HAPPY NEW YEAR 2023

Next Issue February 9,2023

Notes From Our

District Superintendent

Rev. Dr. Sherri Rood


A Pastoral Letter to the Mountain View District

 

Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

 

We find ourselves in an unsettling place as the people of God called United Methodist. There is a lot of anxiety in our churches around the issues of human sexuality and disaffiliation. I want to address some of the misleading information that may have come your way.

 

There are some who would like to paint the picture that The United Methodist Church is dying, that our theological beliefs will be changed and there will be a “new” United Methodist Church that requires your congregation’s vote. The United Methodist Church is not dying. The UMC will continue on and your congregation does not need to vote to remain United Methodist. We will continue to do good ministry together around our neighborhoods and around the world, ministry that could never be done by a single congregation alone. While our denomination is not perfect, we possess a unique and compelling way to offer the love and grace of God to the world.

 

There are some who are saying that sweeping change will come to The UMC at General Conference in 2024. Every General Conference brings change. That’s why we have a new Book of Discipline and Book of Resolutions after every General Conference. When most people talk about change, they are referring to the current stance that prohibits same sex marriage and ordination of self-avowed practicing homosexuals. While there are some who would like to see these changes, no one knows with certainty what will happen at General Conference. Our denomination has been talking about these issues for decades. Change comes slowly in The UMC. For some, this change isn’t happening quickly enough. Others do not wish to see change at all. My point is, no one can say with certainty what will happen at General Conference.

 

Some people are saying that churches will be forced to receive a pastor with a different theological perspective than the church. Bishop Hector and the cabinet will work diligently to send pastors who will best meet all the needs of the church, including the church’s theological viewpoints. It’s important that churches are clear about their needs when they create their church profile. Hopefully every pastor will help a church know why they believe what they believe, and in doing so, will help people deepen their understanding of their faith.

 

Some people are saying that The UMC will abandon the basics of our faith, such as the divinity of Jesus Christ and the Trinity. Our theological understanding is found in the Book of Discipline under Paragraph 104 Section 3 – Our Doctrinal Standards and General Rules. These will not change. As a people of faith, we take these statements of faith seriously, and we look at them through the lens of Scripture, tradition, reason and experience. Within each church there are people who have a range of theological understanding. This is a gift, not a detriment. One of the great gifts of our church has been our ability to reason together, to share from our own perspective and respect the perspective of another, even if we don’t agree.  John Wesley said, “Though we cannot think alike, may we not love alike? May we not be of one heart, though we are not of one opinion? Without all doubt, we may. Herein all the children of God may unite, notwithstanding these smaller differences.” No church will agree on everything. How can we be about the work of the church, which is to make disciples of Jesus Christ, respecting one another, even if we do not agree? 

 

Please don’t fall prey to the fear, anxiety and misinformation that is besieging The United Methodist Church. Please don’t get caught by the sensationalism of the media and other organizations who are presenting a skewed perspective.  If you have questions, please invite me to come and talk with you regarding these issues. I want you to have the correct information so that your church may make decisions based on fact, not on fear. I have had conversations with several churches on the district and I would love to come and talk with you, so that I may hear your questions and concerns and provide you with the accurate information you need.

 

May we be of one heart as we move through the days ahead. Please know I’m praying for you. Please pray for me.

 

Grace and peace,


Sherri

From the Desk of Pastor Michael J. Kelly, Mountain View District Associate


Blessings Friends and Families of the Mountain View District,


As YOUR District Associate my biggest job is support. I support the duties of the District Superintendent. I support the Upper New York Annual Conference in their programs and ministries. I support the pastors of the Mountain View District. And I support the churches and laity of the Mountain View District. So today my simple question is to all of you, “How can I deploy and help?”

Let me preface that. “Don’t ask me about disaffiliation.” “Don’t ask me about the Global Methodist Church.” “Don’t even ask we about what is going to happen at the General Conference.” Do ask me, “How I can help you build your church, build your congregation, build your discipleship, build your missions. That I can help you with. Do ask me to help you with the true demographics of your area. Do ask me how I may be able help you be more effective in ministry. Do ask me to help you with the forms and paperwork that is required, especially if you currently do not have Pastoral leadership, I have resources and people that I can bring along. Do ask me about forming right sized committees and effective committees in your church. But mostly do ask me how we can best serve Jesus Christ as His church.

