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Cuban Methodists thrive but feel effects of embargo
By Linda Bloom

The Methodist Church in Cuba is thriving more than it ever has since Fidel Castro took power in 1959.

But actions by the U.S. government have had a negative impact on mission work and ministry between Cuban church members and their American counterparts, according to leaders of Cuba's Methodists.

That's why Bishop Ricardo Pereira Díaz of Cuba and staff of the United Methodist Board of Global Ministries asked the board directors for assistance during the April 23-26 spring meeting in Stamford.

The United Methodist Church has consistently called for an end to the decades-long U.S. economic embargo against Cuba. Pereira explained that despite the politics involved, it is the people in Cuba who suffer under the embargo.

For many years, the Board of Global Ministries has had a license from the U.S. Treasury Department allowing the agency to send funds to support the work of the Methodist Church in Cuba, the Rev. Jorge Domingues, a staff executive, told directors.

"In recent years, it has been more and more difficult to get that license renewed," he said.

In January, the Rev. R. Randy Day, the board's chief executive, received a letter from the U.S. Treasury denying the license renewal for 2007. Among the issues raised, according to Domingues, were the lack of a budget showing how every single dollar would be spent and the objection that money the United Methodist Committee on Relief sent in the 1990s to support a housing project was in violation of current U.S. regulations. "We were not in violation of the regulations at that time," he said.

The board is revising its application, but in the meantime, any funding that would normally come to the Cuban church through Advance gifts, grants, and Women's Division projects has been halted, Domingues said.

The only license currently valid for The United Methodist Church is to send pension money to Cuban pastors who were registered with the Methodist Church before 1959.

A long history
Pereira-who was elected bishop in 1999 and re-elected last March-led a four-person delegation to the board meeting.

The denomination has a long history in Cuba. The first Methodist arrived 125 years ago, and a contingent of missionaries from the Methodist Episcopal Church South took up residence in 1895. Until the Cuban revolution in 1959, Methodists planted churches and ran hospitals and schools on the island.

After the revolution, according to Pereira, the church was left with two ordained elders. "If a church building was closed for 15 days, it was occupied by the government," he said. "All of the social work, which was an integral part of our witness, was taken from us."

Isolated from Methodists in the United States, the Methodist Church in Cuba became an independent denomination and suffered from "a lack of understanding by the government of what we were about," the bishop added.

Membership and church attendance plummeted, in part because people were afraid to be identified as Christians in a nation that was officially declared to be atheist. "At one point, we only had 500 active members," Pereira reported.

Participation began picking up again in the 1980s and 1990s, and changes were made in liturgical style to reflect the reality of Cuban life.

In 1990, the Methodist Church in Cuba had about 8,000 active members and 96 pastoral appointments. Today, there are 243 churches, 18,400 active members, 3,000 churches in formation and 35,000 people, including members, who participate in some way in the Methodist community, according to the bishop.

Children's evangelism is a focus, according to Dayimi Pimentel Prieto, director of Christian education for the Cuban church. "The majority of children that come to our churches come from dysfunctional families," she said.

Programs include vacation Bible school, summer camp, family retreats, and training of Sunday school teachers. Special attention also is paid to teenagers, the children of pastors, and the physically challenged. While the church is still not allowed to do social work, meals are provided for children and the elderly during Sunday school, she noted.

Preparing leaders
Yosvonys Pereira Proenza, the bishop's son and the church's youth leader, said the church recognizes that preparing leaders among youth and making each young person an evangelist leads to greater church growth. It is important that "young people feel they are a part of the work," he added.

Leadership formation also is important for adults, according to the Rev. Mario A. Perez, director of the Methodist Center for Theological Studies in Cuba. The center, housed at the Central Methodist Church in Mantanzas, is a new program that arose out of a conflict with the ecumenical seminary there.

Offerings include a three-year leadership formation course as preparation for local church work and a correspondence course that provides basic training for those unable to come to the seminary. "As the result of the growth of our churches, we need to prepare the leadership," he said.

But Cuba still lacks economic stability, which affects the church and its members. The U.S. embargo continues and the decline of the socialist world has reduced support and trade with other countries, particularly the former Soviet Union. "With the fall of the Berlin Wall, our whole situation has changed," the bishop explained.

For example, Cuba was once considered "a medical powerhouse," but now lacks even basic medicines. "There are some doctors who have left their clinics and are working as cleaning people in a hotel to have enough to live on," Pereira said.

The pay for church pastors doesn't go far, either. "I don't know how they live," he added. "It's a miracle."

