CHARLESTON, West Virginia Summary Edition July 21, 2012 ...nejumc.org/pdf/2012_summary-finaldca.pdf · CHARLESTON, West Virginia Vol. 19, ... NEJ Daily Christian Advocate -Summary

NEJ Daily Christian Advocate - Summary Edition - July 21, 2012

CHARLESTON, West Virginia Vol. 19, No. 7 Summary Edition - July 21, 2012

By Maidstone Mulenga

DCA Editor

Upper New York Area Bishop Marcus Matthews

has challenged the three newly elected bishops in the

Northeastern Jurisdiction to put God’s ministry ahead

of personal goals.

Presiding at the Service of Consecration for Bishops

Sandra L. Steiner Ball, Martin D. McLee and Mark J.

Webb at St. Marks UMC in Charleston, W.Va., Bishop

Matthews said election to the episcopal office was a high

calling that required deep commitment to service.

“The greatest mistake any of us could ever make as

leaders, and therefore servants, is to believe that it’s

more about us than about God and fulfilling God’s pur-

poses,” he said.

He urged the three new bishops to resist the temp-

tation of believing that “because of this new mantle of

service and obligation that you have already arrived.

Nothing could be further from the truth.”

“I invite you to remember, as I and everyone else

who sits where you sit, it’s not really about us; it is and

always will be about God and living out the fullness of

God’s purposes for us in the world.”

Consecration Service brings 2012 NEJ Conference to close

Bishop Marcus Matthews presides during the Service of Consecration for Bishops Sandra L. Steiner Ball, Martin D. McLee and

Mark J. Webb at the 2012 NEJ Conference Friday, July 20 at St. Marks UMC in Charleston, W.Va. Photo by Maidstone Mulenga

THREE NEW BISHOPS

Bishop McLee Bishop Steiner Ball Bishop Webb

BISHOPS, CONTINUED on Page 12

2 NEJ Daily Christian Advocate - Summary Edition - July 21, 2012

Daily Christian Advocate Publisher: Northeastern Jurisdiction of The United

Methodist Church

1936 North Eden Road, Lancaster, Pa. 17601-4952

Ruth A. Daugherty, Secretary

www.nejumc.org

The 2012 Daily Christian Advocate is the official daily

newsletter of record for the Northeastern Jurisdictional

(NEJ) Conference, held July 18-20, 2012 at the Charleston

Conference Center in Charleston, W.Va.

Editor: Maidstone Mulenga, director of communica-

tions, Upper New York Annual Conference

Staff: Beth DiCocco, Christian Vischi, Ashley VanSickle

Upper New York Annual Conference

Editor’s Note of Thanks: I would like to offer my

sincere gratitude to the many people who contributed

to the DCA over the course of the 2012 Northeastern

Jurisdictional Conference.

In a sense, everyone who participated in the NEJ

Conference – the delegates, the episcopal nominees and

the NEJ committee members – contributed to the DCA,

insofar as they were the source of the material for the

stories and reports it contained.

There are others that I would like to acknowledge

more specifically: the NEJ College of Bishops; NEJ Sec-

retary Ruth Daugherty – whose tireless efforts made

everything run smoothly; and NEJ Treasurer/Business

Manager Dight Crain – whose long experience and ex-

pertise were critical.

Let me also thank my colleagues, the conference

communicators from across the Northeastern Jurisdic-

tion, whose diligent work helped keep our audiences

informed of the critical decisions made at this confer-

ence. We owe a huge debt of gratitude to the West Vir-

ginia Annual Conference staff and volunteers – for their

gracious hospitality and hard work.

May God continue to bless you all.

COMMITTEE ON NOMINATIONS

ELECTED TO GENERAL AGENCIES AND BOARDS

List continues on Pages 6-7


Summary of approved resolutions Delegates to the 2012 NEJ Conference:

Celebrated the ministries of retiring Bishop

Ernest Lyght, Bishop Jane Allen Middleton and

Bishop Peter Weaver.

Elected Sandra L. Steiner Ball, Martin D.

McLee and Mark J. Webb as bishops.

