UPDATED 5 p.m. (CDT) with Southeastern Jurisdiction informattion
UPDATED 1:30 p.m. (CDT) May 29, 2020 with Western Jurisdiction information
UPDATED 1 p.m. (CDT) May 28, 2020 with South Central Jurisdiction information.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Council of Bishops (COB) has announced new dates for the 2020 Jurisdictional Conferences in the United States which have been postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Jurisdictional Conferences in the United States will be held November 10-12, 2021. The days prior to and after can be used at the discretion of each Jurisdictional Conference.
In the call letter to Jurisdictional Conferences secretaries and heads of delegations, COB President Bishop Cynthia Fierro Harvey noted that the dates chosen by the bishops intentionally followed the postponed 2020 General Conference, which will now take place August 29 - September 7, 2021, at the Minneapolis Convention Center in Minneapolis, Minn.
The bishops have the authority to set dates for the Jurisdictional Conferences as per Division Two - Section II - Article IV of The Constitution of The United Methodist Church (¶26 of The Book of Discipline 2016).
As per ¶30 of The Book of Discipline, Central Conferences outside the United States will be held within a year following the postponed 2020 General Conference that will now be held in 2021.
“The Council of Bishops encourages the entire United Methodist Church to continue in deep, unceasing prayer for the Holy Spirit to guide us through these unprecedented times of challenges brought by the COVID-19 pandemic. God, who has been with us on this journey, will see us through and bring us together in praise and worship,” the call letter stated.
According to Bishop Peggy A. Johnson, college president, the Northeastern bishops developed its plan in consultation and dialogue with the NEJ Committee on Episcopacy. The Council of Bishops have approved the plan.
The assignments for the jurisdiction are:
- Greater New Jersey - Bishop John Schol
- Harrisburg - Bishop Jeremiah Park (postponing retirement)
- New England - Bishop Sudarshana Devadhar (postponing retirement)
- New York - Bishop Thomas Bickerton
- Philadelphia Area - Bishop Peggy Johnson (continuing beyond 12 years)
- Pittsburgh - Bishop Cynthia Moore-Koikoi
- Upper New York - Bishop Mark Webb
- Washington Area - Bishop LaTrelle Easterling
- West Virginia - Bishop Sandra Steiner Ball
The current NEJ Committee on Episcopacy will continue to work with the College of Bishops to support the episcopal leaders and the conferences they serve, Bishop Johnson's announcement states.
Phase One of the North Central Jurisdiction has been approved by the Council of Bishops, according to the jurisdiction website.
Phase One – Episcopal Oversight for the remainder of 2020:
• Bishop Sally Dyck, Northern Illinois Conference, will change her retirement date to make it effective January 1, 2021. She will serve as bishop of the Northern Illinois Conference through 2020. Bishop Dyck’s retirement will be a vocational retirement (¶408.2b) as she will become the Ecumenical Officer of the Council of Bishops.
• Bishop Bruce Ough, Dakotas-Minnesota Area, will change his retirement date to make it effective January 1, 2021. He will serve as bishop of the Dakotas/Minnesota Area through 2020. Bishop Ough’s retirement will be a vocational retirement (¶408.2b) as he will become the Executive Secretary of the Council of Bishops.
North Central bishops plan to submit Phase Two Episcopal Oversight for 2021 to the Council of Bishops for a vote by June 30, with a public announcement to follow. The second phase will be drawn up in consultation with the jurisdictional Committee on the Episcopacy and area Committees on the Episcopacy on both a short-term plan (2021), as well as a mid-term plan for the remainder of the quadrennium, and a longer-term plan, post-2024.
All South Central Jurisdiction bishops will remain in their current assignments, according to a letter from Bishop Bob Farr of Missouri, president of the college of bishops. Three bishops who were scheduled to retire this year will extend their active service until November 2021 when jurisdictional conference is held. They are:
The following SCJ bishops who plan to retire will continue to serve in their current episcopal area until the postponed SCJ Conference in November 2021:
- Bishop Earl Bledsoe – New Mexico & Northwest Texas Conferences
- Bishop Mike McKee – North Texas Conference
- Bishop Mike Lowry – Central Texas Conference
The Western Jurisdiction announced May 29 that retiring Bishops Bob Hoshibata (Desert Southwest Conference) and Grant Hagiya (California-Pacific) would extend their service, although no dates were given. Like other jurisdictions, it is presumed that the remaining Western Jurisdiction bishops would remain in their current assignments. They are
- Bishop Elaine J.W. Stanovsky – Oregon-Idaho, Pacific Northwest and Alaska conferences
- Bishop Minerva G. Carcano – California-Nevada Conference
- Bishop Karen Oliveto – Mountain Sky Conference
The South Georgia Conference posted this information as of May 30:
"Bishop R. Lawson Bryan, who was set to retire in September, will continue to serve as the episcopal leader of the South Georgia Conference through 2021. This announcement comes from The Council of Bishops.
"In an unprecedented move, The Council of Bishops has extended the retirement of five bishops until the postponed Southeastern Jurisdictional Conference in November 2021. The five bishops extending their service are Bishop Bryan; Bishop Paul L. Leeland, episcopal leader of the Western North Carolina Conference; Bishop James Swanson, resident bishop of the Mississippi Conference; Bishop Mary Virginia Taylor, episcopal leader of the Holston Area; and Bishop Hope Morgan Ward, resident bishop of the North Carolina Conference, Raleigh Area."
All bishops will remain in their current assignments.