January 16, 2025
The “Journey in Understanding” team is continuing their work in 2025. Since the 2024 Annual Conference, the team has held two organizational meetings. They are now in the midst of listening sessions with conference members that represent a variety of groups and a wide array of beliefs in the VAUMC for story-sharing of harm and healing.
This group formed at the 2024 Virginia Annual Conference in Hampton, Va. a motion was made and approved by the body of the Annual Conference for a Commission of Truth Telling and Reconciliation to be formed during 2024-2025 in order to listen to stories of harm and move in creative modes of reconciliation toward LGBTQ+ persons. Learn more…
This team is made up of 10 individuals led by Rev. Mark Ogren, VAUMC retired elder, with Rev. Dr. Gary Mason as a consultant. These individuals are:
- Jill Gaynor, laity, Three Notch’d District
- Rev. David Jimenez-Cardenas, clergy, Shenandoah River District
- Rev. Gennie Bowles, clergy, Northern Virginia District
- Alton Keel, laity, Three Notch’d District
- Rev. Darcey Johnson, clergy, Three Notch’d District
- Claire Kent, laity, Three Notch’d District
- Kay Nicholas, laity, Three Notch’d District
- Margie Hernandez, laity, Shenandoah River District
- Rev. Hung Su Lim, clergy, Valley Ridge District
- Rev. David Edinger, clergy, Mountain View District
“I greatly appreciate this ongoing work as we seek to address conflict with a spirit of Christ’s grace and call for peacemaking and reconciliation rather than voting and taking sides,” Bishop Sue Haupert-Johnson said of the ongoing work of this team.
A report will be given by this team as requested by the Annual Conference body at the 2025 Annual Conference session.