Episode 115
Reflections on Retirement: Encouraging Words from Bishop Julius Trimble on Faith, Love, and Service
Bishop Julius C. Trimble is the Resident Bishop of the Indiana Area of the United Methodist Church.
Bishop Trimble has the personal mission to encourage all people with the love of Jesus Christ to rise to their highest potential. It is his commitment to his personal mission that led Bishop Trimble to create the “To Be Encouraged” Podcast along with co-host Rev.Dr. Brad Miller.
Bishop Trimble says, “I am compelled by Jesus to share with you an encouraging word or two about Jesus, theology, the Bible, the pandemic, the environment, racism, voting rights, human sexuality, and the state of the United Methodist Church.”
To Be Encouraged with Bishop Julius C. Trimble is to be published weekly and is available at www.tobeencouraged.com and all the podcast directories.
https://www.inumc.org/bishop/office-of-the-bishop/
**Episode 115: Reflections on Retirement: Encouraging Words from Bishop Julius Trimble on Faith, Love, and Service
Join us for an inspiring episode of *To Be Encouraged* as Rev. Dr. Brad Miller sits down with Bishop Julius C. Trimble to discuss his remarkable 16-year tenure as a bishop in the United Methodist Church, his thoughts on the denomination's future, and his upcoming transition out of the Episcopacy in the state of Indiana. This rich conversation provides heartfelt insights on the importance of love, preaching, and enduring faith in the face of challenges. Here are three key takeaways from the episode:
### 1. The Power of Love and Community
Bishop Julius C. Trimble emphasizes that the core of United Methodist preaching—and indeed his own ministry—rests on the twin pillars of love for God and love for one’s neighbor. This foundational belief has been the driving force behind his leadership, especially during times of societal unrest and personal discouragement. He reflects on the overwhelming support and prayers from church members, particularly following the tragic deaths of George Floyd and Trayvon Martin, underscoring the importance of collective encouragement and communal bonds in fostering resilience and hope.
### 2. Enduring Through Challenges
Rev. Dr. Brad Miller delves into how Bishop Trimble has managed moments of discouragement over his long career. Bishop Trimble speaks candidly about the difficulties faced by the United Methodist Church, including the impact of the pandemic and issues related to disaffiliation. His approach to overcoming these challenges involves drawing strength from personal faith, a robust support system, and the encouragement he receives from the community. He also acknowledges the evolving state of the church, highlighting the recent general conference’s positive steps toward inclusivity and the ongoing need to address mental health concerns within pastoral leadership.
### 3. A Vision for the Future
As Bishop Trimble prepares to step down, he shares his optimism for the future of the United Methodist Church under the leadership of Bishop Malone. He talks about the importance of cultivating joy and a vision for a brighter future, expressing his belief in the church’s enduring legacy of grace and service. Bishop Trimble encourages the community to continue looking for “glory sightings” or signs of God at work in their daily lives. He concludes the episode with a prayer, calling for kindness and hospitality to flourish in the world.
### Tune In
Don’t miss this episode of *To Be Encouraged* for a profound conversation that blends personal reflections with actionable insights, driven by Bishop Trimble’s enduring commitment to faith, love, and community. Join us as we explore the vital themes of leadership, change, and the power of shared belief in shaping a hopeful future.
Transcript
Hello, good people, and welcome again to the To Be Encouraged
Speaker:podcast with bishop Julius c Trimble. This is the podcast we
Speaker:look to offer an encouraging word to an often
Speaker:discouraged world, and I'm your co host, reverend doctor Brad Miller. Bishop
Speaker:Trimble, welcome, to this podcast. We're in a season of transition for you, are we
Speaker:not? Yes. We are, Brad. And, I'm so glad
Speaker:to be able to continue the ministry of encouragement even in
Speaker:the midst of personal trans and professional transition,
Speaker:because I think we're at a point in the history of our country and the
Speaker:world where there's no shortage of
Speaker:discouragement. Oh, yes. So we really need to kinda up the ante on
Speaker:on places and portals for encouragement. So welcome
Speaker:to our listeners, and it's good to see you, Brad, and be with you, Brad.
