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BY MELISSA LAUBER
UMCONNECTION STAFF

In the 1500s, Spanish settlers moved into Tampa, which in the language of the Calusa Native American tribe, means "sticks of fire." This spring, from April 24 through May 4, the people of the cross and the flame will descend upon Tampa, Fla. when the General Conference meets to shape the future of The United Methodist Church.

General Conference, made up of 998 delegates from around the world, meets every four years to set the policies and direction of the church. It is the only entity that speaks for The United Methodist Church.

At this 11-day session, which is expected to cost $8.8 million, delegates will act upon 1,120 petitions submitted from individuals and groups throughout the denomination.

Among their many actions, delegates will respond to a Call to Action that includes restructuring general agencies, creating a set-aside bishop to help lead adaptive challenges facing the denomination, and refocusing resources to create more vital local churches. In other actions, they'll consider a report from the Commission to Study the Ministry that includes doing away with guaranteed appointments for clergy; vote on whether to change the denomination's pension plan; adopt a proposed $603 million budget; participate in an act of repentance toward healing relationships with Native Americans; consider the nature of the global church; and establish the church's stance toward a variety of social issues.

At a preconference briefing at the Convention Center in Tampa Jan. 18-21, more than 300 United Methodist delegates and communicators met for a preview of the issues.

The restructuring plan from the Call to Action drew some of the most lively discussion and questions. Addressing more than 40 years of denominational decline, it streamlines the governance of the church's nine of 13 General agencies into a new United Methodist Center for Connectional Mission and Ministry. The center would be governed by a 15-member board of directors, which would be accountable to a 45-member advisory board called the General Council for Strategy and Oversight.

The proposal would reduce agency boards, now governed by more than 600 people, to a group of 60 and would also allow for the redistribution of $60 million toward funding theological education in the Central Conferences, recruiting young clergy and fostering vital congregations, said Jay Brimm, a member of the denomination's Connectional Table from South Carolina.

The proposal does not address general church staff, Brimm said, although initially it is expected there would be few cuts or changes.

While cost savings are not the sole motivator, proponents of the restructuring plan point out that, according to General Council on Finance and Administration, it takes $8 million for people on general boards and agencies to travel to meetings. The new configuration would save between $4 and $6 million in travel costs.

However, opponents of the plan, including representatives from the denomination's ethnic initiatives, expressed concerns that the diversity of leadership within the denomination would be diminished.

In separate actions, general agencies have submitted petitions that decrease the size of their boards and the Methodist Federation for Social Action has proposed an alternative to the restructuring proposal presented by the Connectional Table and Council of Bishops. The MFSA plan addresses the topic of inclusiveness.

"Can a center with a single CEO and 15 people adequately represent the multiple interests of the church," asked MFSA's Tracy Merrick. "Or will it produce a consolidation of power, top-down directives and a rule-based environment?"

At the briefing, perceptions of a consolidation of power also played a role in people's thoughts on the proposed establishment of a "set-aside" bishop without residential responsibilities.

"It is nearly impossible to be president of the Council of Bishops and lead an episcopal area, said Bishop Larry Goodpastor, the council's current president. He assured the delegates that the General Conference will continue to be the only voice that speaks for the entire denomination. However, some of the delegates, like the Rev. Tim McClendon, a Connectional Table member from Texas, questioned whether the new position, along with the elimination of guaranteed appointments, would shift too much power to the bishops.

The proposal to do away with guaranteed appointments comes from the Study of the Ministry Commission.

Guaranteed appointments were introduced in 1956 as a way to protect women who received the right to become ordained at General Conference that year. It also provided protection for African-American pastors when the church was racially integrated in 1968, explained the Rev. Tom Choi of Hawaii, who served on the study commission.

Acknowledging that racism and sexism have not gone away, the commission pointed out that clergy effectiveness must be addressed if the denominational decline is to be stopped. In addition, commission members pointed out, in 2010, there were 784 more pastors than appointments in the denomination.

In addition to this proposal, the Commission is also suggesting eliminating the commissioning step in the ordination process and requiring conferences to have vocational discernment coordinators to create a culture of call, particularly among young adults.

In other actions, General Conference delegates at the preconference briefing heard reports from:

+ The General Board of Pensions and Health Benefits, will be bringing forward two proposals, one of which provides guaranteed benefits for clergy, and another, which would hold costs low for annual conferences. Currently, annual conferences report paying an average of 50 percent of their budgets caring for the health and benefit needs of clergy. Both proposals would provide cost savings of approximately 15 percent.

+ The General Council on Finance and Administration is proposing a $603 million budget, which reflects cuts of 6.6 percent and marks the first time a budget smaller than the one for the previous quadrennium, will be presented.

+ The Committee to Study the Worldwide Nature of the Church is recommending the adoption of a universal Discipline that makes it clear which parts of the Book of Discipline are binding for all United Methodists and which can be adaptable for a variety of Central Conferences and the church in the United States.

Delegates also explored the idea of holy conferencing. During the General Conference session, delegates will participate in three sessions of sacred conversation on the foundation of United Methodist identity and theology, human sexuality and the global church.

This holy conferencing is expected to inform plenary debates on the church's stance on homosexuality, same gender marriage, divestment in the Palestinian territories, abortion, immigration, the environment and the war in Afghanistan.

Copies of all the petitions coming before General Conference are online in the Advance Daily Christian Advocate, which can be found here.

The plenary sessions of General Conference will be streamed live.

In the 50 days leading up to General Conference, churches across the world are being asked to engage in prayer. A resource for these prayers has been created by Upper Room Ministries, along with a General Conference liturgy churches can use on March 11. Visit www.gbod.org.