Linda Bloom is a United Methodist News Service news writer based in New York.

 

State of the Church report reveals hope and concern
By Marta W. Aldrich

United Methodists have a deep love for their church and passion for their beliefs, but they are less satisfied with its structure and say too many resources are used in administration and bureaucracy. They are also both hopeful and concerned about the future of the United Methodist Church.

So say the results of surveys that are the basis for a State of the Church report scheduled for churchwide release in mid-June. The surveys were conducted between June and September of 2006, and involved interviewing a cross-section of about 3,000 United Methodist clergy, lay leaders, and members from across the globe. The report was commissioned in 2005 by the church's Connectional Table, the leadership entity that coordinates the mission, ministries and resources for the denomination. The $350,000 survey was conducted by The Martec Group, a research firm based in Chicago.

The surveys found that United Methodists strongly affirm their belief in God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit. Church members generally rank the denomination's open table for Holy Communion as extremely important. And they identify the church's highest priorities as Scripture, children, reaching out to the unchurched, and ending racial divisions within the church.

Seventy-two percent of clergy and 61 percent laity who were surveyed agree at least somewhat that the church "uses too much of available financial and human resources in administration and bureaucracy."

Despite this dissatisfaction, 69 percent of clergy and 75 percent of laity say the system of apportionments to pay for denominational ministries and administration is "an effective and efficient way to pay for work beyond the local church."

Among other highlights, the report indicates:

. While church leaders express a high level of desire to attract young people ages 18 to 30, they indicate less willingness to change practices and invest money to do so.

. Prayer, regular worship, and lifelong Bible study are viewed as extremely important practices of faithful discipleship, while generous and regular financial giving and working for social justice are viewed as less important.

. More than three-quarters of clergy and laity believe small cliques exert too much influence in churches.

. United Methodist pastors do not believe strongly that they are well trained, expertly supervised and appropriately assigned to churches.

. More than four out of five pastors agree that pastors have an extremely demanding job and suffer from a lack of time, while three out of four lay members agree with that statement.

Among those who are hopeful about the future of The United Methodist Church, optimism is strongest in Africa and the Philippines. Specifically, 88 percent of African United Methodists told surveyors they are hopeful about the church, compared with 84 percent in the Philippines, 54 percent in the United States, and 42 percent in Europe.

Those expressing hopefulness cited strong and growing congregations, good pastoral leadership and younger constituents, while those who are discouraged mentioned divisiveness, poor leadership and declining membership.

Adapted from United Methodist News Service. Marta W. Aldrich is news editor of United Methodist News Service.

 

United Methodists join in Sudanwater
mission project
By Linda Bloom

Water is a basic need everywhere and is particularly important for displaced people in camps in South Darfur, Sudan, and their host communities.

Now a four-year relief project is focusing on re-establishing water supplies and improving sanitation in refugee camps in the war-torn African nation. The ministry is an outgrowth of a continuing collaboration between Ginghamsburg United Methodist Church in Tipp City, Ohio, and the United Methodist Committee on Relief.

The project is coming together at a time when continuing violence and political instability pose a threat to humanitarian assistance in Darfur, where at least 400,000 people have been killed and more than 2 million driven from their villages during four years of fighting between rebels and militias.

"Water is absolutely the most critical health need in Darfur," said Karen Smith, a Ginghamsburg staff member.

In all, the Ginghamsburg church has raised more than $1.8 million for its work with UMCOR in Sudan, which started in February 2005. The initial focus was on providing basic needs for displaced people, but now includes ministries involving education, agriculture, and health.

The first contributions came at the end of 2004, when the Rev. Mike Slaughter challenged the 4,000-member Ohio congregation to give half of what they would spend on Christmas gifts to the Sudan offering. UMCOR and Ginghamsburg used the $317,000 raised for a self-sustaining agriculture program.

The 2005 Christmas "miracle offering" raised $530,000, and a five-year child protection and development ministry was launched with UMCOR and now serves 15,000 children.

"Our goal with the 2006 miracle offering was to raise at least $500,000 for year two (of the child protection program)," Smith explained, adding that Slaughter also encouraged the Ginghamsburg church family "to go above and beyond that."

The result was a $1 million "miracle offering," including donations of some $81,000 from other churches and organizations in Ohio, Alabama, California, and Wisconsin.

Ginghamsburg approached UMCOR about the idea of starting a water project with the additional half million dollars raised. Marc Maxi, who leads UMCOR's nongovernmental division, said a need exists for clean and potable water because the same water "was being used not only by animals but by human beings."