Speaker:Absolutely. Absolutely. Well, the one of the the lots of
Speaker:transitions in our country, politically and socially and
Speaker:all kinds of ways, but there's the the personal transfer transition
Speaker:for you is that, not too long from now as we record this
Speaker:in July, you'll be transitioning out of the Episcopalcy
Speaker:in the state of Indiana, Indiana Area United Methodist Church into another
Speaker:stage of life. And so let's just talk a little bit about what this
Speaker:transition means for you as you retire as a bishop and move on to some
Speaker:other things and not retiring out of ministry, what some of the transition
Speaker:points are all about. And so why don't you just take us through this a
Speaker:little bit? Tell us about some of the decisions you made here in the last
Speaker:year or so to that why was this the right time to make a
Speaker:transition for you? Well, Brad, 16 years
Speaker:as an active bishop in the United Methodist Church, I think, is really
Speaker:a is a full career for me as far as that
Speaker:particular assignment and appointment. As an ordained
Speaker:minister, I have 42 plus years in the
Speaker:United Methodist Church. Prior to being a bishop, a local church pastor
Speaker:and a district superintendent, and then a local church
Speaker:pastor before being elected bishop. I'm really pleased that
Speaker:I've been able to really continue to be a pastor, if you will, Brad
Speaker:Yes. Pastor of pastors, a pastor
Speaker:of congregations, both in the state of I Iowa and both most
Speaker:recently, the last 8 years in the Hoosier state of Indiana.
Speaker:So when I think if people ask me what are you most proud of, I'm
Speaker:kinda often a little bit uncomfortable with that terminology. But I think I'm
Speaker:very pleased that I've been able to still be a pastor and a
Speaker:preacher, as well as an administrator, if you
Speaker:will, of an annual conference, and to be in relationships
Speaker:with laity and and clergy. When I first was elected a
Speaker:bishop, I didn't think I thought I would really be totally separated
Speaker:from the relational aspect of ministry. And while it is
Speaker:very different, I sit in a different seat. I have general
Speaker:church responsibilities. I've traveled to Africa and to the Holy
Speaker:Land multiple times in the last 16 years.
Speaker:But I still have individual relationships
Speaker:so that I can demonstrate that people what people wanna know that
Speaker:you care before they care how much you know. Oh, indeed. And so to be
Speaker:able to demonstrate as a pastor and as a bishop that I
Speaker:care about the gospel, I care about the ministries of
Speaker:the church, the mission of making disciples and transforming the world,
Speaker:but I also care about individuals and individual congregations.
Speaker:Let's just take go with that for a minute, the relationships, what you mentioned.
Speaker:And so let's talk about that relationship. You mentioned
Speaker:pastoring and preaching. Let's just take the pastoring and the relationship part there.
Speaker:And you mentioned some kind of how important that was to you. Give us some
Speaker:examples of how you've experienced that
Speaker:in a local church or some other ministry setting during your
Speaker:episcopacy where you were just really fulfilled or knew there was a god moment
Speaker:happening of pastoring that took place? Can you
Speaker:Well, recently, recently, I visited one of our
Speaker:pastors who who had major surgery. A a somewhat
Speaker:it was somewhat an emergency surgery. And I was able to
Speaker:do that really right as we were right as we were
Speaker:preparing for for annual conference. So to be
Speaker:able to still do that, that's not my primary
Speaker:responsibility. Superintendents visit pastors when
Speaker:they are able and pastors visit other pastors and lay
Speaker:persons. But I was able to because my schedule
Speaker:permitted. And I knew that this pastor would welcome a visit. It was
Speaker:somewhat a surprise to the pastor that their bishop would show up, but I've
Speaker:had a chance to do that on a number of occasions. And it just
Speaker:reminded me that I still am a pastor
Speaker:and and how important prayer is. So I had an opportunity to pray. I counted
Speaker:it a privilege to do that. That's not my primary role as a
Speaker:bishop, but it's still, to me, a relational
Speaker:role that reminds me of both of the grace of God
Speaker:and the importance of people knowing that you care about them.
Speaker:It remind you a little bit of why you got into this
Speaker:field in the first place, this world of ministry? Well, yeah, it reminded
Speaker:me of my call, and and it reminded me of the
Speaker:mentor that I had when I was going through the process the steps of ordained
Speaker:ministry in the United Methodist Church who reminded me, love the
Speaker:people and preach the gospel. And if you're not willing to visit the
Speaker:people, don't expect them to love you back.
Speaker:So so I have always, you know,
Speaker:felt that one of my strengths was the ability to demonstrate to
Speaker:people that that if I could be present with them, that I would
Speaker:welcome that opportunity. Well, I think when you treat people with a day to day
Speaker:and respect and embrace the grace that you could
Speaker:just good things happen for everybody involved as opposed to any
Speaker:kind of a kind of professional title or anything along
Speaker:that line if people, as you said, don't care what you know until they
Speaker:know how much you you care. But you also mentioned something else there that I
Speaker:think is an important role that that you have played as
Speaker:a bishop and as a pastor, but that's what you mentioned being a preacher.
Speaker:And I know the recently, I've been able to hear you preach a couple of
Speaker:times at annual conference and then a jurisdictional conference where
Speaker:you really laid out basically some really found a foundational things about your
Speaker:faith and how and how that relates to your
Speaker:role in United Methodist Church and the whole circumstances of the
Speaker:church right now. Tell me about preaching the power of preaching and
Speaker:maybe the last two sermons. But any, the power of preaching, how you've seen that
Speaker:lived out. Because as a bishop, you're not preaching in the same church every
Speaker:week, but you're preaching a lot. Tell me about how that preaching
Speaker:role has grown for you as a bishop. Well, I
Speaker:think preaching is, can't be, can't
Speaker:be underrated, if you will, or underappreciated.
