Greetings, dear friends in Christ Jesus.
One of the great joys I have had serving you in this role is dreaming about, collaborating on and saying YES to launching new congregations and faith communities. All of this is done to help us fulfill the mission of making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world. I am delighted to have one more opportunity to this end.
The Mason United Methodist Church reached its end with singular faith and dignity several months ago. The church building and property were just too strategically located to not think and pray about whether or not we were being called to launch something new in that area. Thoughtful use of resources from the Closed Church Fund created space to be able to think and strategize about the best way to respond to a missional opportunity. After a lot of conversation, prayer, data mining, and collaboration, I am delighted to announce to you that we will begin to lay the groundwork this Fall to launch a new United Methodist congregation in Mason, Ohio, making use of the facility and property that was home to the Mason United Methodist Church.
This new church launch in Mason will be done in collaboration with Resurrection, A United Methodist Church with multiple locations in greater Kansas City. This innovative approach between the West Ohio Conference, Great Plains Conference, and Resurrection will enable the new church in Mason to offer the Resurrection experience and access to Resurrection’s fruitful track record of intentional disciple-making and missional impact. This marks a significant step in maximizing the strength and resources between conferences, ushering us into a new era of church planting.
Effective January 1, 2025, the Reverend Jenn Lucas will be appointed to organize and lead this new work. She will of course have the support of the Bishop and Cabinet as well as the Office of Fresh Starts and New Beginnings. Not later than August 31, I will announce who will be appointed as the next superintendent of the Great Miami River District. Please start now to pray for this new ministry and watch for more details as they unfold.
Your servant in Christ,
+Gregory V. Palmer