Friends understand, I am here to serve you and am an email or phone call away.


May your ministry be His ministries and a blessing to others,

Mike

Save the Date for March Special Session



The Upper New York Conference’s March 2023 Special Session of Annual Conference to consider disaffiliation requests will take place remotely on March 25 from 9 a.m.-12 p.m.


Registration will open on Feb. 1, 2023, and close on March 10, 2023.

1/5/23

Regional Meeting with Bishop Hector


Starting January 1, 2023, Bishop Hector Burgos, who prefers to be addressed as Bishop Hector, will be the new bishop of the Upper New York Conference (UNY) Conference. Bishop Hector is eager to meet laity and clergy throughout the Conference and has scheduled dates for regional meetings.


The meetings will be as follows:

Feb. 9, 2023-Lakes Region-Leroy UMC

Feb. 16, 2023-Northeast Region-New Hartford

Mar. 1, 2023-Lakes Region-Auburn UMC

Mar. 15, 2023-Southern Tier Region-Olean: Christ

Mar. 16, 2023-Southern Tier Region-Central Endicott


The clergy meetings will be from 1-3 pm.

The laity meetings (and clergy unable to attend the earlier time) will be from 7-8:30 pm

NEW

Bishop Héctor A. Burgos Núñez’s

installation service to be held March 11

The Upper New York (UNY) Committee on Episcopacy invites all United Methodists in UNY to join us Saturday, March 11, at 2 p.m. to celebrate the assignment of Bishop Héctor A. Burgos Núñez as our new episcopal leader. At this installation service, we will thank God for the life, ministry, and leadership of Bishop Héctor, offer him and his family our gracious hospitality, and hear our new bishop share his vision for how God intends to lead us into the future together.  

 

This service of installation and celebration is intended for the whole Conference. You may participate in one of two ways: 

 

1. In-person at theLiverpool First United Methodist Church in Liverpool, NY. A limited number of seats are available. Please RSVP for in-person participation no later than March 4 by registering here. An onsite reception will follow this service.  


2. Via Livestream from anywhere in the Conference and beyond. To connect, please click here on the Conference website on the day of the service. For Livestream participation, no RSVP is necessary. 

 

 We look forward to joining together Saturday, March 11, 2023, to welcome our new resident bishop and celebrate all God seeks to do in and through us in the days ahead. 

NEW

2023 appointment season news from Bishop Héctor


On Jan. 23, Upper New York (UNY) Area Resident Bishop, Héctor A. Burgos Núñez, sent a letter to the Upper New York Conference regarding the upcoming appointment season. This letter featured the processes for appointment discernment, retirement announcements, expressing interest in open churches, and transitioning churches.

 

Click here to read the full letter, which includes important dates.

NEW

2023 EQ Members to Annual Conference are Being Sought


Greetings, Sisters and Brothers in Christ! 


We travel into 2023 with new hope, joy, and peace that comes from our Savior, Jesus. As the district Lay Leader, I’d like to remind you that we depend on our laity to pursue and accomplish the work of making disciples for Christ. Each Christ follower has received gifts for ministry and is called by God to step into those gifts. I would bring to your attention an opportunity for the voice of laity to be heard. Would you like to serve as an Equalization Member to the 2023 Annual Conference? We are looking for Disciples of Jesus that are willing to commit to attending ALL Sessions of Annual Conference this year. There will be 3 sessions that you will need to attend (2 of these are virtual and 1 in person).

The Virtual Sessions are:

Saturday, March 25th, 2023

Saturday, October 14th, 2023


In Person Session

June 1st-3rd, 2023

Applications are being accepted in the district office through February 1st. Be bold and courageous! Give it a go! Click the button below for the application.


Let your light shine!


Ann Welch Wood

NEW

Scholarships Available for United Methodist Lay Women


The deadline to apply for the United Women in Faith (UWF) National Scholarship for lay women is April 18. The scholarships are designed to be used for undergraduate or graduate study or student internships in religion or a related field such as social work. Preference will be given to people affiliated with The United Methodist Church and women involved with UWF. The average scholarship is $1,000, and the maximum is $5,000.

 

Click here for more information.

NEW

Native American Ministries News


Thank you, local churches in Upper New York (UNY)!  