Speaker:It's people people give you the privilege of actually paying attention
Speaker:for a period of time as you try to make plain
Speaker:a biblical story and truth, but also
Speaker:relate that to real life to to to to real
Speaker:world problems and real world opportunities for ministry and mission.
Speaker:So I believe, you know, as we embrace our general rules in in
Speaker:in the United Methodist Church, doing no harm, doing good, staying in love with
Speaker:God, that is somewhat a foundational piece of preaching
Speaker:as well. So we have been created as as the the
Speaker:gospel says and the Ephesians says, you know, we have to
Speaker:created by god to do the work that god did, and even greater works shall
Speaker:these we do. So we've been created to do good works, but I also say
Speaker:we also have been created to do not just good, but also to do
Speaker:justice. As Micah says, you know, what does the Lord require?
Speaker:Do justice, love mercy, walk humbly with God. So the
Speaker:pre my preaching and preaching, I think, should really reflect
Speaker:both the fact that we have been called to do
Speaker:good out of the blessing that God has for us and the
Speaker:multiple stories in the bible of those who
Speaker:believed and followed God, how they were faithful, and
Speaker:also how we can be faithful to help people not just get ready for heaven,
Speaker:as I say, but also to reduce the amount of hell that people
Speaker:experience here on earth. That's where that's where the the
Speaker:meshing of doing good, proclaiming good news,
Speaker:and doing justice. In fact, some have
Speaker:said that justice is love lived out in the
Speaker:public square. So as many theologians most
Speaker:recently, I've been reading Paul Chilko, has said that, you know, the
Speaker:corpus of being United Methodist is the love of God,
Speaker:the love of God and the love of neighbor. So love of God and love
Speaker:of neighbor pretty pretty much would be most of the
Speaker:backbone of the preaching that I've had a chance to The juxtaposition of
Speaker:that is Paul says about, you know, you hold the keys within hell and heaven
Speaker:and hell. Preaching that comes into play, doesn't it? And the living life in the
Speaker:church, that is that intersection of heaven and earth.
Speaker:Absolutely. And I love that. I think you've done it so well and a
Speaker:powerful preacher, and I know you really lifted up the name of Jesus in your,
Speaker:in your jurisdictional, sermon. And in your sermon that you
Speaker:gave at annual conference really emphasized, you know, that, you
Speaker:know, God's place in the church and your role in that. And,
Speaker:I just could you just say a word about Jesus here in our conversation here
Speaker:about how fundamental that is to everything you are about
Speaker:as a bishop, not only in your role as bishop, but as a pastor and
Speaker:in whatever comes next. I can't remember where I read it. Maybe you can help
Speaker:me with this, Brad, but I think it's an Howard
Speaker:Thurman story. It may have been in his autobiography, Head and
Speaker:Heart. But I do remember the story, and and this this is not a direct
Speaker:quote of the story. But he talks about preaching in India
Speaker:k. And that he had a valet after he had spoken to a crowd
Speaker:of of of Christians. In India, he had
Speaker:a a a boy who was serving kind of his valet
Speaker:and the person who was taking care of him. And so after
Speaker:he got through preaching and speaking, he came back and the the boy was
Speaker:bringing his coat to him, and he was weeping. And
Speaker:Thurman asked the the the young man and says, well, did
Speaker:people not understand my preaching? He said, no, they understood you. He
Speaker:said, was there something wrong or did people not receive it? He said,
Speaker:no, you were well received. Said, well, what is it? You know, why are you
Speaker:weeping? And the and the young young boy said to Howard
Speaker:Thurman, I wanted to hear you say his name again.
Speaker:And the name being Jesus Christ, the name of Jesus. And that is
Speaker:a powerful story. And if I I need to refound exactly
Speaker:where I read that quote, but I do know it's a Howard Once you got
Speaker:into it, I recognized the story and just the power of the name of Jesus.
