefits Board, emphasized the importance of churches paying their pastor’s pension and health benefits. He noted with regret that 42 churches are in arrearages by more than $607,000.

The holy conferencing process

The Rev. Maidstone Mulenga, assistant to the bishop, presented the holy conferencing process to be used to address the five resolutions on human sexuality. The process was worked out through broad-based discussions, first at the Connectional Table in February with more than 100 people. Then, April 15, the Sessions Committee picked a team of four, with Mulenga as conference staffer, to work out the plan. The Discipleship Council concurred at its meeting May 13.

The holy conferencing will take place Friday, May 30, at 7 p.m. About 110 circles of 10 people each will form, with circle assignments given at registration. Facilitators have already been chosen to lead the discussions. Prior to the discussions, the maker of each resolution will have one minute to summarize why he or she believes the resolution should be adopted.

Three pre-determined questions will be asked in all circles. After the discussions and prayer by Bishop Matthews, ballots will be distributed, voted on and collected by the facilitators. Voting results will be announced Saturday morning.

Because this style of voting is a departure from the Book of Discipline’s accepted way of voting, i.e., Robert’s Rules of Order, there will need to be an acceptance of a motion to suspend the rules before the process can start.

The five resolutions that will be considered in the Holy Conferencing process are:

1. End discrimination against gays and lesbians in West Virginia, p. 97 in the Pre-Conference book;
2. Stopping clergy trials when complaints are filed against pastors for performing same-gender weddings, p. 98;
3. Calling on United Methodists to “agree to disagree” on issues pertaining to gender and sexual minorities, p. 101;
4. Calling on the BWC to be an inclusive conference, p. 104;
5. Support the removal of all provisions in the Book of Discipline and the Social Principles that discriminate against or restrict the participation of laity or clergy based on their sexual identity, p. 110.

More than Enough

When the laity session reconvened after lunch, no one had a chance to doze. Delores Martin, the conference Lay Leader, introduced the keynote speaker for the day, James Salley. For 22 years, Salley has been the chief development officer for Africa University. He worships in the church his grandfather started in 1871. Though a lay person by choice, he has the skills of a strong preacher. His topic, from Exodus 36:3-7, was “More than Enough.”

Salley had good advice for the lay members, especially those who were first-timers. He said that in spite of declaring in college that he’d never work in higher education or the church, “because you can’t make enough money,” his mentor/pastor asked him to be the lay member to annual conference, and his life changed.

John Jenkins, he said, told him three things he needed to know: attend all sessions; hang out with those (clergy) under the tree; and get involved in the voting. “Don’t be afraid to speak out! Speak up! But if you don’t have anything useful to say, don’t go to the microphone.”

Salley added, “Report to your church (after annual conference) as soon as you can. You have a responsibility to take this session to someone else.

“God’s work is transformative, rewarding, expanding … and God still works,” he said.

Salley illustrated God’s expanding work by telling a little of the history of Africa University, how in 1988, when General Conference voted it into being, “the negatives said it would never happen.” But it did, “because of all of you in this room.”

Today the university has a $54 million endowment, has no debt and has educated more than 4,000 students from all over Africa.

“The more you (the laity of BWC) give­ of your service, commitment and time, ­ that’s more than enough to do God’s work.”   

Salley will lead the Bible studies Friday and Saturday morning at Annual Conference. He will be teaching on the Scriptures referred to as the story of the Good Samaritan.

Reports were heard from the United Methodist Men, the United Methodist Women and the Conference Council on Youth Ministries, with the eight district youth representatives on the stage.

“One of the greatest strengths of The United Methodist Church is that we are connectional and conciliar,” said Bishop Matthews, “gathering to council together each year, loving one another and inviting the Holy Spirit to be present in our proceedings.

“It is our intention to bathe all that comes before the annual conference session in a worshipful spirit of prayer.”