Release #043 {2907} April 24, 1996
DENVER,(UMNS) -- The longstanding dream of United Methodist Men to have an independent agency to advocate their concerns became reality when the 1996 General Conference voted April 24 to create a churchwide Commission on United Methodist Men.
Accountable to the General Council on Ministries, the new commission will oversee the coordination and resources for men's ministries within the United Methodist Church. It will continue to coordinate the church's office of scouting ministries and to support the denomination's telephone prayer ministry.
The new men's organization also will retain maintenance of the "Moving United Methodist" program, which tracks members who move to new cities.
The United Methodist Men's organization is currently a program unit of the General Board of Discipleship in Nashville, Tenn.
Earlier this month, both the United Methodist Men's Foundation and the National Association of Conference Presidents of United Methodist Men called for creation of a separate agency within the church where lay men can control their own programming and decision-making.
"United Methodist Men have dreamed and worked diligently for many years to achieve a level of ownership of their ministry within the church that will allow them to fully express that faith and their gifts," said Foye Webb, executive for United Methodist Men at the Board of Discipleship. "This new General Commission is the realization of that dream."
According to Larry Powell of Las Vegas, presenter of the legislation, the new men's agency would not add to the denomination's budget, because the money designated for United Methodist Men would be transferred from the Board of Discipleship to the new commission.
Gilbert Hanke, Nacogdoches, Texas, said it has been a longstanding goal of United Methodist Men to become financially independent. As a freestanding agency, the commission likely will receive more money from local United Methodist men's units, he added.
He predicted that the Commission on United Methodist Men would be financially solvent within four years, so that funding received from the World Service Fund would be used elsewhere in the church for ministry.
The Rev. Ezra Earl Jones, general secretary of the Board of Discipleship, congratulated the United Methodist Men on their new commission. He said the Board of Discipleship will do all it can to help make "transition" as smooth as possible and "We will continue to support them through the next quadrennium."
-- Linda Green
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