Speaker:I know you emphasized that in your recent messages. And I just
Speaker:think it's important in my mind, Bishop, that as we
Speaker:go through some of the convoluted stuff we've gone through in the church, in
Speaker:politics, and everything else, the discouraging things in
Speaker:life, and we talk about some kind of pragmatic matters of how to
Speaker:be encouraged and how to make progress, it certainly is is
Speaker:certainly is vital that we, you know, adhere to the keep the main thing
Speaker:the main thing. Absolutely. The name of Jesus. And I
Speaker:think it's due you know, from my perspective, you you really bring us all
Speaker:back around to that on a continuous basis. And I just
Speaker:thank you for that, and I think that's a good
Speaker:thing moving forward. And I know it'll be a part of your mission in ministry
Speaker:moving forward, as well. Well, the first mission statement of
Speaker:the church was Jesus Christ is Lord. Christ is Lord
Speaker:indeed. Yeah. And so so I think we while we
Speaker:do while, I I know
Speaker:things are not as often as simple as we make them in through our
Speaker:words. And sometimes our words limit us in our ability, really,
Speaker:to appreciate the fullness of God's grace and mercy and
Speaker:love. And and the fact that it's not just Jesus' name,
Speaker:but who Jesus was, what Jesus did, his
Speaker:life, his ministry, and his impact on others, you know.
Speaker:How how many stories do we have to hear about
Speaker:forgiveness to know that Jesus was was
Speaker:was central in his understanding and his teaching that we
Speaker:are not only to be forgiven, but to forgive others. Yeah.
Speaker:And the teachings of Jesus, respect and dignity, justice,
Speaker:grace, all these things, come into play, and and that's part of been
Speaker:part of your role as the episcopal leader in Indiana
Speaker:and Iowa for the last 16 years. 16
Speaker:years. That's quite 16 years. Man, how'd that happen, That's what I was
Speaker:saying. How'd that happen? How did that happen? What do how would you
Speaker:kinda evaluate that 16 years, kinda
Speaker:where you started, and, you know, what kind of trembling of the
Speaker:heart perhaps you had coming into it 16 years ago, and how
Speaker:it's advanced and how you've lived it out. Give us just a little bit of
Speaker:a timeline of how your life has changed in
Speaker:16 years as being a bishop of United Methodist Church? Thank you,
Speaker:Brad, for the question. You know, because it it it
Speaker:causes me to to reflect on what was I
Speaker:thinking when I said, yeah. I think I really do wanna
Speaker:offer myself as a candidate to be
Speaker:elected bishop because the possibility great possibility was I
Speaker:would not be a bishop. And so it's not there's no guarantee that that was
Speaker:going to happen. And I and when I reflect on that, Brad, what I
Speaker:think about was I knew that I loved the
Speaker:United Methodist Church. I loved g first of all, I loved Jesus,
Speaker:and and and I wanted to continue to be grow to
Speaker:become a more mature Christian. And I felt in my
Speaker:leadership role as a pastor and previously
Speaker:as a superintendent, I think I have something to offer
Speaker:a larger, how can you say, a larger community
Speaker:of United Methodist and Christians. I'd like to be part
Speaker:of that conversation, part of that leadership servant
Speaker:leadership team, if you will. Basically, I'm I'm an
Speaker:introvert, but I'm so enmeshed in the
Speaker:life of the church that I've been able to
Speaker:not not be not being not
Speaker:being an introvert, not allow that to become any kind of,
Speaker:handicap, if you will. So I treasure time on just
Speaker:being with family, not being, you know, being I go to movies by
Speaker:myself sometimes. I've done that long before. I mean, I like to
Speaker:go to movies into the theater. Love going to the theater with my wife and
Speaker:so forth. But I felt that I could
Speaker:offer something because I already had a
Speaker:mission statement of encouraging. I said, well, what if I had more people
Speaker:that I could impact through the ministry and mission of encouragement?
Speaker:And the lord made it possible for me to do that by being elected a
Speaker:bishop. Now did I know I was going to Iowa? No. I didn't.
Speaker:Did I know that I was gonna end up in Indiana? No. I
Speaker:didn't. But I did know that wherever God would
Speaker:put me, there would be good people there, and there'll be great
Speaker:opportunity there, and that has been the case. That's awesome.