The plan is to rehabilitate wells and drill bore holes at the sites of 10 existing water yards, which are protected areas where separate water resources will be available for humans and livestock. The project will benefit about 220,000 people.

Placing the water resources near operations for the child protection ministry-which includes education, food security, teacher training, and school rehabilitation-completes "the holistic approach that we are taking," Maxi said.

The approach also enhances child protection, according to Smith, because "generally, in Darfur, it is the job of the girl children to go out and collect the water for the family."

Widening interest
Other churches have started their own fundraising efforts to help Sudan. Last December, the Rev. Paul Dirdak, then UMCOR's chief executive, spoke about the Ginghamsburg Christmas offerings at the Church of St. Paul and St. Andrew, United Methodist, in New York City.

Victoria Clark, a long-time member and Tony Award-winning Broadway actress for "The Light in the Piazza," was among those inspired to respond and conferred with the Rev. James "K" Karpen after the service. "Paul was the inspiration that moved me into action," she said.

St. Paul and St. Andrew already had collaborated on a benefit concert for Sudan last November with an interfaith partner, Congregation B'nai Jeshurun, which netted a few thousand dollars for UMCOR.

This time, the goal was larger and involved the New York theater and music community. Concert hosts were Clark; Jane Kelly Williams, a singer-songwriter and church member; and Cheyenne Jackson, whose Broadway credits include "All Shook Up," "Aida," and "Thoroughly Modern Millie."

"With our belief that hope fuels the brilliant writers, the wise activists, and those who work diligently for peace, we are here to answer the stronger calling in each of us that believes something can and will be done so that the spirit and homes of the refugees are restored and they are freed to flourish as a people," Williams wrote in the concert program.

More than 600 people attended the concert, which raised $20,367. Because most of the expenses were donated, the bulk of the proceeds will go to UMCOR, except for a $2,000 donation to the Darfur People's Association of New York, which ships clothes and school supplies to Darfur refugees in Chad.

Included in the total was a $1,000 grant from the Children's Relief Fund in Denver, secured by Jon Mikel Zeigler, a church member and the concert director. Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS also gave a $5,000 grant in honor of the participating artists.

The water project and other work can be supported through donations to "Sudan Emergency," Advance No. 184385. Checks can be dropped in church collection plates or mailed directly to UMCOR at P.O. Box 9068, New York, NY 10087-9068. To make a credit card donation, call (800) 554-8583.

Linda Bloom is a United Methodist News Service news writer based in New York.

 

Town hall gathering offers snapshot
of the church
by Marta W. Aldrich

The vision for the United Methodist Church in the 21st century includes starting 650 new U.S. congregations by 2012, doubling the number of young people serving as pastors and church leaders, and expanding ministries on behalf of the world's impoverished people.

Those were among the highlights from a first-ever teleconference inviting United Methodists worldwide to an April 17 "town hall" meeting with denominational leaders to talk about the church's membership, ministries, missions, and challenges for the future.

The teleconference was timed with the release of a report by the United Methodist Council on Finance and Administration called "This is Our Story," presenting and analyzing local church data about membership, attendance, and giving trends. Among the specifics outlined in data for 2005-the most recent complete data available-are that:

. The church's membership is growing throughout the world, but shrinking in the United States at a time when 50 percent of the U.S. population has no ongoing relationship with a faith community.

. Worldwide professing and baptized membership is 13.75 million in more than 50 countries, compared with 11.35 million in 1995.

. U.S. professing membership is 7,995,429, a decline of nearly 1 percent from the previous year. Membership has decreased by more than 1.9 million members, or 19 percent, since 1974.

. While 35 percent of U.S. churches grew in membership, 41 percent did not report a single profession of faith.

. The church gave almost $5.9 billion during 2005-representing an increase in giving for the 15th straight year when adjusted for inflation.

. U.S. giving included more than $200 million for disaster relief and $475 million in additional benevolent giving. U.S. churches reported more than $4.3 billion given as offerings for local church ministry, operations and benevolences, and an additional $1 billion raised through capital campaigns and memorials.

. Spending on benevolent causes has increased more than 36 percent in the last decade, while staff salaries and benefits increased 46 percent and clergy salaries and connectional clergy support increased about 11 percent. 

. United Methodists in the United States volunteered their time to more than 600,000 leadership positions in church schools, and more than 138,000 reported lending a hand by working in more than 11,000 Volunteer in Mission groups.

