Wesley UMC - Organization of the UMC

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- Rev. Jay Jones
- Eileen Chapman
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- Kelly J. Cope
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- Diane E. Van Horn
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- Mondo Bowman
- Marcia Bauman
- Ann Beagle
- Sandy Cooper

Organization of
the United Methodist Church

Introduction
The organization of each unit in the church is carefully spelled out in the Book of Discipline. All members are at least acquainted with the local church. It includes those who have professed their belief in Christ, have been baptized, and have taken the vows of membership. The local church is the context for hearing the Word of God and for receiving the Sacraments. It reaches out in the name of Christ to bring persons into its fellowship, to nurture the members in their faith, and to witness to and serve the community, both local and global. Groups of local churches work together as a district and are supervised by a clergy superintendent. These districts are part of an annual conference, the basic unit of the denomination. Central Conferences are those regional units outside the United States. Conferences in the United States are grouped into five geographic jurisdictions.

Checks and balances are built into all aspects of church life. The organization of the denomination resembles that of the U.S. government. The General Conference is the top legislative body; the nine-member Judicial Council is the "supreme court"; and the Council of Bishops is similar to the executive branch. .

Churchwide agencies are primarily accountable to the General Conference. Their staff are governed by boards of directors who are lay and clergy persons. .

Local Churches
A local church is a community of true believers under the Lordship of Christ. It is the redemptive fellowship in which the Word of God is preached by persons divinely called and the sacraments are duly administered according to Christ's own appointment. Under the discipline of the Holy Spirit, the church exists for the maintenance of worship, the edification of believers, and the redemption of the world.

Districts
Districts are definite geographical and administrative subdivisions of an Annual Conference. The number of districts is determined by the Annual Conference. The boundaries of the districts is determined by the bishop after consultation with the district superintendents. A district consists of all the pastoral charges within its boundaries and is under the supervision of a district superintendent.

Annual Conferences
The Annual Conference is the basic organizational body in The United Methodist Church. An Annual Conference includes all United Methodist churches in a geographically defined area. Lay and clergy members of the Annual Conference have the right to vote on all constitutional amendments and delegates to General and Jurisdictional Conferences. Members establish the budget for the Annual Conference and vote on all mater related to the organizational life of its agencies and institutions. The Annual Conference members are responsible for the program and administration of the work of the Annual Conference and its local churches. Only clergy members vote on all matters relating to clergy membership and ordination. The membership of the Annual Conference consists of an equal number of lay and clergy members, and at least one lay person from each pastoral charge is to be a member.

Jurisdictions
Jurisdictions are large regional divisions of The United Methodist Church within the United States and composed of the Annual Conferences within their boundaries. These boundaries are determined by the Constitution. The five jurisdictions are: Western, South Central, North Central, Southeastern, Northeastern.

General Conferences
The Central Conferences are the organizational structures established for the work of The United Methodist Church in countries other than the United States of America. The number and boundaries of the Central Conferences are determined by the General Conference. Each Central Conference oversees the work of Annual Conferences, Provisional Annual Conferences, and Mission Conferences within its boundaries. Central Conferences function in much the same way as the Jurisdictional Conferences function in the United States. .

General Conference
The General Conference is the highest legislative body in the denomination. The Constitution states: "The General Conference shall have full legislative power over all mater distinctively connectional." It meets in April or May once every four years. A General Conference may vote to have an adjourned session, if it is deemed necessary. Bishops preside at the sessions of the General Conference but do not have the privilege of voice or vote in its deliberations. The General Conference is composed of an equal number of lay and clergy delegates elected by their respective Annual Conferences. The clergy and lay delegates debate and vote as one body. The primary responsibility of the General Conference is to enact legislation that:
establishes the conditions for membership;

defines the powers and duties of the clergy;

defines the powers and duties of the Conferences;

establishes the powers and duties of the bishops;

provides for a judicial system within the church;

establishes the budge for the denomination;

and establishes legislation governing the work of the local church and general agencies.

Bishops and Episcopal Areas
A bishop is an elder (ordained minister) who has been elected to the office of bishop by the lay and clergy delegates of a Jurisdictional or Central Conference. A United Methodist bishop is consecrated for the office of bishop by other United Methodist bishops. A bishop serves as a general superintendent of the denomination. As such, individually and collectively bishops give general oversight to the temporal and spiritual interests of the entire denomination. It is a responsibility of the bishops to see that the rules, regulations, and responsibilities developed by the General Conference are understood and effectively carried out. The Greek word for bishop is episcopos, which is the root word for episcopal. .

An episcopal area is the Annual Conference or Conferences to which a bishop is assigned by the Jurisdictional Conference. The bishop lives within the bounds of the episcopal area and presides over the work of the one or more Annual Conferences in the area. The bishop is responsible for the churches in the episcopal area, including the appointment of pastors.

Judicial Council
The Judicial Council is the highest judicial body or "court" of The United Methodist Church. Its nine members are elected by the General Conference. The Judicial Council determines the constitutionality of acts or proposed acts of the General, Jurisdictional, Central, and Annual Conferences. It acts on these either on appeal of lower rulings or through requests for declaratory decisions. It also rules on whether acts of other official bodies of the denomination conform to The Book of Discipline. This is done in accordance with procedures established in The Book of Discipline.

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