Church agency launches initiative to promote racial inclusiveness
Encourages conferences to ‘Vote for Diversity’
WASHINGTON, DC—The General Commission on Religion and Race (GCORR) of The United Methodist Church announces the launch of its Inclusiveness Counts! initiative in April to promote diversity and support for racial/ethnic minority concerns at the 2008 General and Jurisdictional conferences.
The campaign encourages annual conferences to “Vote for Diversity” as they elect delegates to next year’s churchwide legislative gatherings. It will also encourage those delegates to consider the denomination’s goals of justice and inclusiveness for racial/ethnic members when they vote for legislation at General Conference and for new bishops at their jurisdictional conferences.
“These conferences will face critical issues and make important choices in leadership as they try to move our denomination forward into ‘a future with hope,’” said the Rev. Chester Jones, GCORR general secretary, citing the theme of the 2008 General Conference. “The economy, immigration, changing populations and the expansion of global interests are but a few of the circumstances requiring the church to evaluate how we engage in ministry. Despite these challenges, we must remember our commitment to be a church where all are welcomed and given a seat at the table of representative leadership, especially racial/ethnic persons who have been historically excluded.”
GCORR is partnering with annual conference Commissions on Religion and Race to promote inclusiveness. That promotion includes requests to area bishops to allow the conference commissions to monitor their annual conference sessions for inclusiveness and then report their findings to the membership. The general agency, which will monitor General Conference, is sending letters and packets of Inclusiveness Counts! materials to conference CORR chairpersons to help them interpret the campaign and garner support in their areas.
“We hope to reach as many people as possible with this important message—not just conference leaders and delegates,” said Jones. “Many people are concerned about the integrity of our denomination. As we envision becoming a more global church in a society that is becoming more culturally diverse, we must not only recognize but also reflect among our leadership the new reality that, to paraphrase John Wesley, the world is in our parish.”
WASHINGTON, DC—The General Commission on Religion and Race (GCORR) of The United Methodist Church announces the launch of its Inclusiveness Counts! initiative in April to promote diversity and support for racial/ethnic minority concerns at the 2008 General and Jurisdictional conferences.
The campaign encourages annual conferences to “Vote for Diversity” as they elect delegates to next year’s churchwide legislative gatherings. It will also encourage those delegates to consider the denomination’s goals of justice and inclusiveness for racial/ethnic members when they vote for legislation at General Conference and for new bishops at their jurisdictional conferences.
“These conferences will face critical issues and make important choices in leadership as they try to move our denomination forward into ‘a future with hope,’” said the Rev. Chester Jones, GCORR general secretary, citing the theme of the 2008 General Conference. “The economy, immigration, changing populations and the expansion of global interests are but a few of the circumstances requiring the church to evaluate how we engage in ministry. Despite these challenges, we must remember our commitment to be a church where all are welcomed and given a seat at the table of representative leadership, especially racial/ethnic persons who have been historically excluded.”
GCORR is partnering with annual conference Commissions on Religion and Race to promote inclusiveness. That promotion includes requests to area bishops to allow the conference commissions to monitor their annual conference sessions for inclusiveness and then report their findings to the membership. The general agency, which will monitor General Conference, is sending letters and packets of Inclusiveness Counts! materials to conference CORR chairpersons to help them interpret the campaign and garner support in their areas.
“We hope to reach as many people as possible with this important message—not just conference leaders and delegates,” said Jones. “Many people are concerned about the integrity of our denomination. As we envision becoming a more global church in a society that is becoming more culturally diverse, we must not only recognize but also reflect among our leadership the new reality that, to paraphrase John Wesley, the world is in our parish.”
