1. World Communion Sunday
A Churchwide
Special Sunday Of
The United Methodist Church
Changing the World, One Life at a Time.
2. Dr. Dennis Marke,
World Communion Scholar, Sierra Leone
Dr. Dennis Marke realized treating the community conditions that lead
to disease was just as important as treating actual illnesses.
“I wanted to go and meet people in their communities and empower
them with knowledge and programs to help prevent the diseases
killing them,” he explained.
He vowed to focus on “safe drinking water, good sanitation,
immunization, family planning and good maternal care.”
3. World Communion Sunday goes
beyond the sacrament.
United Methodists celebrate World Communion Sunday: one of
six churchwide Special Sundays with offerings. Your offering
provides college scholarships for racial- and ethnic-minority
students in the United States and for international students.
World Communion Sunday calls the church to be “the catholic
(universal) inclusive church.”
4. A long, rich history
•In 1940, the Federal Council of Churches of Christ in America
established World-Wide Communion Sunday as a global,
interdenominational event. Prompted by the impact of World War II,
the Methodist Church received an offering on this Sunday for the
Fellowship of Suffering and Service.
•In 1971, The United Methodist Church changed the name of the
observance to World Communion Sunday and redistributed the
offering to support the Crusade Scholarship Program (begun in 1944),
the Ethnic Minority Scholarship Program, and the Division of Chaplains
and Related Ministries.
•In 1980, Chaplains and Related Ministries was moved to World
Service funding, but the World Communion Sunday offering continued
to assist racial- and ethnic-minority persons pursuing various avenues
of ministry. The 2008 General Conference changed the name “Crusade
Scholars” to “World Communion Scholars.”
5. Your gifts are distributed as follows:
• 50% of the offering provides scholarships for international and U.S.
racial- and ethnic-minority graduate students (World Communion
Scholars).
• 35% of the receipts support ethnic scholarships for undergraduate
students.
• 15% funds the Ethnic In-Service Training Program scholarships for
racial- and ethnic-minority persons seeking second careers in
church-related vocations.
6. Your gifts support three vital
programs.
World Communion Scholars
This program seeks to support students whose study focus will
relate directly to mission and to the elimination of poverty,
expansion of global health, leadership development or
congregational development.
7. -- Akiko Miyake-Stoner, World Communion Scholar,
Master of Divinity student,
Pacific School of Religion, Berkeley, Calif.,
"I have learned about the history of Christian worship and how to
make worship applicable to people today. I am doing my field
education at a historically, predominantly Japanese-American
church, which is teaching me to apply what I learn in class.”
8. -- Laura Pressley, World Communion Scholar,
Master of Arts Degree in Counseling and Addiction
Ministry, Methodist Theological School in Ohio
"As a World Communion Scholar, I can concentrate on what
really counts: helping people who are in the darkest corner of
addiction and despair to find a new life in Christ. It's only
because of United Methodists who have given on World
Communion Sunday that I am free to pursue the rest of my
education without fear or anxiety."
9. -- Natalya Shulgina,
World Communion Scholar, Russia
“Like many children of my time in Russia, I was raised in an
atheistic family. I was a student in the medical university when a
team of American doctors came to our village. They invited me to
the first student forum of the Russian United Methodist Church.
This was my first community of believers. I felt welcomed, cared
for and loved. I finally realized they were different because they
believed in God.”
10. -- Marta da Silva, Luanda, Angola
World Communion Scholar, Angola
“With God’s grace, everything is possible. Today I work in product -
development techniques for a subsidiary of Angola’s national oil
company. I also love to work as a children’s Sunday school teacher
and youth counselor. I thank God for all the blessings. I thank the
General Board of Higher Education and Ministry and The United
Methodist Church in Angola for their scholarships. Thanks for this
opportunity and for believing in me.”
11. Ethnic In-Service Training
The United Methodist Church allocates 15 percent of the World
Communion offering to the General Board of Higher Education and
Ministry for Ethnic In-Service Training.
These funds are designated for the recruitment, training and
retention of ethnic United Methodists in leadership positions in
every level of the church and its ministry.
12. North Carolina Hispanic/Latino/
Leadership Academy at Pfeiffer University
One Ethnic In-Service Training grant recipient was the North
Carolina Hispanic/Latino/A Leadership Academy that provides
ongoing academic and spiritual training for Hispanic leadership in
the Western North Carolina and the North Carolina annual
conferences. The academy is a cooperative venture of the
conferences, Pfeiffer University and Albemarle District Hispanic
Ministries.
13. Ethnic Scholars
Thirty-five percent of the World Communion Sunday offering
benefits Ethnic Scholarships, related to the General Board of
Higher Education and Ministry.
This undergraduate award is for Native American, Asian, African
American, Hispanic or Pacific Islander applicants pursuing their
first undergraduate degree.
14. -- Jeania Ree Moore, Ethnic Scholar,
Yale University, New Haven, Conn.
“As a college student, I have to account not only for my studies but
also for school expenses: books, tuition and more. The United
Methodist Ethnic Scholarship allows me to focus on my academic
and community efforts rather than to fret over my financial
resources."
Education and faith, Moore asserts, “are assets no one can take
away or destroy. Both are necessary treasures nothing can
replace.”
15. -- Aarron C. Flowers,
Ethnic Scholar and biology major,
University of California—Davis
“I could not afford to be in college today if I did not receive
scholarships through my church, my family and my community.
Even though my classes contain a high degree of difficulty, they
challenge me and pique my interests. I am determined not to let
anything stop my drive to succeed.”
16. Here are the dates.
If the designated date conflicts with your local church
calendar, you can select an alternate date for your
congregation’s observance of World Communion Sunday.
Oct. 3, 2010
Oct. 2, 2011
Oct. 7, 2012
17. Nurture. Advocate. Give.
You can “adopt” World Communion Sunday as your annual
project and give to it at any time.
Here are two ways to contribute:
1. Online giving is easy and safe. Go to www.umcgiving.org
and click on “Donate” at the top of the page. Your online
donation can be credited to your church or conference.
2. Write a check to your local church and identify it as
“World Communion Sunday offering.” Put it in the
offering plate or give it to your church treasurer.
18. Here is how to learn more.
General Board of Higher Education and Ministry
P.O. Box 340007
Nashville, TN 37203-0007
(615) 340-7342
umscholar@gbhem.org
http://www.gbhem.org
For stories, worship helps and other information, go online to
www.umcgiving.org
To order resources, go to www.umcgiving.org and click on
“Store” at the top of the page.