Speaker:Well, you've had that mission statement of being an encourager all that
Speaker:time. And, yet at times, I'm sure you've had some
Speaker:discouraging moments during that 16 years. And so how have
Speaker:you been able to take either your personal faith or some resources for
Speaker:some other people, mentors or
Speaker:colleagues or family members or others to help to be,
Speaker:encouraging to you during some of those discouraging times during your
Speaker:episcopacy? Well, there's been there have been some discouraging times,
Speaker:Brad, and and you know about them because some of those times
Speaker:we've we've lived through those times together. You know,
Speaker:the you know, after George Floyd was killed, I was buried
Speaker:I was depressed after that because it took me back to a time, actually,
Speaker:when I was in Iowa and Trayvon Martin was killed
Speaker:in Florida. A lot of people don't talk about that story much but I
Speaker:remember that because I was in my office and I was meeting with 1 of
Speaker:the pastors And the pastor said to me said, Bishop,
Speaker:I've just been thinking about praying for you, thinking about you because of
Speaker:Trayvon Martin. And first of all, it took me by surprise, but what that
Speaker:pastor was saying to me, you're an African American, and I know you're the father
Speaker:of 2 African American young men, you know, at that at
Speaker:that at that time, one of them was in in in
Speaker:still in college. Or maybe, yeah, one of them one of them was still in
Speaker:college just just, well yeah. He
Speaker:2nd year in college. So and that person,
Speaker:that pastor said, ministered to me by saying, maybe they noticed
Speaker:that, you know, I was really kinda upset trying to figure out what I was
Speaker:gonna write as a bishop after this. Did I wanna weigh
Speaker:in on every time somebody got something injustice
Speaker:happened. And I really appreciated being ministered
Speaker:to just by that someone noticing
Speaker:that I could be reflecting on that. And I use that as one
Speaker:example, but I could talk about the the protracted period of the
Speaker:pandemic. You know, I got some messages that weren't very
Speaker:kind. You know, your who gives you the authority to tell the
Speaker:church not to worship, all kinds of
Speaker:things that weren't weren't, you know, there there weren't a lot of people
Speaker:were supportive of that. But the most thing that I I really wanna
Speaker:remind people was that people have been praying
Speaker:for me ever since I was elected a bishop. Brett, well,
Speaker:you're probably saying how do I know that to be true? Well, I have cards
Speaker:Yes. That people send from churches and
Speaker:individuals. All of them are not even from Indiana or are even
Speaker:United Methodist. Chains, they Church prayer chains and individual
Speaker:pastors and laypeople who will say, bishop, you know, I
Speaker:read your article. Or, bishop, you know, we pray
Speaker:for our pastor today or I've gone to congregations for
Speaker:Sunday and see my name in the bulletin. Bishop Julius
Speaker:c Trimble on the prayer list. Yep. And my answer my answer to that
Speaker:is don't take me off the prayer list. Well, I think it's cool.
Speaker:I want to I've I've maybe this happened to you. I have no
Speaker:bishops and or superintendents who've gone to churches, you know, on
Speaker:surprise, you know, and see their name and seen seen their name there. And
Speaker:that's that's a cool thing. It That's a cool thing. Yeah. Well, in that
Speaker:whole process, you mentioned, you know, about the pandemic. You mentioned about some
Speaker:of the unnice notes that you you got. But, you know,
Speaker:we had to deal with some pretty profound difficulties in our
Speaker:whole denomination. You know? Goodness. Disaffiliation
Speaker:and everything goes around that. The d word. The d word.
Speaker:Disaffiliation. Yeah. Well, you it used to be the discipleship. Now all of
Speaker:a sudden, now the word is disaffiliation.
Speaker:So, yeah, that was a that's been a difficult period for for
Speaker:particularly for many of our churches because it Well,
Speaker:that that led to the day of division and the right division
Speaker:and all kinds of things, didn't it? So so I I I'm glad
Speaker:we're we seem to be mostly past that period.
Speaker:Not to say that they're not the churches won't still have other
Speaker:challenges, but there has been some separate we are a
Speaker:smaller denomination. We already were,
Speaker:decreasing just by natural death
Speaker:rate and and and lack of significant
Speaker:growth in many places with professions of faith.
Speaker:But our our witness is no less important today than it
Speaker:was a 100 years ago. And I think we ought to be
Speaker:reminded of that. And I intend to, even in retirement, to
Speaker:remind people that our witness, your witness, my witness is no
Speaker:less important today than it was yesterday or
Speaker:100 years ago. Well, that's part of keeping this,
Speaker:legacy of of of grace and service
Speaker:and what you mentioned here. You know, love God, love others, and or
Speaker:stay in love with God. All a part of who we are and we've
Speaker:navigated in your Episcopal Episcopal time,
Speaker:you know, COVID and political unrest,
Speaker:all this kind of thing, and division churches, some pretty some
Speaker:pretty profound things, and I just wanna congratulate you for getting for getting through it,
Speaker:man. You did it. You did it. And so what
Speaker:having with that framework, as
Speaker:you welcome a new bishop to Indiana to follow
Speaker:you, how would you and we'll talk more about her in just a
Speaker:second. But how would you just kind of frame the state of the
Speaker:church in Indiana in particular and kind of as a
Speaker:whole and this really seems to be really transitional
Speaker:pivotal time of 2024. State of the church.
Speaker:Well, I'll let let me start with the Indiana and then go to the wider
Speaker:church, and I'll frame it from the last two themes we've had at our
Speaker:annual conference. In 2024,
Speaker:our theme was cultivating joy. But let's go back to 2023.
Speaker:2023, we framed our annual conference in June of
Speaker:2023 around the theme praying forward.
