Dialogue sessions slated to address issues

Church leaders to pick
from 25 topics during
annual conference

Besides voting on action items next month in Corpus Christi, Southwest Texas leaders are to discuss issues facing the church.
The Council on Ministries has arranged dialogue sessions to run from 3:15 to 6 p.m. June 8 during the Southwest Texas Conference Annual Conference session.
The 25 dialogue sessions are scheduled in two 75-minute blocks, said Carol Loeb, Council on Ministries chair. Ten sessions are offered once. Twelve are repeated.
Depending on their interests, conference participants could attend more than one session, Loeb noted.
Three dialogue sessions—on human sexuality, community-based antidrug efforts and missions—are scheduled to run the full two hours and 45 minutes, Loeb noted.
The scheduling arrangement and large number of options are a direct result of feedback from seven dialogue sessions at the 2005 annual conference, Loeb said.
People liked the dialogue idea, she said. But they wanted more focused topics and more time for discussion.
“We have heard you,” Loeb emphasized.
The 2006 dialogue sessions, Loeb said, are intended to enhance the annual conference theme: “Offering Christ to All: Becoming a Better Witness.”
“Our objective in this year’s dialogue sessions is to enable each of us to witness to the experience, the information and God’s presence,” she said. “As we absorb these three objectives in each of the dialogue sessions, it is our fondest hope that we may truly become better witnesses in offering Christ to all.”
Nineteen dialogue sessions deal with topics offered by agencies related to the Council on Ministries, Loeb said. Six were suggested on 2005 feedback sheets:
> Human Sexuality and the Witness of the Church.
> Bioethics at the Beginning of Life.
> Medical Ethics—Palliative Medical Care.
> Ministry with Poor and Mar-ginalized People.
> Letting Justice Roll Down.
> What Does Faith Have to Do with the Environment?
The Council on Ministries has recruited subject matter experts to participate in those six sessions, Loeb said.
The human sexuality session is to include a panel moderated by the Rev. Robert Huie, a former pastoral counselor and husband of Bishop Janice Huie of Houston. Panel members are:
> Gerald DeSobe, executive director of the Krist Samaritan Center, Houston. He is to cover “Psychological Perspectives.”
> The Rev. James Bankston, senior pastor of St. Paul’s UMC, Houston. He is to discuss “A senior pastor’s perspective.”
> The Rev. Robin Lovin, professor of ethics at Southern Methodist University and former dean of Perkins School of Theology. He is to discuss “Ethical and Theological Perspectives on Homosexuality and the Witness of the Church.”
> The Rev. Gina Campbell, Center for Family Process, Chevy Chase, Md. She is to speak on “Family Values, Sexuality and the Witness of the Church.”
The Rev. Amy Laura Hall, assistant professor at Duke University Divinity School, is leading the session on bioethics. Hall is an internationally known writer and lecturer on bioethics. Her work has appeared in Christianity Today, Christian Century, Books and Culture, and many scholarly journals.
Two members of Sierra Vista UMC, San Angelo, are leading the session on medical ethics. Daniel Stultz is chief executive officer of Shannon Health System in San Angelo and past chair of the Texas Hospital Association. Ben Woodward is a state district judge in San Angelo.
The Rev. Karen Boehk, First UMC, Smithville, is moderating a panel on “Letting Justice Roll Down.” The group is to discuss how to fight illegal drugs in a community. Participants are to include representatives of the Austin District Amos Commission and people from the “Up with Hope, Down with Dope” project.
The Rev. Kristina Carter, pastor of The Rock UMC, Cedar Park, and her husband, Bill, are to lead the session on environmental issues and the church. He has managed the Texas Master Composter program, written A Green Guide to Yard Care, and worked on the Environmental Protection Agency’s Regional Composting Program for North Texas. She has a doctorate in applied and environmental chemistry and has worked on environmental cleanup projects.