Last Wednesday night a group of about 14 got together at the church for crafting. Folks brought their projects and enjoyed some great food and fellowship while they worked. Even our pastor was intensely engaged in finishing a piece she had been working on for a while. If you like to craft or want to learn something new, this is the place for you.
CRAFT NIGHT the second Wednesday evening at 6pm, April 10, and May 8, in the Relief social hall. All are welcome to come for fellowship, crafting, and light refreshments. Bring a friend. If you have a project you are working on or you want to learn a new craft, this is for you. Have a question? If you want to learn to knit or crochet, let me know so I can have supplies for you. Call Laura at 540-550-4011. Hope to see you Wednesday evening!
Our bishop for the Virginia Conference is Bishop Sue Haupert-Johnson
Below are some of Bishop Sue's recent and past announcements:
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Addressing Disinformation in The United Methodist Church
To the members and friends of the Virginia Conference of The United Methodist Church:
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As we approach the convening of the postponed 2020 General Conference in Charlotte, N.C., I must address the varying types of disinformation being promulgated by some as they continue intentionally and concertedly to undermine and tear apart The United Methodist Church. The following are commitments I want to make as your resident Bishop:
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- The Cabinet and I spend countless hours praying and discerning appointments in order to get the best pastoral fit between pastors and congregations. We are not part of a subversive or underground campaign to appoint LGBTQ+ pastors to every congregation. We would never send clergy to parishes that would not welcome them, follow their leadership, and do them harm. Further, many congregations have indicated that they would be delighted to receive LGBTQ+ pastors. We do not anticipate an overwhelming supply of LGBTQ+ pastors and there should be more than enough congregations to receive those LGBTQ+ pastors we anticipate having.
- One common point of disinformation is the assertion that, over time, all United Methodist clergy will be forced to perform gay weddings or face being sued if they refuse to officiate. This allegation shows an ignorance of our legal system and denies the great deference it gives to clergy. The U.S. doctrine of separation of church and state prohibits the intrusion of the state into church affairs. Such a lawsuit will never succeed. Giving clergy the opportunity to discern their involvement in a wedding is a right that has always been given to clergy. Calendar conflicts, family conflicts, and differences of perspective have long been realities that keep clergy from officiating weddings. You will always have the ability to refer a couple to another United Methodist clergyperson who might be able to officiate a wedding for a couple when you cannot, no matter what the circumstance might be. No doubt countless clergy refused to conduct marriages between persons of different races when that was legalized. Have you ever heard of a biracial couple bringing suit and successfully forcing a clergyperson to conduct their wedding? No. It hasn’t ever, and will never, happen.
- Much fear is stirred up by saying that the “progressive movement” and “woke agenda” are taking over The United Methodist Church. Often such statements are coupled with derogatory comments about “social justice.” Social justice and social action do not require alignment with a single political party or perspective. To be clear, The United Methodist Church has a proud history of standing on the side of the poor, the imprisoned, the migrant, the oppressed, and the excluded. The Methodist movement born in England in the 1700’s spoke out against these evils from its inception. The early Methodists established orphanages, feeding stations, schools, and medical facilities. They worked to abolish debtor prisons and the slave trade in the British Empire. Indeed, for John Wesley the natural and expected outgrowth of being personally transformed by Christ (“personal piety”) was to respond to the call to transform society and the world (“social Holiness”). The two cannot be separated: Methodism is not Methodism without social action.
- United Methodists also have long been at the forefront of the civil rights movement and all other movements that work to ensure that all of God’s children have the equal opportunity to fully live into their God-given gifts and calling. We are proudly inclusive because God excludes none of God’s children and, as revealed in Scripture, God has harsh words for any political system that treats any of God’s children inequitably. We also live as ambassadors for a God that is gracious, merciful, slow to anger, and always seeking what it best for God’s children. We are to channel God’s compassion and mercy for all who are in unimaginably hard circumstances, especially those without safety and prosperity in the countries of their birth. We take exception to any who do not first approach aliens, strangers, and migrants with compassion and mercy. It is incomprehensible to us to perceive them with fear, contempt, superiority, and ugliness. We certainly cannot categorically label them all as rapists, murderers, thieves, and vermin. Such an approach does not reflect the nature of the God we follow and is contrary to our Methodist heritage and the gospel of Jesus Christ.
- We want it to be clear that there will be a place for all in The United Methodist Church. We appreciate traditionalists, centrists, and progressives and stand ready to evangelize as many people as possible by having traditionalist, centrist, and progressive churches. In fact, we doubt there are very few churches that can be described with one of these labels. Most churches are a wonderful array of folks of all types. We see the church as a place of compassion and grace in which all of us journey together as we seek to become more perfect in love for God and love for neighbor. We are bound together in our common proclivity to sin and to pursue our own agendas. Only in an environment of grace and love, with mutual support, where the Holy Spirit does its amazing transforming work, can we work as one in mission to the world. We are bound together by our common mission and our common dependence on God. We do not let our own disagreements drive us apart, but we stay together for the sake of the mission and to live into Jesus’ prayer that we all may be one. Being one despite our differences is our best witness to the supernatural power of God that unites and transforms us all.
Beyond the commitments we make and the responses we have in the Virginia Annual Conference, I would invite you to review the linked statement from the Council of Bishops, which underscores the need for unity in The United Methodist Church.
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In closing, I want to condemn the disinformation that is being disseminated that is overtly racist and homophobic. It is unfair to take isolated and extreme situations and present them as the norm or that which will be widespread in the future. We invite all United Methodists to consider the source of such polarizing materials, and to be in conversation with folks throughout the connection, as well as Conference leadership, to gain perspective and a more balanced analysis of our current situation. Our doors are always open to hear your concerns and fairly discuss all matters.
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| Bishop Sue Haupert-Johnson |
| Resident Bishop, Virginia Annual Conference |
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January 29, 2024
Bishop Sue Haupert-Johnson is excited to announce the theme of the 242nd session of the Virginia Annual Conference is A Conference in Three Movements. This theme emerges from the belief that there are three principal movements of the Holy Spirit taking place in the present era of the church:
1) The theological movement from prevenient grace to sanctification. This is the movement of the Holy Spirit in the human heart.
2) The historical movement of Methodism captured in our past, lived in our present, and pointed toward our future. This is the movement of the Holy Spirit in the church.
3) The missional movement from gathered spaces into all the world. This is the movement of the Holy Spirit in community.
These movements build upon each other, intertwining together to demonstrate what has been, what is, and what will be as God continues to move amongst God’s people.
The Annual Conference logo is designed to be an embodiment of this powerful theme. The three flames joining as one light are a reminder of the three movements and the connection they share. The placement of words and font selection are meant to evoke an imaginative sense of movement and the constant motion of the Holy Spirit. The color family of reds, yellows, and oranges is meant to offer a sense of fire that is sparking and burning within the Virginia Conference of the United Methodist Church.
As we prepare to gather in Hampton this June, we hope members of the Annual Conference will begin to consider the role of these three movements in their lives, the lives of their churches, and the lives of the communities we are called to serve.
