Welcome to the Episcopal Fund Resource kit.
The Connectional Giving team has created a digital Pew Card that can be downloaded and inserted in your outgoing newsletters and or printed (when the time is appropriate) to display in your congregation or at community events.
We also have assembled together some EVERGREEN resources you can use to help your congregation understand the importance of supporting the Bishops of the United Methodist Church.
Bishops have always had a very special role in our church, elected and consecrated to speak to the church and from the church. The Episcopal Fund pays for the expenses of active bishops and for the support of retired bishops and spouses. Whether presiding over annual conference sessions, surveying disaster damage, meeting with district leaders or planting a tree, bishops accept what the apostle Paul called “a noble task” (1 Timothy 3:1). It is practical as well since our bishops are responsible for the oversight and promotion of both the temporal and spiritual interests of the church. This fund was one of the three general apportioned funds which were part of the financial plan of the Methodist Church from the time of its unification in 1939. Your support, through your congregation’s faithful giving, is what makes the shepherding ministry of our bishops possible. Today the bishops of The United Methodist Church are providing spiritual leadership to more than 12.4 million persons in a broad range of settings on four continents, including North America, Europe, Africa and Asia.