Celebrated the work of outgoing Secretary

Ruth Daugherty and outgoing Treasurer Dight

Crain.

Elected Thomas Salsgiver and Sharon Dar-

lynn McCrae as new secretary and assistant

secretary respectively for next quadrennium.

Elected David Simpson and Jennifer Williams

as new treasurer and assistant treasurer respec-

tively for the next quadrennium.

Approved the 2013-2016 budget of $1,052,925.

Donated $3,910.08 as offering to further the

work of the United Methodist Appalachian

Ministry Network.

Asked the annual conferences’ boards of or-

dained ministry to consider requiring all clergy

candidates to participate in a VIM experience

prior to ordination or licensure.

Approved changing the Native American

Task Force into the Northeastern Jurisdiction

Native American Ministries Committee.

Approved a resolution by the NEJ Urban

Steering Network to ask annual conferences to

promote the urban ministry by awarding “Kim

Jefferson Award for Effective Urban Ministry.”

Affirmed a statement of grace, full inclusion.

Approved supporting the $75 million cam-

paign by Imagine No Malaria to help eradicate

the disease from the world.

Saluted Bishop Ernest S. Lyght, Bishop Mar-

cus Matthews, Bishop F. Herbert Skeete and

Bishop Felton May for their support of Africa

University.

Approved a motion to study the processes by

which conferences nominate and endorse can-

didates for bishop with a possibility of creating

a unified process across conferences.

Referred to the NEJ College of Bishops a peti-

tion seeking to replace the jurisdictional con-

ferences with the Central Conference structure

in order that they form a task force.

Adopted invitation to Eastern Pennsylvania

Conference to host the 2016 NEJ Conference.

The Episcopacy Committee of the Northeast-

ern Jurisdiction announced the assignments for the

bishops on the morning of July 20. Here are the

assignments for the nine bishops in the NEJ. All

bishops begin their assignments on Sept. 1.

Washington Area (Baltimore-Washington An-

nual Conference): Bishop Marcus Matthews.

Boston Area (New England Annual Confer-

ence): Bishop Sudarshana Devadhar.

Harrisburg Area (Susquehanna Annual Con-

ference): Bishop Jeremiah J. Park.

New Jersey Area (Greater New Jersey Annual

Conference) Bishop John R. Schol.

