2007 State of the Church: Essays on the State of the Church

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These short essays were submitted by a cross-section of church leaders as contributions to the State of the Church Report. They come from pastors and laity, educational leaders and bishops, leaders of general agencies and caucuses, young adults and older adults, United Methodists from Africa, Europe, the Philippines, and the United States.

Each writer was asked to weigh-in on the following questions: What stands out about the state of the church? What are the notable forces in play, the yearnings and prayers of the people? What are the trends that best describe current reality? What strategies and ministries are most promising?

The essays represent a wide variety of viewpoints on the issues, trends, and themes that the writers believe merit discussion at all levels of The United Methodist Church. By providing an array of viewpoints, the goal was not to present "the last word" but rather to stimulate continuing conversation. The hope is that many more people from around the world will share their thoughts and commentary.

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To read an essay, click on the name to open the PDF document.
The Rev. David Adams	General secretary, General Commission on United Methodist Men, Nashville, Tennessee
Ms. Emily Allen	Communicator, Division on Ministries with Young People, Nashville, Tennessee
Anonymous	Current seminary student
Mr. Thomas G. Bandy	President and senior consultant, Easum-Bandy and Associates, Port Aransas, Texas
Dr. Maxine Clarke Beach	Vice president and dean, Drew Theological School, Madison, New Jersey
Ms. Barbara Boigegrain	General secretary, General Board of Pension and Health Benefits, Central Conference Pensions Initiative
Ms. Barbara Boigegrain	General secretary, General Board of Pension and Health Benefits, Evanston, Illinois
Bishop Benjamin Boni	Cote d’Ivoire Episcopal Area, Cote d’Ivoire
The Rev. Andy Bryan	Pastor, North Kansas City, Missouri
Ms. Garlinda Burton	General secretary, General Commission on the Status and Role of Women, Nashville, Tennessee
The Rev. Francisco Cañas	National coordinator, National Plan for Hispanic/Latino Ministries, New York, New York
The Rev. Riley B. Case	Associate director, The Confessing Movement, Kokomo, Indiana
The Rev. Paul H. Chang	Executive director, United Methodist Council on Korean-American Ministries, New York, New York
Dr. Phillimon Chikafu	Chaplain, Africa University, Mutare, Zimbabwe
Mr. Jim Coy	Evansville, Indiana
Ms. Inday Day	Executive director, National Federation of Asian American United Methodists, Brewster, New York
The Rev. Randy Day	General secretary, The General Board of Global Ministries, New York, New York
The Rev. Dr. Jerome Del Pino	General secretary, General Board of Higher Education and Ministry, Nashville, Tennessee
The Rev. Dan R. Dick	Research coordinator, General Board of Discipleship, Nashville, Tennessee
Mr. Paul R. Ervin, Jr.	Lake Junaluska, North Carolina
Dr. George H. Freeman	General secretary, World Methodist Council, Lake Junaluska, North Carolina
Mr. Ken Garfield	Director of communications, Myers Park United Methodist Church, Charlotte, North Carolina
The Rev. Karen A. Greenwaldt	General secretary, General Board of Discipleship, Nashville, Tennessee
The Rev. Gary R. Gunderson	Senior vice president for health and welfare, Methodist LeBonheur Healthcare, Memphis, Tennessee
The Rev. Dr. James A. Harnish	Pastor, Hyde Park United Methodist Church, Tampa, Florida
The Rev. James Heidinger	President, Good News, Wilmore, Kentucky
Bishop John G. Innis	Liberia Episcopal Area, Monrovia, Liberia
Mr. F. Belton Joyner, Jr.	Bahama, North Carolina
The Rev. Bernard “Skip” Keels	Executive director, Methodist Action Program, Wilmington, Delaware
Mr. Edward W. Kelley, Jr.	Vice-chair, Board of the United Methodist Publishing House, Washington, D.C.
Ms. Sandra Kelley Lackore	General secretary, General Council on Finance and Administration, Nashville, Tennessee
Bishop Linda Lee and the Rev. Chester Jones	President and General Secretary, General Commission on Religion and Race, Washington, D.C.
Mgr. Milan Lorinc	Pastor of mission work, Gelnica, Slovakia district
Dr. J. Michael Lowry	Executive director, New Church Development and Transformation, Southwest Texas Conference
Mr. Michael Madnick	Senior vice president for partnership development, United Nations Foundation, Washington, D.C.
Dr. David Maldonado, Jr.	MARCHA president and director, Center for the Study of Latino/a Christianity and Religions Perkins School of Theology, Dallas, Texas
Mr. Mike McCurry	Lay leader, St. Paul’s United Methodist Church, Kensington, Maryland
Ms. Elizabeth Mckee	United Nations Foundation, Washington, D.C.
The Rev. Eliseo A. Mejia-Leiva	Associate director, Hispanic Ministries, Kentucky Conference, Crestwood, Kentucky
Dr. M. Kent Millard	Pastor, St. Luke's United Methodist Church, Indianapolis, Indiana
The Rev. Lloyd Nyarota	Project and communications coordinator, Zimbabwe Episcopal Area, Harare, Zimbabwe
Dr. Larry Pickens	General secretary, The General Commission on Christian Unity and Interreligious Concerns, New York, New York
Dr. Gil Rendle	Consultant, The Alban Institute, Herndon, Virginia
The Rev. Rudy Rasmus	Co-pastor, St. John’s United Methodist Church, Houston, Texas
Dr. Lyle E. Schaller	Author and consultant, Naperville, Illinois
The Rev. Lillian Smith	Director of connectional ministries, Eastern Pennsylvania Annual Conference, Valley Forge, Pennsylvania
Bishop Patrick Streiff	Central and Southern Europe Episcopal Area, Zürich, Switzerland
The Rev. Willard Stevens	Retired clergy, Desert Southwest Annual Conference, Phoenix, Arizona
The Rev. Donna Strickland Smith	Pastor, Grace United Methodist Church, Salisbury, North Carolina
Bishop Melvin Talbert	(retired) executive director, Black Methodists for Church Renewal, Nashville, Tennessee
Ms Analisa Trejo	Young adult, San Antonio, Texas
Dr. David G. Trickett	President, The Iliff School of Theology, Denver, Colorado
Dr. F. Thomas Trotter	Former general secretary General Board of Higher Education and Ministry and former president of Alaska Pacific University, Indian Wells, California
The Rev. Don Underwood	Pastor, Plano, Texas
Bishop Hans Växby	Eurasia Episcopal Area
Mr. David A. Weihe	Rose Hill, Kansas
Bishop Rosemarie Wenner	Germany Episcopal Area, Frankfort, Germany
Bishop William H. Willimon	Birmingham Area
The Rev. Jim Winkler	General secretary, The General Board of Church and Society, Washington, D.C.
The Rev. Lisa Withrow	Associate professor of congregational studies, Methodist Theological School in Ohio, Delaware, Ohio
The Rev. Janet Wolf	Associate professor, American Baptist College, Nashville, Tennessee
Kyung Za Yim	President, Women’s Division, General Board of Global Ministries, Apex, North Carolina
Dr. Ed Zeiders	President, United Theological Seminary, Dayton, Ohio

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