News

Dr. Will Cotton to retire July 1 / Dr. Clifton Howard announces Oct. 1, 2024 as his retirement date Bishop Ruben Saenz Jr., resident bishop of the Central and North Texas Conferences of The United Methodist Church, has announced the retirements of two Central Texas Conference Cabinet members – Dr. Will Cotton and Dr. Clifton Howard. Dr. Cotton will continue his roles as executive director of the Smith Center for Evangelism, Mission & Church Growth and the New Church Start District Superintendent...

Bishop Tracy Malone to Become First Black Woman to Serve as President of COB / Bishop Ruben Saenz Jr. to Begin Term as President-Designate Bishops Prepare to Preside at GC20-in-24; Discuss Budget Concerns and Other Concerns Facing the UMC The Council of Bishops (COB) of The United Methodist Church began its 2024 Spring meeting on Wednesday, April 17, to prepare for the 2020 General Conference, which is being held in Charlotte, NC from April 23 to May 3, 2024. The 2020 General Conference ...

Your Central Texas Conference Service Center (CTCSC) team wishes you and yours a very Happy and Holy Christmas and all the best in 2024. The Conference Service Center will be closed for the Christmas and New Year’s holidays beginning Dec. 22. Regular business hours will resume on Tuesday, Jan. 2. In case of emergency during the time the CTCSC is closed, please call (817) 944-2602 or send an email to cliftonhoward@ctcumc.org.

by Dr. Maidstone Mulenga, Director of Communications for The United Methodist Church Council of Bishops 2026 Special Session to focus on moving The UMC forward and bringing about the next vital expression of United Methodism The Council of Bishops plans to call a special session of the General Conference of The United Methodist Church in 2026 for the delegates to strategize and work toward bringing about the next vital expression of United Methodism.   The bishops made the decision to call the ...

Bishop Ruben Saenz Jr., resident bishop of the Central Texas Conference of The United Methodist Church, has announced that Rev. Lara Franklin, executive director of the Roberts Center for Leadership and Administration, has decided to take transitional leave effective July 1, 2023. Following the conclusion of the 2023 Central Texas Annual Conference, Lara and her daughter Erin will be relocating to the Farmington River Valley of Connecticut - a place Lara and her late husband Travis had dreamed ...

Friends, Maye and I are thankful that you are a such an important part of our lives, and we want to wish you a blessed Thanksgiving Day. Let us be thankful together as we look back on this year and all of our lives because we can see all the ways God has lovingly shepherded us through the ups and downs of life, through shadowy valleys, through barren wilderness, into wide open spaces of freedom, to places of abundant provision, and by streams of grace where we found rest and strength for our ...

2020 and 2021 Award Winners Also Honored During Ceremonies at SMU Perkins School of Theology. An exciting and whirlwind November continued for Bishop Ruben Saenz Jr. on Monday, Nov. 14 as he was presented with the 2022 Perkins Distinguished Alumnus Award during ceremonies on the SMU campus. A few minutes before the event began, Bishop Saenz reflected on his near 30 years of ministry since he first walked the hallowed halls of Perkins. He also shared his excitement for the church 30 years into ...

On Wednesday, Nov. 16, Lovers Lane United Methodist Church in Dallas, TX is hosting SPACE at the TABLE: Conversations of Hope for the UMC Future. The gathering of clergy and lay leadership is intended as an opportunity to explore the future challenges and opportunities of The UMC and share ideas for greater community and global impact and effectiveness for the denomination.   The single-day event will be keynoted by pastor and author Rev. Dr. Mike Slaughter and will feature several panel ...

The Commission on the General Conference announced today that the 2024 United Methodist General Conference will be held April 23 – May 3, 2024, at Charlotte Convention Center in Charlotte, North Carolina.    “The Commission selected Charlotte as the site that best met our varied needs. We believe that delegates and attendees will be pleased with all the city has to offer,” said Central Texas’ own Kim Simpson, Chair of the Commission on the General Conference. “Charlotte is a part of the Western...

Bishop Saenz to be the Episcopal Leader of  the Central Texas and North Texas Conferences. I am creatively intrigued about the possibilities offered with the two conferences working in union...Our collective impact is going to be greater than it would have been as independent conferences." The 2022 South Central Jurisdictional Conference (SCJC) has announced that Bishop Ruben Saenz Jr. will be reassigned to the Central Texas Conference. Bishop Saenz has served as the resident bishop of the CTC ...

