In one year, the General Conference will have a special session to hear the recommendation of the Council of Bishops and vote on the Way Forward for The United Methodist Church. Your Northern Illinois General Conference Delegation is meeting in preparation for this important vote.  Here are some things that we would like you to know.

We don’t know what the Council of Bishops will bring to us, and we will find out when you do. 
At the 2016 General Conference, the delegates asked the Council of Bishops to lead us past our impasse on inclusion after decades of debate. The Bishops formed the Commission on the Way Forward to advise them, and the Commission is developing their recommendation.  The Council receives that report and will use it to determine their recommendation to the church, which will be presented later this spring or summer.

We are not choosing between plans presented by different groups. 
You may have heard that groups such as Wesley Covenant Association or the Uniting Methodists have ideas for the future of the UMC. Those groups may try to influence how people vote, but we will only have the option(s) at the Special Session that the Council of Bishops bring(s) to us.  

We don’t know yet how amendments will be allowed. 
We also don’t know yet what we would be amending! The process will be clearer after we hear from the Council of Bishops.

We are interested in hearing from you. 
We will be having listening sessions around the conference this summer or early fall. There is a lot of speculation right now, but we want to be ready to discuss exactly what we will be voting on before we engage in conference-wide discussions.  

Keep talking. 
The Cabinet will share with us what they learned from you at Charge Conferences. There will be conversations at events around the conference like Laity Convocation. Your local congregations should be having conversations soon (if they haven’t already). This is a big moment in The United Methodist Church, and everyone associated with the church needs to be informed. Even though the delegation isn’t holding listening sessions until later, members of the delegation would be willing to speak with you, your group, or your congregation as we go through this process.

Friend us on Facebook. 
Like our page at www.facebook.com/NICDelegation. We will post updates here about our gatherings and where you can meet with us.

Keep praying!  Please, keep praying!

For more information:

http://www.umc.org/who-we-are/commission-on-a-way-forward
http://www.umc.org/news-and-media/bishops-set-date-for-special-2019-general-conference

Commission moderators emphasize mission as key to way forward

Following their seventh meeting Jan. 18-20 in Dallas, the moderators of the Commission on a Way Forward are urging United Methodists to engage in reflections on where they see mission at the heart of the denomination as well as seeing mission as significant for resolving conflict.
Read more and find questions for reflection by clicking here.