THE LIFE TENURE MISS CONCEPTION OF CENTRAL CONFERENCE BISHOPS
I decided to put together this piece of information, to help my colleagues and friends in UMC Nigeria at time of electing a new bishop for the Nigeria Episcopal Area. It can be
I decided to put together this piece of information, to help my colleagues and friends in UMC Nigeria at time of electing a new bishop for the Nigeria Episcopal Area. It can be
recall that one of the remote causes of the 2004 conflict in UMC Nigeria was the misconception of the “Life tenure of the bishop.” As many interpreted it to mean “the bishop will remain in office until his death.” Misconception- believe it or not has caused a great lost in UMC Nigeria, a lost that will cause us many years to recover. As we are making arrangement to elect another bishop, it will be good if we understand the basic tips on bishop’s election.
WHO IS A BISHOP
In the UMC terminology, a bishop is an elder who is elected to provide a “spiritual leadership” to the Church. He or she preside over Annual and Central Conferences (regional areas of the church), play an important leadership role in helping to set the direction of the church and its mission throughout the world (BOD 49. 2008, URL: http://www.umccouncilofbishops.org/). This implies that who so ever is to be elected for this office must be spiritually disciplined in the Word of God, must have proven leadership ability, and must be ready to be servant to God and humanity.
NOMINATION OF A BISHOP
An annual conference, in the session immediately prior to the next regular session of jurisdiction or central conference, is given the power to nominate one or more people to be elected as bishop at the session of jurisdiction or central conference. These nominees can come from among all active clergy of the said annual conference, and information about them must be sent to all delegates in the jurisdictional or central conferences (BOD 405.1, 2008).
It is required in UMC that annual conference in nominating candidates for bishop, shall give due consideration to the inclusiveness of The United Methodist Church with respect to gender, race, and national origin (meaning all active clergy in good stand are eligible to be nominated provide they met the provision in BOD 401, 2008 (BOD 405. 2a, 2008).
Annual conference is authorized to fix the percentage of votes necessary for nomination, but it must not be less than 60 percent of the total vote (BOD 405. 2b, 2008).
ELECTION OF A BISHOP
Election of a bishop is the same as the nomination; only difference is bishops are elected in jurisdictional or central conferences.
Bishops are elected by the jurisdictional conferences in the United States and by the central conferences outside of the United States. “Any clergy member of an annual conference is eligible to be elected a bishop. Nominations or endorsements of individuals are common, but not necessary for election....The number of votes needed to elect a bishop is determined by each jurisdictional or central conference but the Book of Discipline recommends that at least 60 percent of those present and voting be required to elect. Bishops are consecrated at the jurisdictional or central conference session which they were elected” (BOD 405. 2c, 2008).
TENURE OF A BISHOP
I want to start this paragraph by saying that, one of the biggest problems of The United Methodist Church in Nigeria (UMCN) is the tenure of a bishop.
In Central Conferences, bishops are elected for a specific term. If not reelected at the end of the term, the bishop returns to the pastorate and is no longer considered a bishop. Bishops who retire while serving their term are considered bishops for life. In the Africa Central Conference, bishops who are reelected for a second term then become bishops for life. The phrase “bishop for life” means; when they retired after serving all their elected terms, they become part of the council of bishop and would be addressed retired bishop for life.
By the decision of the West Africa Central Conference (WACC 2008), central conference bishops can serve up to a second term (a term is a period of 4 years known as quadrennial), after their second term, they can be elected for a term again, after which they cannot continue as bishop, but can retire and be bishop for life (all bishop are required to retire when they are 68) BOD 50, 2008.
RECOMMENDATION
I felt obliged as your brother in diaspora to bring forth this recommendation. Several years of working as a pastor in Nigeria has taught me that we can do better in the future despite the predicament that has befallen our Church in the previous years. The future of our Church is bright only if we have a leader that is spiritually discipline and has a positive vision of the future. We may have this type of leader if this election is conducted under the following conditions:
- Conducted beyond tribalism and sectionalism.
- Conducted looking at one’s spiritual and physical achievements in life of the church.
- 50% look at academic advancement is a good advantage.
- 10% look at number of years in the church because there are a lot of people who have being in this church for decades, yet they haven’t contributed anything meaningful in life of the church.
- Conducted regardless of gender.
- No any recommendation from cabinet or executive, delegates should bring forth names from the bar of the annual conference and those who have 60 percent of the total vote cast should be the nominees.
- We should understand that what divide us is less significant compared to what unite us.
