Thursday, June 18, 2009

2009 Iowa Annual conference

166th Iowa Annual Conference Highlights

June 4-7, 2009

Thursday

Annual Conference to Celebrate, Worship, Elect, Holy Conference and Make Decisions

  • Laity and clergy members from the 820 congregations of the Conference joined in an opening Worship Celebration of Baptism and Holy Communion on Thursday, June 4. Visiting choirs – from Rust College and the Hope for Africa Children’s Choir. Rev. J. Robert
  • In his sermon entitled, “No Longer A Stranger,” Bishop Trimble called on the Conference to “live up to our advertising…live up to Radical Hospitality.” He said that “we need to be authentic in our welcome, living a willingness to change and to be changed.” The Bishop noted that “God said, ‘I’ll give you more people.’ To reach them we might have to move, to learn to speak a new language, to redefine our parish boundaries, to think more globally and act more locally, to pay attention to other communities. Some might be poor, might not have all the proper documents that some think they need to have, might have been bruised by other communities.” He advised that “When the Bishop comes to your church he might be coming to see if the sign of welcome on the outside matches with what’s being lived out on the inside.”

Friday

Treasurer Focuses on “More Important Question” in Annual Report

  • Out of every dollar given in the local congregations; 84.1 cents was used to support that local congregation’s ministry, 10.9 cents was used to support Annual Conference Ministries and Mission and 5 cents was used for either General Conference apportionments or other causes which includes the advance specials and special offerings.
  • In 2008, 583 congregations paid 100% of their apportionments and 113 congregations gave a higher percentage than in 2007.
  • In 2008, 225 congregations grew in membership. The largest membership church was 2,556 and the smallest was two. The average membership size for congregations in Iowa was 225 and the medium, meaning as many churches larger and smaller was 130. In 2008, our congregations received 3,027 members by profession of faith a 7% increase from 2007. 3,155 members left our relationship to a greater existence through death. This is a 5% increase. However, it should be noted that 240 congregations had more baptisms than deaths in 2008; with 2,557 baptized reported for a 6% increase.
  • As of June 1, 2009, the financial position of the Conference remains strong. When we factor in prior year apportionments paid, our receipts are down only 0.74% from the previous year. These percentages translate into $4,959 less in 2009 than in 2008.

Bishop Issues FIT Challenge in His Episcopal Address

  • [Website audio and video links to the Episcopal Address are found at:
  • http://tinyurl.com/l6cqhw]

Laity Address Offers “Hope in the Midst of Muck”

  • [Website text, audio and video links to the Laity Address found at: http://tinyurl.com/l6cqhw ]

Rev. Karen Nichols Dungan Preaches at the Memorial Service

  • [Website video link for the Memorial Service is found at: http://tinyurl.com/l6cqhw ]

Conference Votes to Move to Hy-Vee Hall DesMoines

Saturday

Two Camps to be Sold

  • Action Item 202, proposed by the Conference Board of Camp and Retreat Ministries, called for the sale of the Aldersgate and the Golden Valley Camp and Retreat centers. The Action Item called for the “proceeds to be utilized for capitol improvements at the remaining Camp and Retreat Centers.” Following discussion during the morning and afternoon sessions, including the consideration of several amendments that called for allocation of the sale proceeds and referral to the 2010 Annual Conference for action, Action Item 202 was approved.

Recommendations of Bishop’s Task Group on Mission Congregations Approved

  • Following the call of the Cabinet and the Administrative Coordinating Council a Bishop’s Task Group was created to give definition to the term “mission congregation” (par. 260, Book of Discipline, 2008). From the work of the Task Group, a mission congregation: (a) is a congregation with a specific missional focus that is in partnership with the annual conference…and must be assisted by the resources of the annual conference to fulfill the shared vision for ministry; (b) is designated annually by the Bishop and Cabinet after the recommendation of several groups; (c) will require subsidy for an extended period of time for a variety of reasons: serving a low income population with an active program of community service and outreach, a low income ethnic-minority community or a special population or specific territory where a continuing United Methodist presence is vital to the goals of the annual conference. Missional congregations require specialized leadership…stronger leadership than they can afford.

Conference Endorses Recommendation for Human Resources Director

2010 District Askings Set

  • Askings for District Ministries were set when Action Item 503 was discussed and voted by the members of the Annual Conference. The 2010 Askings are: Northeast - $2.75 per member ($63,256)

Basis for District Superintendents’ Salary Designated

  • The basis for determining the salary of the District Superintendents will be changed for 2010. Beginning what that year, a District Superintendent will be compensated at 135% of the Conference Average Compensation. That amount, for 2010, will be $78,045.

Minimum Base Compensation Held the same as 2009

Sunday

2010 Budget Reflects Slight Decrease

  • The revised budget for 2010 reflects a slight decrease from 2009. The -0.58% change includes a 4.2% decrease in General Church apportionments, a .7% decrease in Conference Ministries and administration, and a 2.6% increase in Conference Missions. Overall, the total approved budget for the three categories is: $16,251,151.

Bishop Calls Conference to Move “One Step Beyond Caution” in Ordination

Sermon

  • [Website link to the sermon is posted at: http://tinyurl.com/nfov5g ]

Eighteen Ordained During Sunday Afternoon Service

Special Offerings Raise Over $25,000

Constitutional Amendments Votes

The most important votes in the 2009 IAC were on the proposed Amendments to the Constitution of The United Methodist Church.

A total of 32 Amendments were proposed by the 2008 UMC General Conference, but the Annual Conferences decide. To ratify any UMC Constitutional Amendment, it must receive two-thirds of the combined total votes in the 135 UMC Annual Conferences around the world.

Fifteen Annual Conferences, including Iowa, have now reported their votes. The results are even better than we had hoped for:

· Amendment #1 (Trojan Horse) received only 51% Yes votes in those 15 Annual Conferences, far short of the required 66.67%. This is the most dangerous Amendment. It would remove all standards for Church membership, overrule our UMC Book of Discipline and our UMC stand on sexual morality, divide our Church, and endanger children and youth.

· The 23 World Church Structure Amendments received only 36% to 38% Yes votes in those 15 Annual Conferences. We call them the Segregation Amendments. They would create a new layer of Regional Conference structures, dividing our global Church and partially separating USA and African United Methodists.

· Amendment #19, giving voting rights to Local Pastors, received 80% Yes votes in those 15 Annual Conferences. This Amendment is simple justice. It will allow most Local Pastors, provisional clergy members, and associate clergy members to vote in Annual Conference elections of clergy delegates to the General and Jurisdictional Conferences. (Now they can’t vote for either clergy or lay delegates.)

Respectfuly Submitted to the Reinbeck UMC

Rev. Terry Plocher