Dear Friends,

This week, I invited Michigan United Methodists to join in prayer for our United Methodist Church during its season of discernment.

The prayer I offered included a prayer for the world. God loves extravagantly in Jesus Christ.

The brokenness and woundedness of this world has become painfully evident during the week. Rising tensions between the United States and North Korea raise new concerns about war. Last night and today in Charlottesville, Virginia, virulent racism raised its ugly head as white supremacists marched in that city resulting in tragic violence and death.

Again, I invite us all to prayer, and in our praying to deepen our commitment to love, to justice and to building community for the common good. I think of the words of Jesus, “Blessed are the peacemakers.” I think of the words of the poet W. H. Auden, “All I have is a voice…  We must love one another or die.”

Grace and Peace,

Bishop David A. Bard

Last Updated on December 28, 2022