S.C. bishop calls Oct. 18 special session on Jeremiah Team…

By Jessica Brodie

GREENVILLE—South Carolina United Methodists will see a virtual called special session of Annual Conference Oct. 18 at 9 a.m. to review recommendations from the four Jeremiah Teams.

Created by Bishop Leonard Fairley in November, the four Jeremiah Teams are tasked to assess and then transform how the conference is structured, how it operates and how it aligns with its stated priorities.

What are the UMCSC’s Jeremiah Teams?

The four teams are Missional Priorities, Strategy for the Black Church and Ethnic Ministries, District Alignment and Conference Staff Alignment.

The teams arose out of a desire for the conference to not only survive after a season of church separations and division but to thrive and do God’s work in a better way.

“We have learned through this difficult season that the next faithful steps we are called to make will not be easy, but they will be full of God’s great possibility,” Fairley said when the teams were created, noting they will position South Carolina United Methodists to live more meaningfully, nimbly, connectionally and practically.

“The season we are currently living in calls for and affords us a unique opportunity for resetting, renewing a resilient course as we journey toward the future God has promised,” Fairley said.

The Jeremiah Teams’ exact recommendations are not yet known, but at October’s special session, the body will be voting on whatever recommendations the teams bring forward, including possibly reducing the number of districts in South Carolina.

What do the teams do?

The Missional Priorities team, led by the Rev. Millie Nelson Smith, is evaluating the effectiveness of all current ministries and missions to help determine what things are essential for the conference to live into its stated priorities, including identifying a stop-do list to free the conference to reach new people in new places and in new ways.

The Black Church & Ethnic Ministries Strategy Jeremiah Team, led by the Rev. James Friday, is working to create and resource an effective conference strategy for strengthening the Black church and other ethnic ministries, focusing on new things God is calling for in these areas.

The District Alignment Jeremiah Team, led by the Rev. Cathy Mitchell, is reviewing district lines to recommend a reduction in the number of districts to create a more nimble, cost-effective structure that will allow district superintendents to spend more time as missional strategists with the people in their communities.

The Conference Staff Alignment Jeremiah Team, led by Bishop Fairley, is examining the best ways to align conference staff with missional priorities and resources, to compensate staff properly for their work and leadership and to create space for staff to be creative and imaginative in their work.

Anyone who has questions about the Jeremiah Teams is asked to email [email protected], and their information will be shared with the appropriate team.