Read a letter from Pastor Sarah about SEJ
Did you know that Pastor Sarah is a delegate to the Southeastern Jurisdictional Conference?
Hi beloveds,
As you may know I am a delegate to our United Methodist Southeastern Jurisdictional Conference which will take place at Lake Junaluska, NC on November 1-4, 2022. One dimension of our work is the discernment of episcopal leadership (aka bishops) for the Southeastern Jurisdictional Conference (SEJ).
Wait, what's the SEJ? Well, the green map above shows the Annual Conferences that together make up the SEJ. Inclusion Community is a part of the Western North Carolina Conference.
What's a delegate? I am one of 20 clergy delegates that were elected at the 2019 WNC Annual Conference to represent the Western NC Conference at SEJ. There are also 20 lay delegates. Here's the full list.
What's the role of a bishop? A bishop is an ordained elder set apart for a ministry of servant leadership, general oversight, and supervision. You can read more here.
I write to invite you to join me in lifting in prayer or holding space for all of the episcopal nominees, our current bishops, and our delegation as we discern. We will need to discern and elect 3 new bishops during our time at Lake Junaluska. You can read and learn about the episcopal nominees here: https://www.sejumc.org/episcopal-nominees As you'll see they've shared written a bio, shared answers to theological questions, shared videos and websites for you to learn more about them. (They've put a great deal of effort into them!)
As we can only imagine, this process is a journey unto itself. This journey asks for an enormous amount of physical-emotional-mental-spiritual energy of our episcopal nominees. They have discerned God's call within themselves and in community. If elected they would be elected for life! They will be assigned a particular area to serve for a four-year term. New bishops are not typically initially assigned to the area they have served as a pastor. You can read more here about the actual process.
I invite you to join me in praying for them by name, and if you'd like to take it a step further, below are the times that they will be participating in a Q&A with delegates, such as myself, from across the whole southeast. (Sorry, some have already passed.) These Q&A are not open to the public, but only to the Jurisdictional Delegates to aid in their discernment. However, I invite you to consider taking a moment to light a candle or say a prayer for them at that time:
Kenneth Nelson (SC) - Saturday, September 17 - 9:00am ET
Tom Berlin (VA) - Tuesday, September 20 at 7:30pm ET
Byron Thomas (NGA) - Thursday, September 29 at 7:30pm ET
Iosmar Alvarez (KY) - Monday, October 3 at 7:00pm ET
**Amy Coles (WNC) - Tuesday, October 4 at 7:00pm ET. (**Our Conference's Nominee!)
Sharon Austin (FL) - Thursday, October 6 at 7:00pm ET
Edie Gleaves (NC) - Tuesday, October 11 at 6:30pm ET
Connie Shelton (SEJ Clergywomen & MS) - Monday, October 17 at 12:30pm ET
Sharon Bowers (HOL BMCR) - Thursday, October 20 at 7:00pm ET
Here is the list of our current bishops.
Curious to know more about the Jurisdictional Conference?
Here is a link to more information about the SEJ Jurisdictional Conference.
Please also hold me, my fellow delegates, and our whole connection in your prayers through this critical season of discernment and transition.
I'm more than happy to talk about this process with you or answer any questions you may have. I want you all to be well informed. Please do not hesitate to reach out!
Thanks for reading and praying along with me during this season. I appreciate you!
Deep peace be with you,
Pastor Sarah
sbelles@inclusioncommunity.org