Speaker:So I would say that, you know, as I finished up my
Speaker:time in Indiana, it was praying forward
Speaker:and then post this affiliation, if
Speaker:you will, cultivating joy. I think nobody wants
Speaker:to I heard this years ago. Nobody wants to join a church or
Speaker:a movement that lacks joy, that lacks a
Speaker:sense of hope, that lacks a sense of purpose and relevancy.
Speaker:So no one wants to join an organizational movement
Speaker:that is defined by its problems. But everybody
Speaker:is open to hearing a movement that's defined by
Speaker:possibilities and a vision for a brighter future. And I
Speaker:think what that's where we are now. And and
Speaker:I'm I really appreciate the fact that our most recent conference
Speaker:was based on the theme of cultivating joy, one of
Speaker:the fruit when we think about the fruit of the spirit. Yeah. Indeed. Indeed.
Speaker:So that's kind of how our heroes in Indiana, the
Speaker:church as a whole. We as a church as a whole actually, I
Speaker:had to come back to Indiana, Brad, and and make a confession.
Speaker:Prior to general conference that began at the end of April and
Speaker:was in the 1st part of May, I had said and I said this for
Speaker:several years. I said general conference is overrated. I said don't
Speaker:expect anything great of significance. I
Speaker:said, most of the great things God will do through the church will
Speaker:be through local churches, districts, and annual
Speaker:conferences, maybe. But I said general conference, we it's
Speaker:legislative. We vote. We have great worship. We have
Speaker:legislation. But but there's not major
Speaker:shifts that we've seen. You know, a lot of studies we've but I
Speaker:was wrong. This general conference, there was
Speaker:a spirit of Christian conferencing that I had not experienced
Speaker:since I had been a delegate. This is before and since I've been a
Speaker:bishop. Now there was still diversity.
Speaker:There were some glitches here and there. Some of the people from
Speaker:Africa didn't get their visas and transportation in time.
Speaker:So we didn't have all of the delegates who should have been there
Speaker:from from outside of the United States. But
Speaker:the spirit was great from the opening worship to the preaching
Speaker:and even to the legislation that took place. And
Speaker:so that was a good thing, especially in
Speaker:comparison to we had, what, 6 years, maybe more than that, between
Speaker:general conferences And the certainly, the ones we had before that, the
Speaker:last 2 before this last one Chaos. Right? Oh, yeah. Well,
Speaker:yeah. Yeah. It was one where we our our
Speaker:restrictions became onerous
Speaker:and and and became, these are my words,
Speaker:somewhat oppressive when we instituted, you know, penalties
Speaker:and so forth for persons who were exercising their
Speaker:their their faith witness, particularly around welcoming the
Speaker:LGBTQ community. And at this general conference, we
Speaker:removed restrictive language. We adopted updated
Speaker:social principles. We embraced the
Speaker:expansion of Episcopal leadership on
Speaker:the continent of Africa. We affirmed our commitment to mission.
Speaker:We we sent forth deaconesses and
Speaker:missionaries. So there was a spirit of celebration
Speaker:and, and as as the, general secretary of
Speaker:archives and history said, for the first time in over 240 years,
Speaker:United Methodist no longer have any discriminatory
Speaker:language in our book of discipline. That's pretty profound. That's pretty profound. Do we
Speaker:no longer discriminating against women or
Speaker:persons of color or persons based on their gender identity or
Speaker:their sexual orientation. That that's awesome. So I was glad to hear
Speaker:you talk about the state of the church there. Let's just talk for a minute
Speaker:in this transition moment as you leave the episcopacy,
Speaker:here in Indiana and get ready for a new bishop to come in. What's left
Speaker:undone? What did what do you want to see done that you didn't quite get
Speaker:there at or anything that any loose ends here? Oh, there'll be plenty of
Speaker:work for a new bishop coming in. Yeah. You know, how do we adjust to,
Speaker:fewer churches? We made a decision at annual conference to go to
Speaker:5 districts. You that work still has to be
Speaker:done. You know, how do we lift up a
Speaker:concern that that that has come in recent months? It's it's come
Speaker:before. It came during the pandemic. Around the mental health
Speaker:of our pastoral leadership. The the
Speaker:the sense that people have in the wider society
Speaker:of ice isolation. You know, we have more presence on
Speaker:on our smartphones than we do in our one to
Speaker:one conversations. Right. So how do we address that? That so
Speaker:coming in now, you know, how a new bishop will have to, you know, address
Speaker:how do we really experience building what we've often called in
Speaker:Indiana, you know, life together? Lots of opportunities for a new bishop. Right. Right.
Speaker:Well, let's talk about that new bishop. Tell us who our new bishop is
Speaker:and maybe how it came about that this person is gonna be, with
Speaker:us in Indiana before too long? Well, United
Speaker:Methodists are a denomination of conferences.
