The 176th Troy Annual Conference Session
Music and evangelism will be celebrated at the 176th Troy Annual Conference of The United Methodist Church, to be held
June 4 through 7
in
Bishop Susan W Hassinger has invited Dr. Bryan Stone, the E. Stanley Jones Professor' of Evangelism at Boston University School of Theology, to be the keynote speaker this year.
Stone, whose recent book Evangelism after Christendom: The Theology and Practice of Christian Witness (Brazos Press, 2007) is about
contemporary evangelism, teaches students how to engage in new church starts as well as church redevelopment, Bishop Hassinger said.
The Rev. Amelita
Grace G.
Cajiuat, a probationary elder in
the Wisconsin Annual Conference and associate pastor of
will be music leader for Conference Session. She recently completed her Master
of Divinity and Master in Sacred Theology at
"Both in that setting, in classroom, and in opportunities for personal conversation, 1 came to deeply appreciate [Grace's] musical skills, her joyful personality,
her searching faith, and her ability to communicate all of that," Bishop Hassinger said.
"I also became aware that she was involved with the effort to set the Social Creed to music.
That effort will be introduced at the upcoming General Conference."
The conference theme, "Spirit Led: We've come this far by faith" in several ways."
The Holy Spirit is always seeking to lead us in reaching out to share the good news of Jesus Christ in ways that stretch us,
and the Book of Acts is evidence of how from the beginning the church reached out in ever widening circles
to begin new faith communities in response to the Spirit-leading."
Stone, the co-director of the Center for Practical Theology and director of The School of Theology's Center for Congregational Research and Development (CCRD),
will address the conference on Thursday and Friday mornings.
Dr. Bryan Stone
Rev. Grace Cajiuat
Conference theme is an affirmation of faith By Holly Nye
The Conference theme, Spirit-Led:
We've Come this Far by Faith, is an expression of thanksgiving for the past and trust in the future.
It acknowledges the leading of the Holy Spirit in our history, and the confidence that God is leading us into a new day.
The title makes reference to the well known Gospel song by Albert Goodson, which begins,
"We've come this far by faith, leaning on the Lord."
The words of this song, with their reminder that God has "never failed (us) yet," are a call to face the future with trust and boldness,
knowing that the Spirit continues to move us forward.
The past-and-future orientation is intentional. As the Sessions team talked about the 2008 annual conference, they were well aware
of the possibility of future changes to conference boundaries. They perceived that it was a time to celebrate who we have been,
and all that God has done among us and through us,-so that we may also be able to give ourselves whole-heartedly to whatever God has for us next.
Portions of the conference program will reflect this tone of celebrating what has been and looking toward what will be.
A Mission Fair on Saturday, in conjunction with the celebration of the 60th anniversary of The Advance for Christ and His Church,
builds on the strong connection to mission in Troy Conference.
The team selected Dr. Bryan Stone as keynote speaker out of a hope that our churches will move into the future with a renewed
commitment to reaching out to our communities and the world. Stone's work in evangelism emphasizes connecting with a 21st Century world
with the good news for this time and place.
Through these events, and in worship experiences that celebrate the energizing presence of the Holy Spirit, we hope that participants
will find both inspiration and information to empower ministries in the local churches.