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To submit news items, stories, or corrections for inclusion in the newsletter, email the conference Communications Office at [email protected].
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Safer Sanctuaries policy updated
The conference Safer Sanctuaries policy, protection policies for minors and vulnerable adults, has been updated. Local churches may use this policy as a template in their contexts.
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Find policy and more at the link.
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VAUMC to visit Candler
Representatives from the Virginia Annual Conference will be visiting Candler School of Theology on October 31. If you are a Candler student from Virginia or interested in learning about Virginia, click here to schedule a time to meet and learn more!
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VUMPI shares Health Plan reminders
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For eligible clergy and lay employee participants in the Conference Health Benefit plan, a reminder from the Pensions and Benefits office - now is the time to ensure your Wellness Activities are complete to earn incentives for the 2025 benefits year. Open enrollment is right around the corner, so make sure you remember to visit your physician for a wellness check and complete the Personal Health Profile with our partner Health Advocate before the September 30 deadline. Health Plan eligible members who complete both activities receive financial credit towards their 2025 health plan contributions. Act before the end of September to make sure you qualify!
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To learn more, details are available here: Wellness Rewards Program. For additional questions, contact the Pensions and Benefits office at (804) 521-1131.
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VAUMC to focus on spiritual disciplines
Bishop Sue and Martha Stokes, conference lay leader, invite the Virginia Conference to explore spiritual disciplines from September 2024 to June 2025. The book, Soul Feast, by Marjorie J. Thompson will help guide this initiative with a different spiritual practice focus each month.
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Church leaders stand with Haitian neighbors
UNITED METHODIST NEWS--United Methodist leaders in Springfield, Ohio, and across the U.S. are standing in solidarity with Haitian migrants and condemning hateful rhetoric that targets them and their newly adopted homes. “We are doing our best to support each other,” said the Rev. Vicki Downing, pastor of Grace United Methodist Church in downtown Springfield. “It isn’t us and them; it’s just us.” Her congregation is one of many in the western Ohio city that counts Haitians among its parishioners. On any given Sunday, she said, about eight to 12 Haitian residents attend worship at Grace. Over the past few years, Downing has baptized three Haitian-American babies.
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Spotlighting UMC’s role in Indigenous boarding schools
UNITED METHODIST NEWS-- An unprecedented project detailing The United Methodist Church’s involvement with U.S. boarding schools for Indigenous children was at the center of the conversation when the 10th Historical Convocation met Sept. 10-13 in Bozeman, Montana. The theme of the gathering, “Methodist BIPOC Experiences in the American West,” included leading historians discussing the intersection of Methodism and non-white populations, including Japanese Americans and Native Americans. BIPOC stands for Black, Indigenous and people of color.
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Bishop addresses upcoming presidential election
Bishop Sue encourages United Methodists to take advantage of the gift of voting, to recognize their own echo chambers while striving for a balanced view, and to fact check resources before sharing on social media during this political season. Watch video and find other resources at link below.
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VWU Selected to Join New Institute on AI, Curriculum
Virginia Wesleyan University (VWU) has joined 123 other higher education institutions to form the Institute on AI, Pedagogy, and the Curriculum. Established by the American Association of Colleges and Universities (AAC&U), this new, fully online institute is designed to help departments, programs, colleges, and universities respond effectively to the challenges and opportunities artificial intelligence (AI) presents for courses and curricula.
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Updated challenge for UnDue Medical Debt
Following an update of the 2024 Annual Conference offering, Bishop Sue challenged the VAUMC to take the next step toward forgiving medical debt in Virginia. If the VAUMC could raise an additional $180,000 over the remainder of 2024, for a total amount raised of $250,000, our collective efforts would forgive at least $25 million in medical debt in Virginia. According to our friends at Undue Medical Debt this could lead to the forgiveness of as much as $45 million.
Can you imagine that level of impact? The level of transformation in the Commonwealth of Virginia?
Bishop Sue recognizes raising this much money is a big goal.
If you would like to give to this effort, please visit www.vaumcdonations.org and select the Undue Medical Debt tab.
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Bishops denounce political violence
COUNCIL OF BISHOPS--Amid polarization and increasing threats, the United Methodist Council of Bishops has released a statement that denounces violence, authoritarianism, and secular and Christian nationalism. “Let’s join conversations in our pulpits, pews, and the public square that advance justice and build up our communities in love,” writes Council of Bishops President Tracy S. Malone.
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Embattled Christian farmers in Holy Land refuse to hate
UNITED METHODIST NEWS--Amid increased harassment from Israeli settlers, a Lutheran Palestinian family continues its nonviolent struggle to keep the “Tent of Nations” farm.
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Events Highlight
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Sept. 30 Deadline for Clergy Day Apart
Bishop Sue Haupert-Johnson invites clergy to attend the Clergy Day Apart entitled "Dreaming Forward" on October 10, 2024, at Floris UMC in Herndon, Va. The event will be from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. There are in-person (full-day) and streaming options (half-day) to choose from.
Rev. Dr. Laceye Warner will kick the day off with worship, followed by an address from Bishop Sue Haupert-Johnson. Next, we will hear a keynote from Dr. Joy Kreider, a neuroscientist and trauma consultant who will address the trauma that pastors face and how we can move forward from it together.