We at Wesley Theological Seminary are seriously praying for you. Go forth in faith, may the peace of the Lord be with you (1 Tim 3:2; Titus 1:6), which spirit fill nomination and subsequent election.
REFERENCES
The BOOK of DISCIPLINE of the United Methodist Church 2008
URL:http://www.umc.org/
URL:http://www.umccouncilofbishops.org/
Yours in God’s service
Ande Emmanuel
WHO IS A BISHOP
In the UMC terminology, a bishop is an elder who is elected to provide a “spiritual leadership” to the Church. He or she preside over Annual and Central Conferences (regional areas of the church), play an important leadership role in helping to set the direction of the church and its mission throughout the world (BOD 49. 2008, URL: http://www.umccouncilofbishops.org/). This implies that who so ever is to be elected for this office must be spiritually disciplined in the Word of God, must have proven leadership ability, and must be ready to be servant to God and humanity.
NOMINATION OF A BISHOP
An annual conference, in the session immediately prior to the next regular session of jurisdiction or central conference, is given the power to nominate one or more people to be elected as bishop at the session of jurisdiction or central conference. These nominees can come from among all active clergy of the said annual conference, and information about them must be sent to all delegates in the jurisdictional or central conferences (BOD 405.1, 2008).
It is required in UMC that annual conference in nominating candidates for bishop, shall give due consideration to the inclusiveness of The United Methodist Church with respect to gender, race, and national origin (meaning all active clergy in good stand are eligible to be nominated provide they met the provision in BOD 401, 2008 (BOD 405. 2a, 2008).
Annual conference is authorized to fix the percentage of votes necessary for nomination, but it must not be less than 60 percent of the total vote (BOD 405. 2b, 2008).
ELECTION OF A BISHOP
Election of a bishop is the same as the nomination; only difference is bishops are elected in jurisdictional or central conferences.
Bishops are elected by the jurisdictional conferences in the United States and by the central conferences outside of the United States. “Any clergy member of an annual conference is eligible to be elected a bishop. Nominations or endorsements of individuals are common, but not necessary for election....The number of votes needed to elect a bishop is determined by each jurisdictional or central conference but the Book of Discipline recommends that at least 60 percent of those present and voting be required to elect. Bishops are consecrated at the jurisdictional or central conference session which they were elected” (BOD 405. 2c, 2008).
TENURE OF A BISHOP
I want to start this paragraph by saying that, one of the biggest problems of The United Methodist Church in Nigeria (UMCN) is the tenure of a bishop.
In Central Conferences, bishops are elected for a specific term. If not reelected at the end of the term, the bishop returns to the pastorate and is no longer considered a bishop. Bishops who retire while serving their term are considered bishops for life. In the Africa Central Conference, bishops who are reelected for a second term then become bishops for life. The phrase “bishop for life” means; when they retired after serving all their elected terms, they become part of the council of bishop and would be addressed retired bishop for life.
By the decision of the West Africa Central Conference (WACC 2008), central conference bishops can serve up to a second term (a term is a period of 4 years known as quadrennial), after their second term, they can be elected for a term again, after which they cannot continue as bishop, but can retire and be bishop for life (all bishop are required to retire when they are 68) BOD 50, 2008.
RECOMMENDATION
I felt obliged as your brother in diaspora to bring forth this recommendation. Several years of working as a pastor in Nigeria has taught me that we can do better in the future despite the predicament that has befallen our Church in the previous years. The future of our Church is bright only if we have a leader that is spiritually discipline and has a positive vision of the future. We may have this type of leader if this election is conducted under the following conditions:
- Conducted beyond tribalism and sectionalism.
- Conducted looking at one’s spiritual and physical achievements in life of the church.
- 50% look at academic advancement is a good advantage.
- 10% look at number of years in the church because there are a lot of people who have being in this church for decades, yet they haven’t contributed anything meaningful in life of the church.
- Conducted regardless of gender.
- No any recommendation from cabinet or executive, delegates should bring forth names from the bar of the annual conference and those who have 60 percent of the total vote cast should be the nominees.
- We should understand that what divide us is less significant compared to what unite us.
We at Wesley Theological Seminary are seriously praying for you. Go forth in faith, may the peace of the Lord be with you (1 Tim 3:2; Titus 1:6), which spirit fill nomination and subsequent election.
REFERENCES
The BOOK of DISCIPLINE of the United Methodist Church 2008
URL:http://www.umc.org/
URL:http://www.umccouncilofbishops.org/
Yours in God’s service
Ande Emmanuel
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