 

Because of your caring and generosity, the UNY Committee on Native American Ministries (CONAM) has been able to be in life-giving ministry with our three Native American churches this winter. As we all know, heating and utility bills have increased drastically. Because of the faithful donations from many churches in our Conference through Native American Ministries Sunday (NAMS), we have been able to give $3,000 to each of our Native American churches for heating fuel, utilities, and internet connections.

  

We are blessed to have three Native American churches within the boundaries of the Upper New York Conference:



 

CONAM is blessed to be in ministries with these Native American churches and is grateful to the local churches that join us in ministry.

NEW

Opening to Grace

2023 Retreats

Co-director of the Mountain View District Lay Servant Ministry and Gestalt Pastoral Care Minister, Deaconess Susan Sihan, RN.

 

These retreats will be Hybrid In Person and Online.

  • Feb. 24-26
  • May 19-21
  • Sept. 14-16
  • Oct. 26-28

 

Click here for flyer and more information

Click Here for Application

Course of Study Through Wesley Seminary: Deadline to Register for Spring 2023 COS is February 1, 2023


Licensed local Pastors....are you are planning to take COS for the Spring Weekend? If you are, please consider filling out your registration form and get it to the District office to have the DS sign it and then I will get it to the registrar.

The deadline for registration for the Spring Sessions-Feb.1st of 2023. (Reminder that the District office is CLOSED on Fridays)

Please, DO NOT WAIT to the last minute to register. When a class is filled, Wesley closes the registration for that class and there is no wiggle room.


I am putting this out now as one of the busiest times of the year is coming soon. There is no need for you to miss out on getting your course requirements met. There is NO MONEY due at the time of registration. You can register NOW for Spring and if something comes up....you can cancel.


IF you need a specific class.....sign up now ....you need to remember that these courses are not just for UNY Conference....these are open to other Conferences as well. SO, sign up now. Click here for all the information you need for COS Satellite School. You will find all the forms you need here as well.


The steps to get registered:

•   Get registration form-click here

•   Fill out the form, print it, YOU sign it.

•   Scan & email to your District Office

•   District AA will get the DS to sign it and will send it to COS Registrar

•   Registrar will fill out her part and get it to Sara Shephard.

•   Sara Shephard will send the Registrar a confirmation of your registration.

•   Registrar will send confirmation to the District AA


There is no reason to wait to the last minute because there is no money that needs to be sent with your registration. So, please sign up now!!


Click here for the registration form

Click here for COS information


Media Resource Center


Upcoming Changes:

All orders will be processed one day a week ONLY so, preplan for this delay when placing your future orders.


All orders must be made via our website online catalog.

Click here for tips on ordering through our website

1/12/2023

Scholarships Available

for United Methodist Students!

Applications are now open for scholarships from the United Methodist Higher Education Foundation. Every year, UMHEF awards $2+ million to students planning to attend one of the 100+ UM-related colleges, universities, and seminaries across the country. Don’t let finances get in the way of achieving your dreams of a quality education! Apply by March 1 at https://umhef.org/apply

1/12/2023

Mountain View District

United Women in Faith

(UWF)Gatherings


 Look for details in upcoming UWF newsletter to be sent to your church or unit in late January

 

Enrichment Day-Saturday, February 11, 9:30 to 2 at Horseheads UMC

 

Day Apart-Saturday, March 11, 9:30 to 2 at Avoca UMC

 

Communion Brunch-Saturday, April 1, 10 AM at Hammondsport UMC. RSVP by March 27 to (607) 569-3594

1/12/23

Human Relations Day January 15


Global Ministries, the worldwide mission and development agency of The United Methodist Church, with the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR), invites churches and individuals to celebrate Human Relations Day on Sunday, January 15, 2023.



One of the Special Sunday Offerings of The United Methodist Church, this collection benefits neighborhood ministries through community developers, supports community advocacy through United Methodist Voluntary Services and works with at-risk teens through the Youth Offender Rehabilitation Program.


To read more, click here.

 

For pastor and leader kit, click here.

1/12/23

BSA Affiliation Agreement


Troops and local congregations seeking to continue or start a relationship will need to complete a new “BSA Affiliation Agreement” and “Facilities Use & Indemnity Agreement.” Click here to download the BSA Affiliation Agreement. Click here to download the Facilities Use & Indemnity Agreement.  

 

All UNY local congregations seeking to be in relationship with a local troop should use these and only these forms. 