New York Area (New York Annual Confer-

ence) Bishop Martin D. McLee.**

Philadelphia Area (Eastern Pennsylvania An-

nual Conference and Peninsula-Delaware Annual

Conference) Bishop Peggy A. Johnson.*

Pittsburgh Area (Western Pennsylvania An-

nual Conference) Bishop Thomas J. Bickerton.*

Upper New York Area (Upper New York An-

nual Conference) Bishop Mark J. Webb.**

West Virginia Area (West Virginia Annual

Conference) Bishop Sandra L. Steiner Ball.**

*assignments did not change

** newly elected

Bishops get new assignments


$1,052,925 budget approved


EPISCOPACY COMMITTEE

2013-2016

Baltimore-Washington

Clergy: Terri Rae Chattin

Lay: Tom Price

Eastern Pennsylvania

Clergy: James B. Todd

Lay: Mary White

Greater New Jersey

Clergy: Drew Dyson

Lay: Evelynn S. Caterson

Peninsula-Delaware

Clergy: Derrick E. Porter

Lay: Demetrio L. Beach

New England

Clergy: We Hyun Chang

Lay: Bonnie Marden

New York

Clergy: William S. Shillady

Lay: Frederick K. Brewington

Susquehanna

Clergy: Beth E. Jones

Lay: Zedna Haverstock

Upper New York

Clergy: William Gottschalk-Fielding

Lay: Stephanie Deckard

West Virginia

Clergy: Ellis E. Conley

Lay: Judi Kenaston

Western Pennsylvania

Clergy: Joel Garrett

Lay: Sharon Gregory

JURISDICTIONAL

COMMITTEES OFFICERS

Vision Table

Chairperson: Bishop Marcus Matthews

Vice-Chairperson: Lyssette N. Perez

Secretary: Thomas Salsgiver

Treasurer: David Simpson

Episcopacy Committee

Chairperson: Bonnie Marden

Vice-Chairperson: Ellis Conley

Secretary: Demetrio Beach

Finance and Administration Committee

Chairperson: Edward Horne

Vice-Chairperson: Doris Dalton

Co-Secretaries: Sherri Rood

Jefferson Dedrick

Program and Arrangements Committee

Chairperson: Boyd Etter

Vice-Chairperson: Hudda Aswad

Secretary: Tanya Bennett

Rules Committee

Chairperson: Jen Ihlo

Vice-Chairperson: Aslam Barkat

Secretary: Arlene Beechert

Annual Conference Boundaries

Chairperson: Timothy R. Baer

Vice-Chairperson: Shirley Readdean

Secretary: Lenora Thompson

Appeals Committee

Chairperson: William Scott Campbell

Vice-Chairperson: Judy Colorado

Secretary: Gregory Johnson

Investigation Committee

Chairperson: Karin Walker

Vice-Person: William Meekins, Jr.

Secretary : Lyssette N. Perez










Thank you to

retiring bishops,

NEJ secretary

NEJ treasurer

Left: Retiring Bishop Ernest Lyght and his

wife, Eleanor.

Middle left: Retiring Bishop Jane Allen

Middleton and her husband, Jack.

Below left: Retiring Bishop Peter Weaver

and his wife, Linda.

Middle right: Retiring NEJ Secretary Ruth

Daugherty.

Below right: Retiring NEJ Treasurer Dight

Crain. P

ho

to b

y M

aidsto

ne M

ulen

ga


2012 NEJ

Conference

in pictures

Top: Retired Bishop William Wesley

Morris lights up worship Thursday

morning.

Below: Bishop Peter Weaver preaches

during the opening worship on Wednes-

day morning.

Left: A liturgical dancer lifts up her

hands during the Wednesday morning

worship service.

Ph

oto

by

Maid

ston

e Mu

leng

a

Ph

oto

by

Ad

am C

un

nin

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am

Photo by Adam Cunningham


Listening as the prophet Elijah

did for the still small voice of God, is

one way to discern what God wishes

for the NEJ, Bishop Matthews said.

“Sometimes that voice of God says

yes, sometimes that voice of God

says no, sometimes that voice of God

says not yet, but hold steady, be-

cause, in the end, God always wins.”

He told the story of a boy

named Johnny who was walking

with his friends past his grandfa-

ther’s house, where his grandfather

was seated on the porch reading the

Bible. When the Johnny’s friends

asked what his grandfather was do-

ing, Johnny said, “Oh, Grandpa, he’s

cramming for the finals.”

“In a sense, this is also true for

most of us. We are always cramming

for an eternity of fellowship with an

awesome God, an eternity of com-

panionship and fellowship.”

Bishop Matthews advised the

bishops against the danger of

“keeping only an inner circle of folk

around us who only tell us what we

want to hear.”

“To the newly elected class of

2012, you will only be good bishops

if you remember to put Christ first.”

He called on the NEJ members

to join the new leaders helping “us

win souls for Christ, build new disci-

ple-making churches in the North-

eastern Jurisdiction, develop clergy

and lay leadership, and be in minis-

try with the poor.”

Rev. Thaddeus Allen, regional

minister and president of the West

Virginia region of Christian Church

Disciples of Christ participated in the

service as one of the Liturgists, and

an ecumenical representative.

3 new bishops consecrated

BISHOPS, CONTINUED From Page 1

Newly consecrated episcopal leaders Bishop Sandra L. Steiner Ball, left, Bishop Martin D. McLee, top, and Bishop Mark J.

Webb participate in the consecration service on Friday, at St. Marks UMC in Charleston, W.Va. Photos by Maidstone Mulenga

Documents

CHARLESTON, West Virginia Summary Edition July 21, 2012 ...nejumc.org/pdf/2012_summary-finaldca.pdf · CHARLESTON, West Virginia Vol. 19, ... NEJ Daily Christian Advocate -Summary