Provision Church will serve lunch, and the afternoon will be filled with workshops led by Rev. Dr. Laceye Warner, Dr. Joy Kreider, Rev. Dr. John Obeng, Rev. Cassandra Nunez from the Baltimore-Washington Conference, and Rev. Dr. Jason Stanley. The day will end with worship and the sacrament of Holy Communion. For more information and to register, visit this link.
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Funds are available for clergy to attend! Contact your district and/or the Center for Clergy Excellence at [email protected].
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Resource Highlight
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VAUMC clergy to lead at Small Church Gathering in November
It's a BIG event for the SMALL church! Register by October 15 for the Small Church Gathering, a resourcing event unique to small church contexts, at Virginia Beach UMC on November 2. Space is limited. Several VAUMC leaders will share at the event, some include:
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- Rev. Dr. Jonathan Page- Learning to Engage your Church's Community
- Rev. Jeff Witt- Stewardship Made Easier
- Rev. Amanda Webber- Cultivating Talent
- Rev. Kyungsuk Cho- Beauty Across Cultures
- Martha Stokes- Role of Laity in the Church
- Rev. Jason Stanley- Transforming Stories using a Storyboard tool
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Learn healthy financial habits, align habits with faith in Zoom webinar session
VUMPI and the Virginia United Methodist Foundation (VAUMF) are pleased to offer the course Saving Grace: A Guide to Financial Well-Being for Virginia United Methodist clergy and their spouses/accountability partners.
Saving Grace is a Wesleyan-based personal financial education program designed to help individuals create healthy financial habits and align their financial lives with their faith.
The seven-session program begins Wednesday, September 25, and runs through November 6. The webinar takes place via Zoom each Wednesday from 1:30 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. Participants who complete all sessions are eligible for 1.0 CEU.
The webinar series is free, and the only cost for participating clergy is the program’s clergy workbook. (Cokesbury offers the new book for less than $30 including tax and shipping. The workbook is also available on Amazon, where you may save with free shipping or used books.)
Course space is limited. Contact John Fuller at VUMPI ([email protected]) or Brad Duty at the Foundation ([email protected]) for more information. Learn More
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Learn about Ministry Innovator internship from Wesley Theological
Wesley Theological Seminary's Ministry Innovator Internship brings together people from a variety of backgrounds in a 1-year program that equips them to harness the power of their imaginations in the service of the Church and the world. Deadline for applications is October 15, 2024.
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The program begins in January with an immersion experience to help form the interns and orient them towards the frontiers of modern ministry. Throughout the Spring semester, interns take a course called "Innovative Ministry by Design," learning tools of design thinking to develop new ways to approach old problems. During the summer, participants prepare a course based on the principles they've learned, then proceed to teach that course to church leaders in the fall. Learn More
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Join growing number of Certified Lay Ministers in VAUMC
Are you a leader in the church seeking to deepen your learning of the UMC and how you might better serve your church and community? CLM (Certified Lay Minister) may be a direction for you to go. CLMs serve as leaders in their church and community as assigned by the District Superintendents. They can be lay supply ministers (serving a congregation in the absence of a clergy), parish nurses, church planters, Christian educators, musicians, food pantry workers, or in nearly any other capacity you can imagine.
CLMs require some basic courses through LSA (the Lay Servant Academy) and then four modules specifically designed for practical application within the church.
Courses to become a CLM:
Module One (prerequisites: BASIC and Spiritual Gifts)
Module Two (prerequisites: Module One and Preaching)
Module Three (prerequisites: Module Two and Polity)
Module Four (prerequisites: Module Three and Heritage)
To Register for Module One, go to CLM Registration to choose the correct module and register.
Registration closes October 11. Class begins October 13 from 6-8 p.m. on Zoom. This is a hybrid class, so there is online work and Zoom meetings to fulfill the requirements.
For more information, please contact Rev. Dr. Joanna Dietz.
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Dillard Forum to explore ways a faith community can make a difference
Join for worship, learning, fellowship and exciting dialogue with Kim Bobo and her staff! from Virginia Interfaith Center for Public Policy for the Dillard Forum Day of Learning on September 29 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Explore the various ways that a faith community can make a difference!
"Kim Bobo and her organization have been instrumental in equipping and empowering Methodists to advocate for society's most vulnerable at our annual United Methodist General Assembly Day. With her deep understanding of Virginia's legislative process and up-to-date knowledge of the rapidly changing legislative landscape, she brings together individuals from all walks of life, guiding people of faith to actively contribute to the loving and caring communities they seek to build," Rev. Katie B. Gooch, Director of The Pace Center, Co-Chair of the Virginia United Methodist Conference Legislative Network said. Free lunch (registration required) after the worship service followed by breakout sessions. Read More
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Other VAUMC Communication Channels
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Public Notice Board
Clergy and laity can crowdsource for ideas and resources within the connection through the Public Notice Board. Find the newest notices and share your question or find past queries at the conference website.
Also find free items for giveaway at the conference website.
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Please send in questions you have that you would like to find answers to: [email protected].
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