Speaker:Indeed. Yeah. We so we have conferences in the local church. You
Speaker:know, we have our church conference, a charge conference. Then
Speaker:we have a meeting once a year called an annual conference where all of
Speaker:the church representatives from all of the congregations come together
Speaker:for worship and legislation and voting on a
Speaker:conference budget. Then we have general conference that's
Speaker:supposed to meet every 4 years. Of course, it was postponed due to a
Speaker:pen to to the pandemic. And then after general conference, we
Speaker:typically have what's called a jurisdictional regional
Speaker:conference that meets. And it usually meets primarily
Speaker:to elect bishops to replace those who are retiring. So we
Speaker:just had our North Central Jurisdictional Gathering
Speaker:in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Wonderful
Speaker:gathering, great hospitality by the folks in in the
Speaker:Dakotas and and with help from Minnesota. They they
Speaker:they hosted us well. And that's where I was formally
Speaker:retired, Brad. So at our jurisdictional conference,
Speaker:bishops who are retiring are formally retired in the sense
Speaker:that the comp the jurisdiction votes to approve your
Speaker:retirement. Kind of how your relation to the church is matriculated through the
Speaker:jurisdictional conference. Yeah. I was I was elected at a jurisdictional
Speaker:conference, and I was retired at this most recent jurisdictional
Speaker:conference along with a colleague, friend, Bishop Palmer from
Speaker:the West Ohio Conference. So that so but part of the
Speaker:the at the last day, usually, the the last day
Speaker:of worship, there is the announcement of assignments.
Speaker:So we've already this is we previous to that, we'd
Speaker:already retired 2 bishops. So we didn't
Speaker:we were assigned to the to the retirement. No actual elections took
Speaker:place were just to reassign Just a reassignment. So the announcements of re
Speaker:reassignment were on the last day, Saturday of
Speaker:the jurisdictional conference. And the Indiana conference
Speaker:was assigned Bishop Tracy Smith Malone,
Speaker:who previously had served for 8 years
Speaker:the East Ohio Conference, which in fact
Speaker:was a conference that I was elected a bishop from that conference.
Speaker:So she Tell us a little bit about Bishop Malone, what
Speaker:your reaction was to her appointed to Indiana,
Speaker:Any background? Help us, from your perspective, to get to know her just a little
Speaker:bit. Well, I can say this, that I've known Bishop
Speaker:Tracy Smith Malone for a very long time since she was
Speaker:a junior in junior high. And I've obviously
Speaker:known her. I was I was the presiding bishop who announced
Speaker:her election in 2016 when she was elected
Speaker:a bishop of the church, United Methodist Church. She's a
Speaker:native of Chicago. She's also a a graduate
Speaker:of Garrett Evangelical Theological Seminary, where you and I,
Speaker:Brad, are graduates. Now she has a doctorate from
Speaker:United Theological Seminary in Dayton, Ohio.
Speaker:And she and her husband have 2 adult daughters.
Speaker:She's a great preacher and I think something of
Speaker:note is the fact that she is the newly elected
Speaker:president of the council of bishops. So she has major
Speaker:responsibility by being the president of the council of bishops and
Speaker:she will also be the residential bishop for the Indiana
Speaker:conference. She's familiar with Indiana, at least
Speaker:Indianapolis, I know, because I think I believe she and her husband both have
Speaker:family members who live in the Indianapolis area or Indianapolis.
Speaker:And she has, preached here before, you know, for
Speaker:clergy women event. And I have
Speaker:witnessed her work in the council of bishops,
Speaker:her leading as the president of the board for the
Speaker:Commission on Status and Role of Women. So she's well known
Speaker:throughout the United Methodist Church and and ecumenical circle
Speaker:circles, the first African American woman to
Speaker:be the president of the council of bishops. And I believe
Speaker:she's the first woman that we will have had to serve the
Speaker:Indiana conference as our residential bishop. She
Speaker:brings great enthusiasm, a great preacher, a
Speaker:noted teacher, and a great organizer. And,
Speaker:one of her greatest gifts, I believe, is she's a great communicator
Speaker:and a great listener. And so I think people are gonna quickly
Speaker:both appreciate and fall in love with the leadership of bishop
Speaker:Malone. You sound you sound excited. I'm excited. I'm excited
Speaker:for Indiana. I'm I'm excited. I feel like a kind of
Speaker:an elder brother to her. And so I I feel like,
Speaker:you know, the church is in good hands, and I think the council of bishops
Speaker:with her leadership is in in good hands. And she will she will
Speaker:require a lot of support here. What kind of opportunities and what kind of challenges
Speaker:are gonna be before her as you see it here in Indiana for her to
Speaker:what what what is she stepping into here? Well, I think she's stepping
Speaker:into the continued season of transition that
Speaker:Indiana's part of. You know, what does the future hold for
Speaker:for, as I said, you know, reducing the number of districts?
