Special Contributor
In the eight-state South Central Jurisdiction of The United Methodist Church, stretching from Nebraska to Louisiana, only one bishop is said to reserve one day per year to meet with the laity.
On Saturday, Jan. 21, at McKinneys Stonebridge UMC, Bishop W. Earl Bledsoe held his fourth annual give-and-take session, attracting about 150 laypersons and a handful of clergy.
Bishop W. Earl Bledsoe made a point with Susan Leddy of First UMC Blossom.
Both conference lay leader Richard Hearne and the bishop cited Eastman Kodak as an example of what happens "when we keep doing the same things the same way," referring to the camera giant's clinging to film as the industry moved to the digital era. Eastman Kodak, which, ironically, invented the digital camera in 1975, recently filed for bankruptcy.
Bishop Bledsoe labeled 2012 "a defining year" for The United Methodist Church, with its once-every- four-years lawmaking General Conference convening this spring in Tampa, Fla.
The four points in the church's Call to Action, he said, are:
- Leadership development.
- New places for new people.
- Ministry with the poor. "John Wesley's kinship with the poor keeps us grounded," he said.
- "Things going on in the world." He mentioned Nothing But Nets, a program promoted by the UMC, the National Basketball League and others to send free mosquito nets to help stop children's deaths from malaria.
As for issues he backs for approval by the 2012 General Conference, he listed:
Creating the office of a "set-aside" bishop, perhaps a retired bishop, to "help deal with issues." He said he spends more time "in the air" between meetings than he does in the North Texas Conference.
Eliminating guaranteed appointments for all elders. "Some clergy," he noted, "say it's OK for them not to do much because their next appointment is guaranteed. The bishop can't do much about it. There's no place to put them."
Reducing the number of churchwide agencies. This "could free up $60 million for vital congregations and other work closer to home," he said.
Bishop W. Earl Bledsoe and a Laity Day participant exchange viewpoints at the annual event.
Asked what can be done "to get information beyond the pastor's desk," Hearne recommended that local church lay leaders go on the conference website at least once a week and share what they find helpful.
The bishop was asked about the data that local churches are required to gather."I'm not interested in merely gathering more data," Hearne said. "What does the church have to say about unemployment, for instance, and what are we doing about it? Understand what God is calling you to do, then you can understand the data. . . . We are called to do acts of justice and mercy, and we're better at mercy than we are at justice."
From left: Wilford Job, Robin A. Phillips, Jenna Morrison and John Bodnar, representing different NTC churches, joined together for lunch.
In preparing for lunch, Hearne urged participants: "Don't sit with the people you came with; talk about issues in your church."
The suggestion apparently worked.
After lunch, handwritten notes passed to the bishop helped him choose laity to tell about their churches' work in such fields as prison ministry aid to special-needs children and women's ministries.
Formula for a successful Laity Day? The bishop speaks, the people listen. The people speak, the bishop listens.