The 2022 South Central Jurisdictional Conference (SCJC) has announced that Bishop Ruben Saenz Jr. will be reassigned to the Central Texas Conference.  Bishop Saenz has served as the resident bishop of the CTC since January 1, 2022 during which time he remained as the bishop of the Great Plains Conference – the conference to which he was assigned in 2016 following his episcopal election. Bishop Saenz will also serve as the resident bishop of the North Texas Conference. As reported Wednesday, ...

In a surprising and unprecedented turn of events, the delegates of the South Central Jurisdictional Conference elected three bishops on the very first ballot Wednesday, Nov. 2. The Rev. Dee Williamston, director of clergy excellence and assistant to the bishop of the Great Plains Conference, received 141 votes. The Rev. Laura Merrill, district superintendent in the Rio Texas Conference, received 99 votes.  The Rev. Dr. David Wilson, assistant to the bishop of the Oklahoma and Oklahoma Indian ...

The South Central Jurisdictional Conference has approved a recommendation from the Jurisdictional Episcopacy Committee that for the next 18 months, the Central Texas and North Texas Conferences of The United Methodist Church be covered by the same bishop.   Who that bishop will be is still to be determined. Rev. Dee Williamston (141 votes), Rev. Laura Merrill (99) and Rev. Dr. David Wilson (92) were all elected on the first ballot of the 2022 South Central Jurisdictional Conference. The vote ...

We are excited to announce Daran Miller as Glen Lake Camp’s next Executive Director. Daran has served in many roles at Glen Lake Camp and Retreat Center over the past seven years. We are excited for the future and thankful for the many gifts he shares and the leadership he provides for camp and our staff.   The Board of Directors Chair, Colin Campbell shared, “In partnership with the Central Texas Conference of the United Methodist Church, the Glen Lake Board of Directors has selected Daran ...

Bishop Saenz to be honored at Perkins Distinguished Alumni Awards Banquet on Nov. 14 along with 2020 and 2021 Recipients No Live Webcast of the Event to be Available.  CTCUMC.ORG will have Post-Event Coverage following the event. Click here to purchase tickets and/or get more info on the event. by Connie Nelson*, Matt Jacob** and J. Vance Morton*** - Oct. 25, 2022 The Perkins School of Theology Alumni/ae Council has selected Bishop Ruben Saenz Jr. as the 2022 recipient of the Perkins ...

The South Central Jurisdiction (SCJ) Committee on Episcopacy, in consultation with the College of Bishops, affirmed their recommendation that the Jurisdictional Conference elect three new bishops when it meets November 2-5 in Houston, Texas.   With three elections, the SCJ would have a total of eight bishops available to be assigned to the ten episcopal areas. The Committee on Episcopacy along with the College of Bishops will meet again in Houston before the 2022 Jurisdictional Conference ...

Conference Members Approve 81 Disaffiliation Resolutions $6.27 Million Budget Adopted for 2023 The 2022 Special Called Session of the Central Texas Annual Conference was gaveled to order by Bishop Ruben Saenz Jr. a few ticks past 9:30 a.m., Saturday, Sept. 17. As he opened the meeting, he reminded the more than 650 gathered in person at Arborlawn United Methodist Church and the many more watching online that the purpose of the meeting was to take action on the 81 petitions for ...

A video replay of Bishop Russell's Sept. 9 Memorial Service from First UMC - Fort Worth is available below. Bishop John William Russell passed away Friday Sept. 2, 2022, at the Reunion Court of the Woodlands, Texas. He was 96. Bishop Russell served as the Central Texas Conference’s inaugural episcopal leader when the South Central Jurisdiction split the Dallas/Ft. Worth Episcopal area and formed the Central Texas Conference in 1988 – an assignment from which he retired in 1992 – after serving ...

The United Methodist Church’s top court ruled that a much-debated church law - ¶2548.2 of the Book of Discipline - can only be used for transferring property, not members, to another denomination. The Judicial Council also ruled that The United Methodist Church must have an existing agreement with the other denomination for such a transfer to occur. No such agreement exists with the Global Methodist Church, which has been pushing for churches to use the measure to leave The United ...

July 28, 2022 Bishop Ruben Saenz Jr., resident bishop of the Central Texas Conference of The United Methodist Church, has announced that Dr. Tim Bruster will join the Conference staff as the Director of Finance and Administrative Services. This is a part-time position and is effective Aug. 1.   In his role, Tim, who recently retired from a 42-year ministry as a local church pastor (the last 19 years as the senior pastor of First United Methodist Church of Fort Worth) will be a member of the ...