A local church discovers their past is intertwined with the KKK. How did they handle it? Our guests today share with Ashley on the steps they took to confront this racist history.

GUESTS:

Bishop Sudarshana Devadhar currently serves as the Bishop of the New England Annual Conference of the UMC. He was elected to the episcopacy at the Northeastern Jurisdictional Conference in July 2004. He earned a M.Th. degree from Perkins School of Theology, Southern Methodist University, and an M.Phil. and a Ph.D. from Drew University.

Rev. Megan Stowe is the District Superintendent of the Commonwealth West district in the New England Annual Conference of the UMC which includes churches in Central and Western parts of Massachusetts. Rev. Stowe earned a Master of Divinity at Boston University School of Theology and has served as ordained clergy in the Troy, Upper New York, and New England Annual Conferences.

Rev. Pat Thompson is a semi-retired elder in the New England Annual Conference (NEAC) of The United Methodist Church, currently serving as 1/4 Coordinating Pastor (in charge of administration) and local church historian for the Wolcott United Methodist church in Wolcott,

Vermont. She is also the Historian for the NEAC and served as Editor of Historian’s Digest, the newsletter for the Historical Society of the UMC. In 2006 she received the GCAH DistinguishedService Award, in part, for her publication of Courageous Past, Bold Future:

The Journey Toward Full Clergy Rights for Women in The United Methodist Church.

Host:

Dr. Ashley Boggan Dreff, General Secretary of the General Commission on Archives and History of The United Methodist Church. Dreff earned her PhD from Drew Theological School’s Graduate Division of Religion, specializing in both Methodist/Wesleyan Studies and Women’s/Gender Studies. She earned an M.A. from the University of Chicago’s Divinity School, specializing in American Religious History. She has previously worked as staff at the General Commission on Archives and History (2012-2014) and the Connectional Table of The United Methodist Church (2014-2016). She was the Director of United Methodist Studies and Assistant Professor Christian History at Hood Theological Seminary (Salisbury, NC), an AME Zion Seminary, from 2017-2019 and was the Director of Women’s and Gender Studies and Assistant Professor of Religion at High Point University (High Point, NC) from 2019-2020. Dreff is a lay member of the Arkansas Annual Conference and the daughter of two ordained United Methodist ministers. She is the author of Nevertheless: American Methodists and Women’s Rights (2020) and Entangled: A History of American Methodism, Politics, and Sexuality (2018).

Guests:

Bishop Mande Muyombo is the Resident Bishop of the North Katanga Area in the Congo Central Conference of The United Methodist Church. Muyombo was an executive of the General Board of Global Ministries when he was elected on the fourth ballot during the Congo Central Conference in 2017. He is the first graduate of Africa University to be elected bishop and the youngest episcopal leader in the central conference. Bishop Muyombo holds a Bachelor’s (Department of Theology) and master’s Degree (IPLG) from Africa University as well as master’s Degree in Theology and Doctor of Ministry from Saint Paul School of Theology, Kansas City, USA. After working as President of Kamina Methodist University, he served as the Executive Secretary for Africa at the General Board of Global Ministries and was subsequently promoted to Assistant General Secretary in the Missions and Evangelism Department.

Rev. Edlen Cowley has served as an ordained clergyperson in the North Texas Conference (NTC) of the United Methodist Church since the year 2000. He was ordained a deacon in the year 2000 and an elder in 2003. After earning a degree in Government and Politics from The University of Texas at Dallas in 1993, he entered Perkins School of Theology at Southern Methodist University where he earned his Masters of Divinity degree in the fall of 1999. Edlen has served in many diverse ministry settings; he was an Assistant/Associate Pastor at St. Luke “Community” UMC, East Dallas (1994-2002), and an Associate/Campus Pastor St Andrew UMC, Plano (2006-2014). He has started two new churches in the (NTC); Since 2014, Edlen has served as Senior Pastor of Fellowship UMC in Trophy Club. Edlen currently serves as the Chair of the Journey Toward Racial Justice (JTRJ) of the (NTC), and President of the African-American Clergy Fellowship (AACF). He is a former member of the Executive Committee of the (NTC) Black Methodists for Church Renewal (as Membership Chair). He also served on the (NTC) Black Church Initiative Leadership Team.

Adrienne Possenti is a laywoman from the Greater New Jersey Annual Conference. She retired in 2014 after a twenty five year career with the Vineland, NJ Board of Education. She’s been a member of First UMC in Vineland, NJ for thirty-five years and serves as the local church historian of her congregation, served on her district’s commission on archives and history for the UMC, and was president of her UMW chapter . She is a proud animal rights activist and co-founder of the 501c3 nonprofit, Free All Captive Elephants.

Questions in this Episode:

Rev. Cowley, will you tell us a bit about the piece you wrote last summer and why you wrote it?

Adrienne, after reading Rev. Cowley’s story last summer, you wrote to UMNS with a response. Can you tell us your understanding of the cross and flame?

Bishop, the cross and flame as a logo has great meaning for the central conferences. Can you tell us a bit about the logo in your context?

Current conversations regarding the logo in your local contexts? Is the logo and its interpretation being discussed?

