National—The 39th Quadrennial and 40th Session of the General Conference of the Christian Methodist Episcopal (CME) Church was held in Cincinnati, Ohio at the Duke Energy Center from June 25-30. Five new Bishops were elected and four new General
Bishops elected were:
Dr. Clarence Kelby Heath (Carter Metropolitan CME Church, Ft. Worth, Texas)
Rev. Denise Anders-Modest (Trinity CME Church, Memphis, Tennessee)
Dr. Charley Hames (Beebe Memorial CME, Oakland, California)
Dr. Ricky Helton (Israel Metropolitan CME, Washington, DC)
Dr. Kwame Lawson Adjei (Judicial Council)
The Christian Methodist Episcopal (CME) Church or the CME Church as it is commonly called, came into existence out of the context of American slavery, the tumultuous aftermath of the Civil War, and the problems of the Reconstruction Era. The CME Church was organized December 16, 1870, as the Colored Methodist Episcopal Church in America. By 1930 the “in America” had dropped from the name, and in May 1954, the name was changed to Christian Methodist Episcopal Church, Since its founding the church has expanded to include Jamaica, Haiti, and the continent of Africa.
The General Conference is a delegated meeting composed of the church’s active and retired bishops (known as the College of Bishops), its department heads (General Officers), Judicial Council, laity and clergy delegates and alternates, and visitors. The General Conference meets every four years, and the presiding officers are the bishops of the church who take turns each day in their order of seniority. Bishop Lawrence L. Reddick III is the Senior Bishop of the Church and the Chief Executive Officer of the denomination. Bishop James B. Walker is the Chair of the College of Bishops, and Bishop Marvin Frank Thomas, Sr. is the host bishop.
