09 September 2013
Churches Gather in London for the World Methodist Council Meeting
Approximately 300 people from the World Methodist
Council member Churches will be gathering in
Wesley's Chapel, London this week for the World Methodist
Council Meeting. Those gathering are based in over 100
countries, representing over 75 million Methodist, Wesleyan and
related Uniting and United Church members.
The World Methodist Council is a worldwide association of 77 member
churches that enables and facilitates its members in sharing and
learning together. This year the Council will be returning to the
place they convened 132 years ago for the first World Methodist
Council meeting, which took place in 1881. The agenda
of the Council meeting will help to shape the focus points and
action plans for the Council in the years ahead. The meeting themes
will include "The Family Gathers", "The Family Discerns" and
"Organizing for the Journey."
Bishop Ivan Abrahams, General Secretary of the World Methodist
Council, said: "Our goal for this meeting is to not only reconvene
our worldwide family, but to also discern and attempt to understand
what God is calling us to do. It has been my experience that
through the process of coming together for what John Wesley called
'Holy conferencing' - Christians coming together for the sake of
truth and peace seeking - that we can find a way forward together.
We are sisters and brothers in a shared faith, and these events
help to remind those of us on or affiliated with the Council that
the world doesn't end with our local church, or even our own
denomination. Instead we come together to remind ourselves that
individually we are corks in a vast sea, but together we are a vast
ship navigating the sea."
The Council meeting will offer an opportunity for churches to
discuss various topics including: social justice, ecumenical
relationships, family life, education and evangelism. Bishop
Abrahams said: "The world is changing fast and the church needs to
change with it. We hear it from the beatings of the drums of war in
Syria and the pounding of hearts with hope and possibility in
Africa. We see it in South Korea where the Methodist Church is
thriving and growing, and in the United States where a generational
shift is creating a rousing debate on issues in the Church from
finance to human sexuality."
The World Methodist Council Meeting will take place from September
10 - 13. Selected portions of the Council Meeting will be available
on
YouTube. The Council will also be sharing up to date news
from the meeting via
social media.