Our morning began with beautiful images of our great diversity! It was evident in the music, the worship leaders, and especially in the persons who were commissioned as Home Missioners and Deaconesses. We further witnessed this diversity as we received the report for United Women in Faith.
Bishop Delores Williamston called the morning plenary session to order by engaging us in prayer. We are grateful for the incredibly capable women who chair the several committees of the General Conference and who report daily to aid the work that awaits the delegates! Much of the first section of the morning session was used for nominations across important areas of our work and connection. As we moved further into the morning and early afternoon, Bishop Sandra Steiner Ball presided for the day’s first calendar item. Bishop Mande Muyombo presided for the later afternoon session, which included receiving the report of Africa University (AU). Throughout the AU report, we heard about the difference that Africa University is making for the empowerment of women in Africa. This was made evident by Rev. Dr. Betty Kazadi’s presentation.
A great deal of our day was utilized debating calendar items. However, while in past days we have seen a fair balance of speakers according to gender, this did not hold true today. Today’s deliberations from the floor were dominated by male speakers. We saw that 77% of the speakers identified as male, 22% identified as female and 1% identified as nonbinary. We can do better than this!
During the week ahead of us, we should ask ourselves, “If I choose to speak, will I be preventing another voice from having opportunity?” Another question for self-reflection might be, “How many times I have entered the pool to speak. Do my multiple requests prevent someone else from speaking for the very first time?
Let’s commit together to ensure that all delegates have the space to contribute to our collective work!