A Covenant 141 Years in the Making

Global Methodists Sign Ecumenical Covenant with Korean Methodist Church

On the fifth day of the General Conference of the Global Methodist Church, delegates set aside the ordinary work of a legislative body to witness the signing of an ecumenical covenant with the Korean Methodist Church – a document the conference had passed unanimously the day before, and a relationship that reaches back more than a century.

“It was truly an honor to have such a strong delegation with us from the Korean Methodist Church,” Bishop Carolyn Moore reflected. The delegation was itself part of the story.

Six bishops of the Korean Methodist Church came alongside their president bishop, Kim Jung-seok — a gathering the conference was told is without precedent. Never before have so many Korean Methodist bishops visited a sister denomination's general conference together with the president bishop. Their presence made plain how seriously the Korean church regards this new relationship.

Seven Hundred Seven Days

COO Reports on Connectional Operations

Connectional Operations Officer Mike Schafer opened his report to the General Conference on Thursday afternoon with a number he insisted he needed artificial intelligence to reach: 707 days. That is how long it had been, he told delegates at the Sandton Convention Centre, since the Global Methodist Church closed its convening general conference in San José, Costa Rica — 707 days he described as “craziness and chaos and excitement and watching what God is doing.”

Since Convening General Conference 2024, the GMC has seen the following growth:

2550

new congregations

new annual conferences

Doubled

the number of conferences outside the U.S.

"Well Done, Good and Faithful Servants"

General Conference Honors Bishops Leaving Active Service

As the hour grew late in Johannesburg, the Global Methodist Church gathered to honor the bishops who have carried the Church through its founding years and now enter the ranks of its Bishops Emeriti.

A Whole Church at the Lord's Feet

Choosing the One Thing in Day Five Worship

It was a day built for plenary business. But on Thursday morning, the people were asked to consider a single, quieter thing — the one thing, as Jesus once told a distracted Martha, that would not be taken away.

The preacher was the Rev. Luciano Pereira Da Silva, Conference Superintendent of Panama, whose ministry has knit the Global Methodist Church together across Latin America.

Watch the Mid-Week Recap Video

The days are flying by at the Beauty of Holiness. We have experienced a joyful five days full of fellowship, worship, discernment, prayer, decision making, relationship building, leadership appointment and so much more. Watch this recap video to relive those moments again.

WATCH NOW

Watch the Day 5 Livestreams

Day 5 Livestream

WATCH NOW

Bishop Celebration Service

WATCH NOW

Watch the livestreams from Day 5 plenary sessions and a special bishop celebration service. Delegates did the hard work of discernment and decision making, petition by petition. The GMC signed a covenant agreement with the Korean Methodist Church, and we heard a report from the Connectional Operations Officer. The evening concluded with a celebration of the bishops whose service concludes this fall.

Across the Globe: The Podcast

Tune In for Daily Updates

LISTEN NOW

Day 5 Recap | Decisions Taking Shape

Jason Nix and Executive Director of Communications Dianne Burnett recap Day 5 of the Beauty of Holiness General Conference as delegates continued working through legislation shaping the future of the Global Methodist Church. With legislation moving, amendments being discussed and important decisions being made, Day 5 offered another look at the connectional work happening behind the scenes of this historic general conference.

LISTEN NOW

A Heart for the Church | Jerry Kulah

Jason Nix sits down with Jerry Kulah, the Conference Superintendent of the Grain Coast Conference, to hear his heart and prayer for the Global Methodist Church heading into the Beauty of Holiness Conference.

Recorded before his election as bishop yesterday, this conversation offers a glimpse into Jerry’s heart for the Church as he prepared for this historic gathering.