wfn.org | Competition under way for General Conference Laity Address

[NewsDesk <NewsDesk@UMCOM.UMC.ORG>]

Feb. 9, 1999	Contact: Linda Green*(615)742-5470*Nashville, Tenn.
10-71B{077}

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (UMNS) - Lay leaders from the United Methodist Church's
central conferences are eligible to participate for the first time in the
competition to deliver the laity address to the denomination's top
legislative body. 

Annual conference lay leaders from around the world are invited to compete
for the opportunity to give the state of the laity address at the United
Methodist General Conference, May 2-12, 2000, in Cleveland. Lay leaders,
rather than the laity at large, are encouraged to submit manuscripts, which
will be judged on merit and for faithfulness to the theme "Partners In
Ministry: Making Disciples of Jesus Christ." 

The competition has been expanded to include lay leaders from the central
conferences because "all around us there is an increased emphasis on the
globalization of the church," said Tim Moss,  director, development of lay
leadership for the United Methodist Board of Discipleship. "We are realizing
that this is an international church, and we are moving in directions that
are inclusive of people in other countries."

The first laity address was presented to the 1980 General Conference by
three women and three men to represent the diversity of the denomination. A
competition has been held every four years since then for a lay person to
make the speech. The competition for the 1996 General Conference address was
restricted by the National Association of Annual Conference Lay Leaders to
people who were annual conference lay leaders.  

The restriction was put in place because the association wanted a message to
come from a member of its body, just as the episcopal address comes from the
Council of Bishops, said 
James Lane, North Arkansas Annual Conference lay leader, who delivered the
last address.

"The goal was to focus on the message and not the messenger," he said, in a
paper on the history of the General Conference Laity Address.

Manuscripts are being solicited from United Methodist lay leaders until Oct.
1 by the denomination's National Association of Annual Conference Lay
Leaders, and entries written in languages other than English will be
accepted. The association is an affiliate group of the Board of Discipleship
and the entity that conducts the quadrennial search for a laity address. 

Since entries will be judged "in the blind," the author's name must not
appear anywhere on the manuscript, said Darlene Amon, association president.
People submitting entries must place their name and telephone number on a
separate sheet of paper and include it in the envelope in which they send
the manuscript, she said.

Finalists, selected by a screening committee and an oversight committee,
will give their speeches during the annual meeting of the lay leaders'
association Feb. 18-20, 2000, in Portland, Ore. The speech selected by a
panel of judges will be presented by the author or a designee at the 2000
General Conference.

Complete manuscripts should be typed, double-spaced, and submitted to
Timothy E. Moss, United Methodist Board of Discipleship, P.O. Box 840,
Nashville, TN  37202-0840.

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