Leadership, new churches, and missions
More than 200 callers participated in the teleconference and, at the close of the presentation, some asked questions of denominational leaders about issues ranging from starting new churches to preserving the environment.

The Rev. Jerome King Del Pino of the Board of Higher Education and Ministry addressed the church's "leadership crisis" and called this "a crucial moment in history, when seismic demographic, social, cultural, and religious shifts are redefining our global reality."

He cited 2005 research showing there were only 850 commissioned and ordained clergy ages 35 or under in the entire United Methodist Church in the United States. "This is only 4.69 percent of current elders and reflects a decline from 15.05 percent of the elders serving in 1985," he said.

"The church must build a streamlined structure for the development of young leaders that will result in doubling the number of young people in positions of leadership as pastors and specialized clergy and lay ministries."

Reminding listeners that "church planting is a biblical mandate," the Rev. Karen Greenwaldt of the Board of Discipleship said the church must invest its leadership and financial resources to start more new churches. Currently, the denomination starts an average of 90 a year in the United States.

She highlighted a new initiative that currently aims to meet the goal of planting one new church a day. The initiative also aims to train bishops and district superintendents in strategic church planting and to develop a "rich database, a library of best practices" to help them in their decisions.

The Rev. Larry Hollon of United Methodist Communications reported on the proposed Initiative on Global Health to address the diseases of poverty and significantly reduce the incidence of malaria and HIV/AIDS. It will include leveraging funding and creating new partnerships to increase health ministry, communicate about health, and advocate for changes in public policy.

"It is unlike any initiative attempted before in that it seeks to engage congregations at the grassroots, annual conferences, and the general agencies to address the diseases of poverty with the full resources and skills of the global United Methodist community," Hollon said.

Organizers said the town hall meeting offered a new forum for presenting a snapshot of the denomination and sparking greater dialogue.

Marta W. Aldrich is news editor of United Methodist News Service.

 

General Conference host issues call to prayer
By United Methodist News Service

United Methodists around the world are asked to pray for God's guidance for the church in the time leading up to and during the denomination's 2008 legislative assembly. The Central Texas Annual (regional) Conference host committee, which is preparing for the assembly next spring in Fort Worth, has issued "A Call to Prayer for General Conference 2008."

"Just as prayer is as essential to the Christian life as breath, so prayer is essential to our shared life together as we prepare for General Conference 2008," the committee said in its call.

"We on the General Conference Hosting Committee Prayer Ministries Team invite you to pray daily for General Conference 2008 and for all the preparations and deliberations leading up to it so that in all that we do we are 'rooted and grounded in love,'" the committee said. 

Nearly 1,000 delegates from around the world will meet April 23-May 2 in Fort Worth to revise The United Methodist Church's Book of Discipline and Book of Resolutions, approve a budget for general ministries, speak to issues of the day, worship and celebrate the church's work. General Conference meets every four years.

"We feel that the prayers of all United Methodists are crucial as we approach General Conference," said Judy Tutt, co-chairperson of the Prayer and Discernment Ministries Team. "If we are to discern God's will for our denomination, it is important for every member to be informed about and to pray about the issues that will come before the conference. That's why we are trying to disseminate the Call to Prayer to as many United Methodist publications and Web sites worldwide as we possibly can."

Tutt's co-chairperson, Len Delony, wrote the prayer contained within the committee's call to prayer statement.

"People might pray this particular prayer or they might be led to pray for General Conference in another way," Tutt said. "They might be led to Ephesians 3:14-21, or other portions of Scripture may speak to them more clearly. Our hope is that more and more United Methodists will lift up General Conference during all of their regular prayer time and Bible study in the coming months."

"We encourage everyone in their prayer time to be silently open and available to God," Delony said. "There are so many competing agendas in this fast-paced world of ours, we must be more intentional about taking a second breath and letting go of our agenda. Only when we do that are we able to hear the depth of God's call in the moment," he said.

The committee is planning several types of prayer spaces at General Conference, including "Second Breath" prayer tents near the convention floor, Delony said. The prayer spaces are designed to help the church experience General Conference as a time of "holy conferencing," he said.

"Prayer reminds us of our connectedness to God and to one another," Tutt said. "In the midst of conflicting viewpoints and different understandings of God's will and purpose for us, we all stand humbly before God as brothers and sister when we pray. If we let prayer shape all of our plans for General Conference, our time together to plan for The United Methodist Church will be shaped not merely by our human capabilities and perspectives, which are always limited, but also by the transforming work of the Holy Spirit, which knows no limits."

Adapted from United Methodist News Service.



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