Connection Points
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Association of Retired Ministers & Spouses (ARMS)
To enhance the quality of fellowship among the clergy, spouses, widows and widowers of pastors in their more mature years. As growing disciples of Jesus Christ, we are supportive of one another, offering encouragement, learning, and sharing experiences.
Board of Church & Society
The Virginia Conference Board of Church and Society engages local congregations to implement the Social Principles of The United Methodist Church throughout the conference. This work is guided by three working groups.
Peace and Nonviolence – leads the conference in addressing conflicts and violence in our local communities, state, and world.
Creation Justice – connects and supports groups within the conference and beyond for the work of creation, care, justice and regeneration.
Addressing Poverty – supports work across the conference and beyond to alleviate poverty through works of mercy and advocating for meaningful and transformative policies in the state.
Board of Discipleship
The Board of Discipleship exists to provide resources and training to local ministries to assist them in building contextual discipleship processes to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world. We foster and promote a holistic approach to disciple-making through Christian education, small-group ministries, camping, retreats, evangelism, stewardship, worship, lay development, spiritual formation, age-level/life-span ministries, leadership education, and other areas as the Annual Conference determines.
Higher Education & Campus Ministries
The Board of Higher Education Ministries provides the connectional relationship between the General Church, annual conference, district and local churches and promotes the work and ministry of higher education and campus ministry. The Board has disciplinary responsibilities to the institutions of higher education in the Virginia Conference and oversees the mission and ministry of campus ministries related to and supported by the Virginia Conference.
Board of Laity
The purpose of the Board of Laity is to challenge, inspire and equip the laity of the Virginia conference for ministry in our churches and the world. To do this, the board is organized into four Regional Prayer/Work groups. These groups serve as conduits for advocacy, communications, networking, mentoring, and training.
Board of Ordained Ministry
The Board of Ordained Ministry will enable disciples of Jesus Christ to become effective clergy, diaconal ministers, and certified lay professionals. To this end, the Board assists these persons in the areas of call, development and collegial support.
Church Development Team
The mission of the Church Development Team (CDT) is two-fold: to assist in creating New Faith Communities and to support the work of vitality in existing churches. The CDT works to achieve this mission through the following areas:
Currently, leadership grants include support of Next Level Innovations as well as local church initiatives to increase the Church’s outreach to the unchurched and dechurched.
See also:
Application for New Faith Communities
Leadership Grants
Applications are due January 1, March 1,
October 1 and November 1.
Commission on Ethnic Minority Concerns & Advocacy (CEMCA)
The mission of the Commission on Ethnic Minority Concerns and Advocacy (CEMCA) is to serve as a prophetic voice for the full and equal participation of ethnic and racial constituents into the total life and mission of the Virginia Annual Conference (its churches, boards and agencies, and institutional and connectional structures) by educating, advocating, and holding to account God’s church to inclusivity as God’s intended design for all structures and processes, toward the work of making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world in word and deed.
Commission on the Status & Role of Women (COSROW)
Recognizing that every person, woman or man, is a full and equal part of God’s human family, The United Methodist Church is committed to the full and equal responsibility and participation of women in the total life and mission of the church, sharing fully in the policy making at all levels of the church.
The General Conference of The United Methodist Church established the Commission on the Status and Role of Women (COSROW) in 1976 as an action-oriented commission to address discrimination against women at all levels of the denomination.
Common Table
The Common Table is a circle of spiritual leadership empowered by the Virginia Annual Conference to coordinate and prioritize the ministries and resources of the Conference. The Common Table meets in open session at least quarterly. It reports annually to the members of the Virginia Conference and offers recommendations for the goals of the Conference for the coming year(s).
The Common Table is a catalyst for the creative and cooperative functioning of the boards and agencies of the Annual Conference.
Commission on Disabilities
The Virginia United Methodist Commission on Disabilities (COD) affirms the responsibility of the Church to be in ministry with all persons, regardless of their physical and/or mental conditions. The COD functions as a resource group to conference boards and agencies to enable persons with all types of disabilities and challenging conditions to participate to the fullest extent possible as members of the Body of Christ on the local, district, and conference levels.
Some of the resources provided by the Commission on Disabilities include:
Accessibility Grants
Program Grants
Camper Scholarships
Historical Society
The Virginia Conference Historical Society of the United Methodist Church is a non-stock corporation made up of all the ministers and members of the churches of the Virginia Annual Conference whose purpose “is to collect, preserve and disseminate information and to collect and preserve materials and property related to the history of Methodism in Virginia and elsewhere.” The Board of Trustees and officers of the Historical Society are keenly interested in the history and heritage of the United Methodist Church in Virginia as it continues to influence the present day.
Missional Ministries Board
The Conference Missional Ministries Board is to interpret to the annual conference the programs, plans, and policies of the General Board of Global Ministries and to plan and promote mission, local, national and international throughout the conference.
The board is organized and oversees the mission of the conference through teams and committees.
Older Adult Council
The purpose of the Older Adult Council is to strengthen older adult ministries in the local churches and districts of the annual conference.
The Council offers resources for intentional ministries of the Virginia Conference “providing a place of welcome, spiritual nurture, discipleship and empowerment in ministry to, for, by, and with older adults.”
Professional Administrators of the
United Methodist Connectional Structure
(PAUMCS)
• promotes and encourages the training and support of United Methodist Church administrators;
• serves as an advocate for emerging concerns that affect church administrators;
• encourages and assists in the establishment of chapters of church administrators, within or across jurisdictional and annual conference boundaries, and assists in coordinating the program and work of these chapters.
Retired Clergy Housing
The Retired Clergy Housing Corporation of the Virginia Conference, maintains a program to provide individual retirement homes for eligible United Methodist ministers who need it.
This program has been made possible by the gift of homes or property willed or deeded to the Corporation plus gifts of money. Other contributions come through the Covenant of Gratitude whose members contribute $1.00 (not to exceed $35.00) per year for each person ordained a Commissioned Provisional Member at the annual session of the Virginia Conference.
There are nearly 500 persons (lay and clergy) who express their thanks for each person who answers God’s call to ministry.