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wings
Oh, boy! My first Holston Annual Conference
Here we are, only a few days away from another Holston Annual Conference. There will be many persons attending this conference who are now AC veterans. Others will be attending for the first time. This will not be my first conference, but it will be my first Holston Annual Conference and (oh, boy) my first as a presiding bishop.
As we approach our June 12-15 gathering in Lake Junaluska, N.C., I wonder if there is a need to revisit the purpose of Annual Conference in the United Methodist Church and the not-so-well-stated benefits.
The business of the Annual Conference is clearly delineated in paragraph 605 in the 2004 Book of Discipline. It details how the conference is to proceed and the basic components. According to the Discipline, the conference is to select members of all standing committees, boards, and commissions. We are to receive and act upon reports from a variety of entities that report to the conference. We are to make time for an address or report from the conference lay leader. Also, "the annual conference shall make inquiry into the moral and official conduct of its ordained ministers and local pastors." All these things we do that we may examine how we live out our commitment to Christ and his church during the previous and coming year.
I also believe there are other things we do, though they are not listed as responsibilities in the Discipline. For many of us, Annual Conference is akin to a great homecoming. We look forward to seeing people we have not seen all year. We shake hands and embrace under the shade trees. We experience "the connection" in a heartfelt, emotional way - beyond the intellectual understanding that we might have back in our local settings.
At Annual Conference, we get a view and understanding of our kinfolk. We get to taste a little bit of heaven, a sample of what it will be like when " ...we all get together." We experience great worship, fellowship, and give witness to our faith. We are inspired to go back home and make a difference.
This year during Annual Conference, we will also engage in a process to discern God's preferred future for Holston. We believe the Scripture is the key to that understanding. Therefore, this year we ask you to bring your Bibles to all sessions - not for show, but for work.
Yes, this will be my first Holston Annual Conference, and I am looking forward to a spirit-filled experience. I'm coming to have a great time in the Lord. Will you join me in praying that it will be so?
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Bishop James Swanson
Resident Bishop
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