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Today, in Holston Conference News Briefs for May 18:

Wednesday on the Webexclusive – Helping Farmers to Keep Growing @ holston.org

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TOP STORY: How to attract newcomers to your church
The denomination's Igniting Ministry office in Nashville is now accepting applications for advertising grants that will benefit churches in the upcoming back-to-school and advent seasons.

United Methodist Communications offers $1 million in matching funds annually to local churches, districts and conferences to help establish an advertising presence in their community. Matching funds can be used for placing television, radio, cinema, outdoor media or a combination of these media types. The application period closes June 1, 2005.

Holston churches receiving Igniting Ministry grants in the past include Boone's Creek (Johnson City District), Colonial Heights (Kingsport District), Kodak (Knoxville District), and Munsey Memorial UMC (Johnson City District).

Find out more about the application process

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Disaster response training offered in Morristown area
Holston members are invited to attend an UMCOR disaster response training class on Thursday, May 19, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Grant's Chapel UMC in Morristown District. Participants will learn how to respond appropriately in disasters such as hurricanes, tornadoes, and floods. The class is offered at no charge. To register, call Missions Coordinator Bill Daugherty at (423) 253-4801. Grant's Chapel is located off I-40, exit 417.

Visit the UMCOR web site

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Higher Education agency awards scholarships
Each year, the United Methodist Board of Higher Education and Ministry administers 60 scholarship programs. Last year, the board awarded more than 4,000 college students with scholarships and loans. Funding comes from invested earnings through endowments established through wills, annuities, offerings, and other designated gifts.

Read about the current award announcements

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Men: Register for UMM meeting in Indiana this July
Presidents of United Methodist Men in U.S. annual conferences are launching an effort to involve 9,600 men in hunger relief and to create 800 local church units for men's ministry. The effort will begin with a gleaning, a potato drop, and a dried and canned food collection at the July 15-17 National Gathering of United Methodist Men at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Ind.

Every four years, United Methodist men from around the globe gather for a time of spiritual renewal, fellowship and instruction. This year's event is the ninth gathering.

Register for this summer's UMM gathering

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Strict churches rule: Who said that?

"The explosive growth of conservative Christianity, Judaism, and Islam and the slow decline of more genteel denominations such as Episcopalianism may well represent not the triumph of reactionary forces, but the natural outcome of religious competition."

--Slate columnist Judith Shulevitz, in the online article "The Power of the Mustard Seed: Why Strict Churches are So Strong."

Read the Slate article now

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Your online calendar: Remember these dates

Peace with Justice Sunday
May 22

New event announcements appear here. Visit our upcoming events page for other events. Be sure you have the newest Acrobat Reader or you may not be able to view PDFs.

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This message is from the Holston Conference Communications Office.