This is the third of several posts presenting a roundup of General
Conference actions related to the foci of this blog. While the second post in this series looked at mission generally, this third post
looks at the General Conference actions related specifically to global health in The United Methodist Church, a major focus for the work of the denomination.
General Conference reaffirmed its commitment to the Four Areas of Health, which include improving health globally.
GC also officially added global health to the work of Global Ministries.
The conference saw a great celebration of the completion of Imagine No Malaria, the denomination's global health-related campaign of the last eight years. The celebration included a song written especially for the occasion. These photos capture some of the celebratory dance that went with the performance of the song.
At the same time, it launched a new global health initiative: Abundant Health: Our Promise to Children, which is further described in this Global Ministries press release.
Dedicated to fostering conversations about the global nature of The United Methodist Church
Showing posts with label Four Areas of Focus. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Four Areas of Focus. Show all posts
Tuesday, June 14, 2016
Tuesday, March 29, 2016
Recommended reading: From Imagine No Malaria to Abundant Health for All
Among other business, General Conference 2016 will herald a success and a transition in The United Methodist Church's mission work related to global health, one of the denomination's Four Areas of Focus. GC2016 will celebrate the success of the Imagine No Malaria campaign and introduce the pivot of global health work to the new Abundant Health for All campaign. Three news stories below share more details:
This UMNS story recounts the history and success of the Imagine No Malaria campaign.
This UMNS story introduces the new Abundant Health for All campaign.
This New World Outlook story provides a more in-depth description of Abundant Health for All.
This UMNS story recounts the history and success of the Imagine No Malaria campaign.
This UMNS story introduces the new Abundant Health for All campaign.
This New World Outlook story provides a more in-depth description of Abundant Health for All.
Wednesday, March 11, 2015
Recommended reading: Mary Ellen Kris on ministry from the margins
Mary Ellen Kris, a consultant for the General Board of Global Ministries (GBGM) on the Ministry with the Poor Area of Focus, has written a great reflection on the connection between the UMC's focus on the Ministry with the Poor and the call for mission from the margins found in the WCC's Together towards Life document. It's entitled "Ministry With the Poor at Its Best: Ministry from the Margins," and you can find it online here. For more posts related to Together towards Life, click on the tag at the bottom of this post.
Tuesday, December 10, 2013
The UMC and global health work
Today's post is by UM & Global blogmaster Dr. David W. Scott, Assistant Professor of Religion and Pieper Chair of Servant Leadership at Ripon College.
I'd like to pass along two recent news stories about global health partnerships that The United Methodist Church supports. The first is a report by Donald E. Messer on the recent International Congress on AIDS in Asia and the Pacific. Messer is executive director of the Center for the Church and Global AIDS and attended the conference. The second is a story about recent pledges to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria. The United Methodist Church was one of a number of partners pledging financial support of the fund. Both of these stories demonstrate the UMC's important work on "improving health globally," one of the denomination's Four Areas of Focus for ministry.
These stories are not only important because they fit with this ministry focus. They are also important for two things they teach us about the nature of ministry partnerships that seek to tackle global issues. First, they teach us that such work really does involve international ministry partnerships. It might be possible to read the story about the financial pledges to the Global Fund and think it was just a story about Western generosity to solve problems "over there." But that's not how the fight to end AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria works. It's not just a process of Westerners giving money. It's a process of Westerners, Southerners, Easterners, people from all around the globe coming together and pooling their resources, knowledge, and expertise to create comprehensive, systemic solutions to these global health problems. The necessary cooperation of and contribution by partners in many countries is especially well highlighted in the story about the International Congress on AIDS in Asia and the Pacific. The congress was not a bunch of Westerners out to fix someone else's problems for them. It was a collaborative approach by people from many backgrounds to fix a common problem.
Second, these stories teach us that, as important as international ministry partnerships within the UMC are, international ministry partnerships that reach beyond the UMC are important too. Neither the Global Fund nor the International Congress are instances of United Methodists going it alone. Instead, they are both stories about United Methodists working with others - other Christians, people from governments, business, and other secular backgrounds, and even people from other religions - to achieve shared goals. Moreover, rather than weaken the Christian witness in The United Methodist Church's anti-disease efforts, these sorts of collaborations strengthen that Christian witness. They make the church's efforts more effective and therefore a better witness, and they also make the church's efforts known to those outside of the church and therefore a wider witness.
When we read such stories of the church's work on global health or other global issues, we should do more than just pause to feel good about our generosity or stop to wonder why we're involved in "secular" efforts. Instead, we should reflect on how carrying out God's mission in the world involves calling forth the gifts that God has given to all of God's people.
I'd like to pass along two recent news stories about global health partnerships that The United Methodist Church supports. The first is a report by Donald E. Messer on the recent International Congress on AIDS in Asia and the Pacific. Messer is executive director of the Center for the Church and Global AIDS and attended the conference. The second is a story about recent pledges to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria. The United Methodist Church was one of a number of partners pledging financial support of the fund. Both of these stories demonstrate the UMC's important work on "improving health globally," one of the denomination's Four Areas of Focus for ministry.
These stories are not only important because they fit with this ministry focus. They are also important for two things they teach us about the nature of ministry partnerships that seek to tackle global issues. First, they teach us that such work really does involve international ministry partnerships. It might be possible to read the story about the financial pledges to the Global Fund and think it was just a story about Western generosity to solve problems "over there." But that's not how the fight to end AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria works. It's not just a process of Westerners giving money. It's a process of Westerners, Southerners, Easterners, people from all around the globe coming together and pooling their resources, knowledge, and expertise to create comprehensive, systemic solutions to these global health problems. The necessary cooperation of and contribution by partners in many countries is especially well highlighted in the story about the International Congress on AIDS in Asia and the Pacific. The congress was not a bunch of Westerners out to fix someone else's problems for them. It was a collaborative approach by people from many backgrounds to fix a common problem.
Second, these stories teach us that, as important as international ministry partnerships within the UMC are, international ministry partnerships that reach beyond the UMC are important too. Neither the Global Fund nor the International Congress are instances of United Methodists going it alone. Instead, they are both stories about United Methodists working with others - other Christians, people from governments, business, and other secular backgrounds, and even people from other religions - to achieve shared goals. Moreover, rather than weaken the Christian witness in The United Methodist Church's anti-disease efforts, these sorts of collaborations strengthen that Christian witness. They make the church's efforts more effective and therefore a better witness, and they also make the church's efforts known to those outside of the church and therefore a wider witness.
When we read such stories of the church's work on global health or other global issues, we should do more than just pause to feel good about our generosity or stop to wonder why we're involved in "secular" efforts. Instead, we should reflect on how carrying out God's mission in the world involves calling forth the gifts that God has given to all of God's people.
Thursday, April 25, 2013
Recommended Reading: World Malaria Day
Today is World Malaria Day. The UMC has made the global fight against malaria an important part of its global ministry. It's tied to one of the church's "Four Areas of Focus": "Combating the diseases of poverty by improving health globally." Through the church's Imagine No Malaria campaign, local churches, annual conferences, and denominational agencies have contributed toward the eradication of the disease, working in cooperation with the UN's Nothing But Nets campaign, a movement that has brought together a wide variety of partners to address this important issue. As part of World Malaria Day, the church is working to "Cover Africa" with mosquito nets. Check out the story and the YouTube video below for more information:
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