Recalling the words of the hymn “God of Grace and God of Glory,” Bishop Dan Schwerin admonished in his sermon at the Celebration of Ministry on June 6 that imagination takes courage, and wisdom should precede courage. “We who are in Christ, have cause for hope,” Bishop Schwerin preached. “But let's be clear: it takes courage to imagine.”
Read MoreWhen I think of being called into ministry, I think of my father. Oh, he wasn’t a pastor. He was a mechanic who quit school in the eighth grade and was mostly a “home” Baptist. That means he did not go to church very much. He was “spiritual” but not “religious” long before those were sociological categories.
Read MorePerhaps this year is the right year to observe "Clergy Appreciation Month."Who doesn't appreciate a word of encouragement, an acknowledgment that life has been hard, or a congregational "hip-hip hurray."
Read MoreIt was a joyous celebration filled with thanksgiving at the 2021 Ordination and Commissioning service held the evening of October 1 in the sanctuary at Barrington United Methodist Church.
Read MoreIn April, Chicago Southern District Superintendent Rev. Jacques A. Conway was presented with the Illinois “Chaplain of the Year” award from the International Conference of Police Chaplains (ICPC). The award was presented at two separate ceremonies, one at the Illinois Fraternal Order of Police’s (FOP) monthly meeting in Springfield, Ill., and one at the Oak Park Police Department – both where Conway began his chaplaincy in 1995.
Read MoreFor the first time, clergy gathered not in-person all together but behind a computer screen or on the phone from their homes or offices for the annual Clergy Session while practicing social distancing guidelines due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
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