World Conference 2007. Photo by John Weese

World Church Defines New Team Leaders Team

What is the “World Church Team Leaders Team”? At World Conference, a group of committees report. World Conferences passed resolutions to create some of these committees, and the Presidency appointed others. The Presidency is calling the ten teams and committees that report to Conference “World Church teams.” Here they are, with their team leaders:

• Community of Christ Diversity (Nanette Chun-Ming Ward and Derrick Williams)
• Conference Organization and Procedures (John Wight)
• Earth Stewardship (Ed Merz)
• Ecumenical and Interfaith Relations (Gail Mengel)
• Homosexuality and the Church (Kathy Robinson)
• Human Rights (Terry Read)
• Human Sexuality (Matt Naylor)
• Theology Formation (Peter Judd)
• World Church Peace and Justice (Jenny Robinson)
• World Hunger/Tangible Love (Wallace Smith)

The leaders of these teams gather once every six months. In a day-long meeting, they talk about how their work aligns with the church’s direction, what each team is doing, how they can network with one another, and how they fit into and influence what is going on at International Headquarters.

The World Church has not coordinated the work of these teams between Conferences in this way before. Each team has a charter that outlines the team’s work.

The teams are working together because their subjects overlap. Can we separate human rights from earth stewardship entirely? Can we draw the line between those concepts and peace and justice? Each team benefits from the perspectives and insights of the other teams as they take on difficult questions facing the church today.

What do these teams do? They consider referrals from the 2007 World Conference, evaluate proposals from other members of leadership, and plan events. They promote education and dialogue, update Web pages, draft statements for wider consideration, and communicate with the church about their subjects. They maintain relationships with other organizations, and share the good news. Out of this work, they pass their meeting records to the Presidency, make recommendations to the Presidency, write articles for the Herald, plan events, and report to the World Conference.

They had their second meeting on April 11, 2008, at the Temple in Independence, Missouri. They updated each other on their work and talked about how they can work together. Then the team leaders heard about what Temple Ministries is doing, and they talked together about how they can be a part of that effort. They discussed upcoming peace initiatives, reacted to draft documents about church identity, and considered the role of statements in the life of the church.

When the meeting adjourned, some members attended training on teleconferencing, responding to the ever-increasing need to communicate through technology with teams whose members can be half the world away.

—Andrew Shields reporting
World Church secretary
June 2008 Herald, p. 32.