If you were to re-design a logo for the UMC in 2021 what would it look like? In other words, what characteristics about the UMC are important enough or unique enough to be captured in a symbol?

Host Dr. Ashley Boggan Dreff- General Secretary of the General Commission on Archives and History of The United Methodist Church. Dreff earned her PhD from Drew Theological School’s Graduate Division of Religion, specializing in both Methodist/Wesleyan Studies and Women’s/Gender Studies. She earned an M.A. from the University of Chicago’s Divinity School, specializing in American Religious History. She has previously worked as staff at the General Commission on Archives and History (2012-2014) and the Connectional Table of The United Methodist Church (2014-2016). She was the Director of United Methodist Studies and Assistant Professor Christian History at Hood Theological Seminary (Salisbury, NC), an AME Zion Seminary, from 2017-2019 and was the Director of Women’s and Gender Studies and Assistant Professor of Religion at High Point University (High Point, NC) from 2019-2020. Dreff is a lay member of the Arkansas Annual Conference and the daughter of two ordained United Methodist ministers. She is the author of Nevertheless: American Methodists and Women’s Rights (2020) and Entangled: A History of American Methodism, Politics, and Sexuality (2018).

GUESTS:

Carol Travis was baptized at Asbury UMC and is recorded as having delivered her first prayer at the age of 6 over 60 years ago. After a long career in corporate America, she retired to start another career in church administration, serving on the staff of diverse churches in urban and suburban settings  She currently works in several ministry areas at Asbury UMC and at the Annual Conference level where she helps to advance the UMC ‘s dismantling racism agenda.  She holds degrees from Trinity University and American University in Washington, DC. For 15 years, she was a board member of the African American Methodist Heritage Center and has been the Executive Assistant to the board since 2014.

Rev. Will Green is an Elder in Full Connection with the Northern Illinois Annual Conference currently in his fifth year of cross-conference ministry in the Baltimore Washington Annual Conference. He currently serves at Foundry United Methodist Church as an Associate Pastor and the Director of Discipleship, where he provides oversight and vision for the adult education and spiritual formation, lay leadership development, and assist the Senior Pastor with worship development and coordination.

Dr. Kumea Shorter-Gooden is a Washington, DC native and Clinical/Community Psychologist who has been active in the AME Zion Church for 40 years – in Chicago, Southern California, and in DC. I joined John Wesley AME Zion Church four years ago and has vast experience in consulting for diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Discussion Questions In This Episode:

What is the historic relationship between your three DC congregations? Carol, Dr. Shorter-Gooden, Rev. Green

Is the history of white racism unique to your congregations within Methodist history?

Can you tell us a bit about your efforts to be in relationship with each other now? Why and how did these efforts begin?

What’s next for your congregations?

Rev. Mills of Asbury UMC has said that she hopes the relationship between these three congregations can “be a model for other churches — and the world — in crossing the divide of race.” What advice might you have for other congregations?

Asbury UMC and Metropolitan AME were victims of a hate crime back in December of 2020 when Black Lives Matter signs were ripped from the walls and burned in the streets. This is not the first time that Black Methodists have been the victims of a hate crime perpetuated by white mobs. In the past how have Methodists responded to instances such as this and what can future Methodists emphasize about our roots in the future to respond to racist acts?

Host: Dr. Ashley Boggan Dreff, General Secretary of the General Commission on Archives and History of The United Methodist Church. Dreff earned her PhD from Drew Theological School’s Graduate Division of Religion, specializing in both Methodist/Wesleyan Studies and Women’s/Gender Studies. She earned an M.A. from the University of Chicago’s Divinity School, specializing in American Religious History. She has previously worked as staff at the General Commission on Archives and History (2012-2014) and the Connectional Table of The United Methodist Church (2014-2016). She was the Director of United Methodist Studies and Assistant Professor Christian History at Hood Theological Seminary (Salisbury, NC), an AME Zion Seminary, from 2017-2019 and was the Director of Women’s and Gender Studies and Assistant Professor of Religion at High Point University (High Point, NC) from 2019-2020. Dreff is a lay member of the Arkansas Annual Conference and the daughter of two ordained United Methodist ministers. She is the author of Nevertheless: American Methodists and Women’s Rights (2020) and Entangled: A History of American Methodism, Politics, and Sexuality (2018).

In this premiere episode, Ashley chats with Rev. Dr. Erin Beasley and Rev. Dr. Taylor Tenyer about the roots of racism in the United Methodist Church exploring the following:

How was racism built into the Methodist system in the past within the US (Rev. Dr. Beasley) and globally (Rev. Dr. Tenyer)? How does it still exist in our current denominational structure(s)? What’s the difference between racism and colonialism? Are there prideful moments in our past when it comes to race both in a US context and globally?

John Wesley might be considered an anti-racist in his time given his staunch stance against slavery, his willingness to call out the comfortable lifestyle of white British elite, and his overt inclusion of marginalized persons. How does 21st century United Methodism reclaim this? Are we? John Wesley also called for spreading scriptural holiness across the lands — how do we do this in a non-colonial way?