SPECIAL SESSION of the Oklahoma Annual Conference

Dr. Matthew Mitchell Senior Minister

Dear Church of the Servant,

Our Church will host a special one-day meeting of the Oklahoma Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church on Saturday, April 22. Conference staff, clergy, and laity from across the State of Oklahoma will gather at our church that day to conduct the business of the Annual Conference. This meeting will be a time for those United Methodist Churches who have held a congregational vote with 66.7% of the cast votes “Yes” to disaffiliate. The meeting of the annual conference will be the final step for those congregations who wish to disaffiliate from The United Methodist Church and gain final approval from the Annual Conference. Please be in prayer for the Annual Conference and all those who will attend.

Volunteer Opportunities

There will be multiple volunteer opportunities on April 22. If you would like to volunteer, please contact the church office. Shift One: 7:45-10:45 a.m.; Shift Two: 10:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m., and Shift Three: 2:30-5:00 p.m. Those volunteering for Shift Three will being moving tables and chairs to prepare the campus for Sunday worship. I hope to have twelve volunteers for each shift. The 13.2 Coffee Shop and Earthglow Gift Shop will be open during the conference.

Please note, only those members of Church of the Servant who were duly elected at last fall’s Charge Conference as

Saturday, April 22, 2023 representatives to Annual Conference will have a vote at this special called meeting. These lay persons are:

Dot Cruzin, Beth and Carl Short

In closing, and to help all of us better understand what the day will entail, I have included communication from the resident Bishop of the Oklahoma Annual Conference, Bishop Jimmy Nunn, on the next page (pg 3). Of course, should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to me.

Sincerely,

Greetings in the name of Christ.

In accordance with ¶603.5 of the 2016 Book of Discipline and with the support of the District Superintendents, I hereby call a Special Session of the Oklahoma Annual Conference to be held on Saturday, April 22, 2023, 10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m., at Church of the Servant (COS) in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. This call replaces the call made in November 2022.

The purpose of the called session is as follows:

1. To worship together as an Annual Conference,

2. To act on enabling motions of the Annual Conference,

3. To act on the disaffiliation report from the Conference Board of Trustees on recommendations for disaffiliation.

In consultation with Cabinet and conference leadership, I made this decision in light of the best interest of the conference. Many members of the Annual Conference have raised concerns about the ability to debate, be recognized and vote in a normal manner.

A pre-conference report will be published by April 1, 2023 on the conference website as well as emailed to all members of the conference. This report could change before the conference session. If it does, the updated report will be sent in advance of the conference.

Grace and peace, Bishop Jimmy Nunn