 

In most areas, the affiliation agreements and facility use agreements are being implemented and the implementation is going well. There are BSA Councils that are not cooperating in a few Conferences and as the BSA learns of these, they reach out to those Councils to address issues.

 

If you are encountering such issues, please contact Jeffrey Hunt jeff.hunt@scouting.org of BSA, who oversees the BSA Councils across the United States.

Report Your Church Statistics on AC Stats: This Replaces the Ezra System



 

Annual Church Statistics (ACStats) is the one-stop location for United Methodist data that tracks membership, expenses, and income. It's designed to help churches submit year-end statistics to the Upper New York (UNY) Conference digitally in a way that's cost-effective.

 

This user-friendly platform replaces Ezra as the method of reporting your church statistics.

 

March 17, 2023, is the deadline to complete the 2022 statistical report for your church; however, you cannot enter any data to the 2022 statistics tables until Jan. 3, 2023.

 

In the meantime, you may familiarize yourselves with the new ACStats platform by reviewing the user's guide for local churches. Translated reports are available in Spanish and Korean.


PLEASE take the time to read the user's guide before entering your data. Please make sure you write down your login and password somewhere as the Administrative Assistants no longer have access to help you with that. So, if you have issues logging in you will need to contact Autumn Wells at the conference office. You may contact Autumn at 315-898-2004 or email her at autumnwells@unyumc.org

 

Click here to learn more.

2023 Safe Sanctuary Training Schedule


The UNY Safe Sanctuaries Team has scheduled four, 3.5 hour Zoom basic trainings in 2023. There will also be Training of Trainers sessions.

 

The Basic trainings take place 9 AM to 12:30 PM, Saturdays: Feb. 4, May 6, Aug. 5 and Nov. 4. The Training of Trainers will be 9 AM to Noon, Saturdays, Mar. 4 and Oct. 7.

 

The Basic training is for all clergy and anyone working with children or vulnerable adults. The Training of Trainers is for anyone who would like to become a church or District Safe Sanctuaries trainer in the UNY Conference. You need to have taken the Basic Training first.

 

If you need training between these dates, or would like to host an in-person training, please contact the District Office or send an email to the Safe Sanctuaries team, safesanctuaries@unyumc.org.

 

Registration for the February training will open Jan. 4. Look for the link in upcoming announcements.

 

For more information regarding Safe Sanctuaries, visit the Conference website: Click here. To view the poster, click here.

No new elections needed for General Conference 2024


The United Methodist Church’s highest court ruled that new delegate elections “are not required” for the long-delayed and potentially pivotal General Conference, now set for 2024.

 

What this means is that the Upper New York (UNY) Conference delegates that were elected at the 2019 UNY Annual Conference for the originally slotted 2020 General Conference will be able to serve at the 2024 General Conference. There is no need for new elections.

 

The location and dates for the 2024 General Conference have also been announced—the event will be held in Charlotte, North Carolina from April 23 to May 3, 2024.

Click here to read more. 

Conference Job Openings


Director of Communications–Conference Office

Maintenance Supervisor–Sky Lake

Site Director–Casowasco

 

https://www.unyumc.org/about/jobs

1/12/23

Mountain View District Offering

Learning & Growing Opportunity


A Disciple's Heart:

Growing In Love & Grace


A Book Study & Discussion Group

Click here for information



Adirondack District Offering Lay Servant Courses Via Zoom


These classes are open to ALL


Click here for brochure

Certificates of Insurance for your Church


Please click the link below for instructions on how to obtain a certificate of insurance for your church - they are only good for one year.


If you have any questions please contact Tracy Rickett at the conference office 315-898-2017


Click here for instructions

1/12/23

Visiting the District Office


The office is generally open Monday-Thursday.


We ask that you PLEASE CALL FIRST before coming to the office. We occasionally work remotely and would not want you to make a trip to the office to find that we are not in.


Please call 607-962-8047 or email the office at

mountainviewdistrict@unyumc.org

MOUNTAIN VIEW DISTRICT OFFICE

PO Box 706

Bath, NY 14810

607-962-8047


District Superintendent

Rev. Dr. Sherri Rood

sherrirood@unyumc.org


Administrative Assistant

Patti Gridley

mountainviewdistrict@unyumc.org


District Associate

Pastor Mike Kelly

mikekelly@unyumc.org