Today, in Holston Conference News Briefs for May 11:
exclusive – 14 Cents a Mile @ holston.org- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
TOP STORY: Annual Conference, 32 days away
Lay and clergy representatives of 925 churches will gather June 12-15 to determine a vision for Holston's next several years at Annual Conference 2005 in Lake Junaluska, N.C. Bishop James Swanson will lead his first Holston Annual Conference under the theme, "Be Thou Our Vision."
Participants are reminded to bring their Bibles to each session of Annual Conference as part of the visioning process. Each congregation is also asked to bring five bookmarks that are unique to their church. Bookmarks may be created by children, youth, or other groups in the congregation, with the goal of depicting the church's qualities.
In June, members will hear about a special appeal from the denomination's Council of Bishops. To alleviate a financial crisis at the United Methodist seminary in Moscow, churches will be asked to take a special offering by Sept. 1, 2005. More details will be provided in The Call's Annual Conference preview edition on June 3.
See the Annual Conference 2005 schedule
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Grants available to repair or build churches
Rural churches seeking to repair or to build new facilities may be elgible for up to $5,000 from the Renfro Trust Fund. The application deadline is Sept. 1, 2005. Parsonages are excluded from this grant opportunity.
In 2004, 60 percent of Renfro applications from Holston churches were rejected due to inadequate preparation. Church leaders may receive aid in preparing applications by submitting completed or partially completed applications at the Annual Conference registration desk by 5 p.m., Monday, June 13, in Lake Junaluska, N.C. For more information, e- mail Mat Merker.
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Design the next GC logo; win $500
Entries are being sought for a logo design for the 2008 General Conference depicting the theme "A Future with Hope," from Jeremiah.
The Commission on General Conference is sponsoring the contest and will award $500 for the winning design. Deadline for entries is June 15.
Read more about the contest
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Take a look at this award-winning Web site
MethodX, a website of Upper Room Ministries, recently won a "Best of Class" title from the Associated Church Press. MethodX is an online Christian community where young adults (college to 30s) can identify and explore their relationships with God and with others. Articles online now include "Timothy McVeigh Killed My Daughter" and a "What's Your Spiritual Type?" test.
Visit MethodX now
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UPDATE: Eastern Pennsylvania will appeal Stroud decision
An appeal of the recent decision to reinstate the credentials of a former United Methodist pastor will be filed with the denomination's top court.
Bishop Marcus Matthews, who presides over the church's Eastern Pennsylvania Annual (regional) Conference, announced May 3 that he was authorizing legal counsel "to proceed immediately with filing an appeal with the Judicial Council of the United Methodist Church."
The appeal will be filed within the allotted 30-day period, by May 29. The Judicial Council's next regularly scheduled meeting is Oct. 26-29 in Houston.
Read the UMNS report
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What the world needs now: Who said that?
"What I'm finding is a whole lot of young people want to give their lives for something big. Not something small. Not something ideological, partisan -- they don't care about left or right."
--Jim Wallis, editor of Sojourners magazine, speaking to the Council of Bishops in Washington on May 4
Read the UMNS report
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Your online calendar: Remember these dates