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N O V E M B E R 2 0 2 0
MOUNTAIN VIEWDISTRICT
NEWSLETTER
A LETTER FROM THEDISTRICT SUPERINTENDENT
Contact:
BISHOP MARY VIRGINIA [email protected]
REV. ANGELA HARDY CROSSDISTRICT
[email protected]
CARRIE HOPPERADMINISTRATIVE
[email protected]
MAILING ADDRESSPO Box 1592Morristown, TN 37816-1592
PHYSICAL ADDRESS112 East First North StreetMorristown, TN
37816
PHONE: 423-586-2942FAX: 423-586-7406
Greetings Mountain View District,
Currently the Bishop and Cabinet are preparing ourselves to
navigate the new normal. Asno surprise to you we are in a crisis, a
crisis of pandemic, crisis of culture, crisis of climateand crisis
of divisiveness. Therefore, to be the Church, to be the people of
Christ, to be theunifying body and agents of change and love, we
must be equipped. I am supplying youwith some recommended resources
that may prove to be helpful as we move forward asChildren of the
Light. These suggested resources are as follows:
The General Commission on Religion and Race of The United
Methodist Church is offeringa 5 week Advent Bible Study, Journey
from Darkness to Light (Racial Justice Resource).
Diversity Training and Conflict Management From the Lewis Center
for Church Leadershipof Wesley Theological Seminary and Holston
Conference Wesley Leadership Institute.
You can look these topics up online. If you have any questions
please don’t hesitate to callme. Have a very safe, blessed,
different, but meaningful Thanksgiving season.
Psalm 133: Behold, how good and pleasant it is for brothers and
sisters to dwell together inunity!
Faith Hope Love,
Rev A.M. Hardy Cross
http://holston.org/http://holston.org/http://holston.org/
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Churches arenow able toreopen for in-person worship.
Daycare/Preschool/Afterschool care: The Task Force advises
thatchildren 5 and up wear a mask for daycare inside and out. Each
daycarewill need to make their decisions accordingly and follow
their protocolon file.Children’s church worship for school-age
children only: If there isspace for distancing, masks, and
attendance kept and leadershiptrained then children’s church is
permitted with a protocol on file withthe DS.Nurseries: Nursery
care for infants up to age 5 is still not allowed.Children under
the age of 5 must remain with their parents.
Churches are now able to reopen for in-person worship. Plans
forreopening must be approved by the District Superintendent before
a churchis allowed to reopen.
When opening your church doors, please be mindful of the
following newhealth precautions required by the Holston Conference
COVID-19 TaskForce.
Small Groups: Sunday School, Bible Studies, Youth, Scouts,
Committees,Recovery and School-age children can meet in the
building. You must haveand follow your protocol on file: mask,
distance, sanitizer, attendancecaptured, no food or drink unless
you bring your own and do not share. Iknow it will be challenging
to distance in somerooms. If you cannot distance in the room you
regularly use then a changein location or schedule may be necessary
in ensure safe practices.Children:
Gatherings: Birthday parties, Bridal or Baby showers, Family
Reunions,Homecoming meals, Funeral meals and Anniversary
Celebrations, Etc. I’msorry but these are still not allowed inside
the buildings.Christmas: Our normal Christmas programs for children
and Cantatas andplays, where many people are on the staging area,
will not be able to occurthis year. If your space allows for a
small group that can distance you mayhave a scaled down version,
only if you can distance. A drive-thru LivingNativity would be a
wonderful creativeoutdoor option. As you prepare for Christmas Eve
all protocols must be inplace including no congregational singing.
If you have communion youmust use the prepacked elements.Food and
Drinks: No food or drinks are allowed at this time. A person
maybring coffee or water for themselves, and prepacked food may be
sharedwith the children if needed. No food trucks or outside food
from home orrestaurants.
CHURCH REOPENINGUPDATE
Plans for both INDOOR and OUTDOOR worship andgatherings must be
submitted to the DistrictSuperintendent.
WORKINGFROM HOME
Please be aware that the DistrictSuperintendent and
AdministrativeAssistant are working primarily fromhome due to
COVID-19.
If you need to come by the office, pleasecall first to see when
someone will be in theoffice. Phone calls are being forwarded tothe
Administrative Assistant. Both the DSand AA are available via
email. Please donot hesitate to reach out.
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There is a time foreverything, and aseason for everyactivity
under theheavens.
Ecclesiastes 3:1
PASTOR'S PAGECHARGE CONFERENCES
CLERGY EDUCATION
Since 2018, United Methodist clergy andother church leaders have
taken one hourcontinuing education classes atClergyEducation.com.
In addition toadmission into live sessions, registrantsreceive a
video recording of the webinar anda certificate representing 1-hour
CEUcredit. The cost for each session is $25.
VisitClergyEducation.com to see the latest listof upcoming
webinars. In addition to livewebinars, recordings of previous
webinarsare available in our "Recorded Courses"section.
CLERGY DUES
Just a reminder to send your clergy dues into the District
Office. Pastors in theMountain View District are expected to pay $1
for every $1000 of their annualsalary.
This fund directly supports clergy in the Mountain View
District!
CLERGY CONNEXION
Click here for the Fall 2020 edition from Rev. Terry Goodman,
Director ofHolston's Clergy Services.
CEU NEWS
Click here for the October 2020 Newsletter.
All charge conferences will take place on Zoom this year. Our
administrative assistant, Carrie, will send the Zoom link out to
pastors two weeks before their scheduled date. We ask that the
pastors then distribute the link and any required material to their
congregations.
Your charge conference paperwork is due to the district office
the Mondaybefore your scheduled date.
We will be having charge conferences on Sundays at either 2:00
or 4:00 pm. Charge conferences will be held in clusters according
to the MountainView District Missional Hubs. Please find your
Missional Hub and Charge Conference date on the next page.
http://clergyeducation.com/http://clergyeducation.com/https://issuu.com/holston-ac/docs/oct_2020_clergy_services_connexionhttps://issuu.com/holston-ac/docs/oct_2020_clergy_services_connexionhttps://www.holston.org/files/tables/content/14414126/fields/files/5c6d000c2682421fbd2d9e0ae56e8f88/ceu+news+november+2020.pdf
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IMPORTANT NEWSHANDS ON MISSIONPROJECT
Hands on Mission Buckets will be due to the DistrictOffice by
Monday, November 23rd. Please call the officebefore dropping off to
ensure that someone will bethere to receive your buckets.
GRANTS
A list of grants available to local churches is listed below.
Youcan also find the list and more information by clicking herefor
Holston Conference grants and by clicking here forHolston
Foundation grants.
District Board of Mission & Church ExtensionChange for
ChildrenEvangelism Program GrantEthnic Local Church Concerns Brick
& Mortar GrantHandicap Accessibility GrantHispanic Ministry
Program GrantHIV/AIDS GrantHunger and Poverty GrantOpioid Crisis
GrantPeace with Justice GrantPoverty and Hunger GrantRenfro Trust
GrantProgramming GrantsMargaret Loving Senior GrantRev Thomas P
Carriger Evangelism GrantEudow Hamm Evangelism GrantJohn B Redwine
Strategic Ministries Grant
ANTI-RACISM STUDIES
ADVENT STUDY
The General Commission on Religion and Race has put outa study
called "Advent 2020:Seeking Jesus, The Advent
of Justice and Peace".It can be purchased here.
https://www.holston.org/grantshttps://www.holston.org/grantshttps://www.holston.org/grants-scholarshipshttps://www.holston.org/grantshttps://www.r2hub.org/premium-resources/p/advent2020
