I wish to express my deep appreciation to the conference for the many ways that the days in June affirmed the 30 years of ministry I have had in the office of Holston Conference Pastoral Counseling Center. God has given me a wonderful place to serve and support from all of you that makes the ministry very fulfilling.

It would be impossible to write a note to each one of you who made the celebration possible. Please accept these words of thanks to all of you and realize how much it means to me.

Rev. Bill Balch
Knoxville, TN

A national news item in the Aug. 16 edition of The Call boasted that 10,000 women had written letters to the Senate to ask that the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) be ratified ["Women's rights advocates cheer vote on treaty"]. I am outraged. Some of the specifics of the convention include "abolish existing laws which constitute discrimination against women" [Article 2,(f)] and "Access to family planning" [Article 10 (h)]. These are 'code' for women having free access to abortion, and if not it will be labeled as 'discrimination.'

In the name of all that God has ordained sacred about human life from conception, the UMC should be ashamed. If those women want to be so depraved, deceived, and disobedient to God's will, so be it. However, we should at least expect balanced and unbiased reporting on CEDAW.

Patti Kowalchuk
Mary's Chapel UMC
Bristol, VA


Got something to say? Send letters and emails to: C-Mail, The Call, P.O. Box 32939, Knoxville, TN 37930-2939, fax (865) 690-3162, thecall@holston.org.


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