A contingent of family, friends, and church representatives gathered on the stage during the closing worship of the 2017 Annual Conference for the consecration of new leadership. The service consecrated Samuel Sarpiya as Annual Conference moderator, Donita Keister as moderator-elect, and James Beckwith for a second term as Conference secretary. Sarpiya will preside over the 2018 Annual Conference.
Faculty, staff, and graduates of Bethany Theological Seminary and the Brethren Academy for Ministerial Leadership were joined by others at an Annual Conference luncheon. The theme of “Spirit Moving” was expressed succinctly when seminary president Jeff Carter noted that, thanks to what he called “our Anabaptist/Pietist vision, he said, “The world needs us.” Because of this, Carter said of the seminary’s reach: “It is broad. It is deep. It is moving.”
1) On Earth Peace retains agency status, as delegates make decisions on the Review and Evaluation Committee report
2) Delegates adopt report from Leadership Team and CODE, approve new vision effort
3) On Earth Peace call for new polity for agencies is acted on by the Conference
4) Delegate body receives insights from ‘Patient Hope in Matters of Conscience’
5) Donita J. Keister to serve as moderator-elect, among election results
6) Annual Conference by the numbers
A round up of some statistics on the 2017 Annual Conference, including registration numbers, offering amounts, blood drive donations, and more.
A review of the closing day of the 2017 Annual Conference.
Church of the Brethren Newsline July 1, 2017 by Frances Townsend and Cheryl Brumbaugh-Cayford The Annual Conference on Saturday, July 1, did not adopt a Recommendation #6 from the Review and Evaluation Committee “that On Earth Peace no longer remain an agency of the Church of the Brethren.” The vote came as the delegate body addressed 10 recommendations in
The document “Patient Hope in Matters of Conscience” was brought by On Earth Peace for consideration by Annual Conference. The delegates adopted a recommendation from the Standing Committee of district delegates to not delay other items of business, as called for in the document, but to receive the insights of the document and ask the Mission and Ministry Board in consultation with On Earth Peace and other experts to provide resources to better implement the 2008 Annual Conference resolution “Urging Forbearance” in the life of the church.
An overview of the day at Annual Conference.
The Annual Conference this afternoon did not adopt a recommendation from the Review and Evaluation Committee “that On Earth Peace no longer remain an agency of the Church of the Brethren.” The vote came as the delegate body addressed the 10 recommendations in the Review and Evaluation Committee’s report, and was announced as there were still two recommendations still to be acted upon.
Annual Conference on Thursday, June 29, adopted a recommendation from the denomination’s Leadership Team and Council of District Executives (CODE) during consideration of the report, “The Authority of Annual Conference and Districts regarding the Accountability of Ministers, Congregations, and Districts.” The action receives the report as a response to the concerns of “Query: Same Sex Weddings” and sets in motion a new vision effort in the church.