Speaker:You know, we have what is our long term financial
Speaker:sustainability for our conference and our investment. What is gonna be
Speaker:our major investment in continued new ministries, fresh
Speaker:expressions and new ministries? So there are any number of things that she
Speaker:will how will she be able to navigate
Speaker:relating to the institutional institutions? We have 3
Speaker:universities, IU Health, other things that
Speaker:will, you know, demand or request a portion of her
Speaker:her time and her leadership, and she'll have to make those decisions
Speaker:as to where she wants to put her priorities. Yep.
Speaker:Well, I so I'm certain that there will be welcoming events
Speaker:of various sorts and opportunities for this transition to
Speaker:take place. But, I think we live in a time, bishop,
Speaker:where and where bishop Malone is gonna have to more or less hit
Speaker:the ground running because there's a lot of things to do here. And and I
Speaker:know you'll you'll be a part of the support team to be helpful to her
Speaker:even as you move on to some other things in your life
Speaker:and and ministry. And I'm sure she'll I know your your theme
Speaker:is to be encouraged. I'm sure we'll have some idea of her kinda
Speaker:theme in her life and her ministry as we get to know her. We'll look
Speaker:forward to having that that conversation. Well, bishop, let's just
Speaker:kinda bring it around to this. What kind of things would you like to share
Speaker:to the people of Indiana and beyond
Speaker:about lessons learned, god moments as being
Speaker:a bishop as you kinda make this transition and not too long
Speaker:from now, you'll be, off to new opportunities. As as you make this
Speaker:transition, what have you learned? What's god taught you? What kind of kind
Speaker:of word of grace do you wanna give to people? I had
Speaker:a conversation good conversation with pastor Samuel, one of
Speaker:our pastors here in the Indiana conference, and he was asking me
Speaker:to reflect on this question as well. You know, what are what are my
Speaker:reflections and lessons lessons of success,
Speaker:if you will, or lessons that have that I've learned. 1 of one of
Speaker:the things I wanna say to the people of Indiana is I hope we would
Speaker:continue to pay attention to glory sightings. Yes. And when I say
Speaker:glory sightings, I'm I'm not the originator of that term. But glory
Speaker:sightings are where we see God at work just like we we
Speaker:were in a, you know, a little while ago talking about, you know,
Speaker:the glacier glacier parks. Yes. And the various
Speaker:beautiful things that you have to travel to. Let's but there are glorious
Speaker:signs that when we wake up in the morning, we don't often pay attention to.
Speaker:I saw a cardinal on our front porch a couple of days
Speaker:ago. I mean, this beautiful red cardinal, and it looked
Speaker:like the the the cardinal was literally visiting our house for a
Speaker:moment for some reason. And I thought about I said, look at
Speaker:God. I said, the beauty of diversity of of all of
Speaker:creation, sometimes we don't pay attention to. So I would
Speaker:hope the people of Indiana would continue to look for glory sightings
Speaker:along the way. When you wake up in the morning, as you go about
Speaker:your life, as you go about your ministry, you know, where do you
Speaker:see God at work in creation, in
Speaker:relationships, in opportunities for mission and ministry and
Speaker:pay attention to those glory signs? The second thing I would say is I'm
Speaker:quoting from Paul Chilcote in his book, but what if the United
Speaker:Methodist Church were known to be the most loving
Speaker:church in the world. And I would add most loving
Speaker:and welcoming church in the world. We're not
Speaker:knocking any other faith expressions of churches, but what if we were
Speaker:known and people would ask us, what what what's what's there's something
Speaker:about those people And I think we can do that in Indiana
Speaker:if we if we really make up our minds to do that. Well, I, for
Speaker:1, is pastor in Indiana for quite a few years,
Speaker:have appreciated your loving and welcoming spirit as our bishop and look
Speaker:forward to more good things for for you to come in the future. We'll talk
Speaker:more about those in another episode of 2 Be Encouraged. But,
Speaker:thank you for being our bishop. And can you close this episode with a
Speaker:prayer? Absolutely. Loving God, we give you thanks and
Speaker:praise for the beauty of holiness, for the beauty of creation,
Speaker:for cardinals and robins and sparrows.
Speaker:Lord, we give you thanks for for for flowers and grass and even
Speaker:for weeds that we can't identify. Lord, we ask that you bless us,
Speaker:oh god, in this moment in history, lord.
Speaker:Bless us, oh god, that we might pay attention to how we might
Speaker:bring more kindness and hospitality to a world that so
Speaker:desperately needs to know that you are loved and that
Speaker:we are loved. In the name of Jesus Christ.
Speaker:Amen. Amen. And we do thank you for listening to the
Speaker:2 Be Encourage podcast with Bishop
Speaker:Julius c Trimble, the podcast where we look to offer an
Speaker:encouraging word to an often discouraged world.
