United Methodist Deacon 25th Anniversary

Congratulations to the United Methodist Deacons on their 25th Anniversary.  

Please check out the celebrations of the Anniversary shared from Garrett-Evangelical Seminary

Inaugural Crain/Seymour Lecture: Mary Elizabeth Moore

Lecture by Margaret Ann Crain

Service of Celebration

Social Justice Panel

 

Global Justice Volunteers in the Philippines

GJV training 2014

Great to see Emma Cantor providing leadership for the GJV training for the Asia Pacific region. Training takes place from June 22nd - 28th, followed by the period of service from June 30th to August 16th. The Global Justice Volunteers Program of Global Ministries is a short-term service opportunity for young adults ages eighteen to thirty, run by the Global Ministries of the United Methodist Church (USA).  Participants are from all over the world and serve all over the world. Small teams of volunteers spend ten weeks during the months of June through August exploring the links between faith and social justice as they work with local grassroots organizations. Volunteers work alongside their host community to address critical issues such as HIV and AIDS, poverty, human trafficking, and migrants’ rights. This program gives the volunteers the opportunity to develop new skills, to learn from local experts, and to channel their passion to help build just communities.

 

The Global Justice Volunteers Program of Global Ministries is a short-term service opportunity for young adults ages eighteen to thirty.  Participants are from all over the world and serve all over the world. Small teams of volunteers spend ten weeks during the months of June through August exploring the links between faith and social justice as they work with local grassroots organizations. Volunteers work alongside their host community to address critical issues such as HIV and AIDS, poverty, human trafficking, and migrants’ rights. This program gives the volunteers the opportunity to develop new skills, to learn from local experts, and to channel their passion to help build just communities. - See more at: http://www.umcmission.org/Get-Involved/Young-People/Serve/Short-Term-Programs/Short-Term-Programs#sthash.VG65jGgu.dpuf

The Global Justice Volunteers Program of Global Ministries is a short-term service opportunity for young adults ages eighteen to thirty.  Participants are from all over the world and serve all over the world. Small teams of volunteers spend ten weeks during the months of June through August exploring the links between faith and social justice as they work with local grassroots organizations. Volunteers work alongside their host community to address critical issues such as HIV and AIDS, poverty, human trafficking, and migrants’ rights. This program gives the volunteers the opportunity to develop new skills, to learn from local experts, and to channel their passion to help build just communities. - See more at: http://www.umcmission.org/Get-Involved/Young-People/Serve/Short-Term-Programs/Short-Term-Programs#sthash.VG65jGgu.dpuf

Rev April Casperson - reflections on the ministry of deacon

Rev April Casperson speaks about what it means to be in deacon ministry (with the United Methodist Church, USA).

In discerning a vocational call to ministry, 'I realized that while I love the local church, I tended to teach and preach about some key themes over and over again:

Education - the need to learn in order to grow in one's faith
Vocation - what is it that God is calling you to be and to do?
Justice - what does it mean to seek God's justice and to transform the world?


I struggled for a while - I still felt called to ordination, but I no longer saw myself as a pastor. I was called to ministry, but it had a different flavour - one of justice and compassion, beyond the local church. And then I started learning about the order of deacon.

Ordaining deacons means that the UMC is affirming the work of the deacon in the church and the world, and making a commitment to support ministries of compassion and justice.

You can read a longer version of her presentation here.

And an excellent article by April here on 'deculturalization' - 'when persons from a minority group (this can refer to race, gender, sexuality, age, theological stance…lots of options) are welcomed into a group comprised of the majority. Their presence is welcomed…as long as they then conform to majority norms'.