Eric A. Hage, spouse of retired clergy member Deacon Denise Hage with the Northern Illinois Conference, died Friday, August 26, 2022, at age 70. During Denise's ministry, she served Lombard: First, Downers Grove: First as a Christian Education consultant, and Westmont Junior High School.
Read MoreA group of Early Response Team (ERT) members from First United Methodist Church in Morris spent five days in Betsy Layne, Ky., to help with the massive flooding that occurred in early August. Midwest Mission Distribution Center also continues to send disaster relief supplies.
Read MoreThe Council of Bishops expresses gratitude for the Judicial Council’s ruling that clarified that Paragraph 2548.2 of The Book of Discipline is not a process of church disaffiliation from The United Methodist Church but is rather a supplementary procedure for the purpose of deeding church property as permitted by other paragraphs of the Discipline in limited situations.
Read MoreYou are phenomenal! This year we challenged all church leaders to ramp up their Safe Sanctuaries training and increase the number of volunteers who have gone through this valuable course. We started the year with a report of 1,362 trained volunteers, and as I write this article, eight months into the year, we have gained 800 more trained volunteers raising the number to 2,162 leaders working with children, youth and vulnerable adults.
Read MoreChildren and youth in Chicago’s Chatham neighborhood on the city's South Side will soon get additional educational support to give them a head start thanks to a new Freedom School opening at St. Mark United Methodist Church. On Sunday, August 14, St. Mark UMC announced the church received a $350,000 renewable yearly grant for three years from the Illinois State Board of Education to start a Freedom School as a continued effort to provide social and economic equity through unique learning opportunities.
Read MoreOne pastor prayed for an answer to her church's large deficit. After attending Annual Conference and hearing from the Conference Committee on Finance and Administration, she came up with a challenge for her congregation and it started with her.
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