Rio Texas Leaders Bring Hopes for Connection and Belonging to Calgary

Representatives join United Methodists from around the world for worship, listening, and discernment about the church’s future.

A deeper connection across cultures and continents. A church where all people belong at Christ’s table. These are among the hopes Rio Texas representatives are bringing to the 2026 Leadership Gathering in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.

Rio Texas is represented by Rev. Dr. Aaron Gonzalez, clergy delegate; Tyler Steele, under-35 delegate; and Rachel Wright, lay delegate. They are participating in the October 20–24 gathering, joining bishops and church leaders from around the world to pray, listen, and imagine the future of The United Methodist Church.

Bishop Cynthia Fierro Harvey joins Rio Texas representatives Rev. Dr. Aaron Gonzalez, Tyler Steele, and Rachel Wright at the 2026 United Methodist Leadership Gathering in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.

Through worship, keynote presentations, and small covenant group conversations, participants will listen for where the Holy Spirit is leading The United Methodist Church. Together, they will name the realities facing the church and its communities, explore practices that need to change, and imagine new possibilities for ministry. Their conversations will focus on forming disciples in new ways, empowering younger generations, and amplifying voices from across the global church.

The goal is to develop recommendations and identify bold ideas the church could test over the next two to three years, grounded in its vision to love boldly, serve joyfully, and lead courageously. The gathering will offer reflection and direction for the wider church rather than make legislative decisions.

For Gonzalez, Assistant to the Bishop and Chief of Staff for the Rio Texas Conference, the gathering offers an opportunity to deepen the connections that shape our shared ministry.

“My hope for the future of The United Methodist Church is that we will embrace an even deeper understanding of our connectional identity,” Gonzalez said. “By learning from one another across cultures, contexts, and continents, we can strengthen our shared mission of making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.”

“I believe God is calling us to discover fresh and faithful ways to be the church the world needs today and for generations to come,” Gonzalez said.

Steele, Director of Youth and Digital Ministry at Northwest Hills UMC, envisions a church where belonging leads to shared participation in God’s mission.

“One hope I am carrying for the future of The United Methodist Church is that we may be a living embodiment of the truth all people belong at Christ’s table,” Steele said.

Rio Texas representatives Tyler Steele, Rev. Dr. Aaron Gonzalez, and Rachel Wright gather in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, for the 2026 United Methodist Leadership Gathering, October 20–24.

Steele emphasizes that people of every background, race, gender identity, sexuality, and political affiliation are called into one Body and equipped by one Spirit for God’s mission of mercy, justice, and reconciliation.

“In doing so, I pray that we may be the good news the world needs to hear by leading a global movement that chooses curiosity over fear, compassion over contempt, and reconciliation over tribalism,” Steele said.

Wright, Rio Texas’ lay delegate, brings a perspective shaped by the connection’s influence on her own life and faith.

“The United Methodist connection helped make me who I am. It has formed my faith, widened my world, and taught me that what God makes possible among and through us can transform the world in ways none of us could imagine alone,” Wright said.

She also poses a question about how the church listens for God’s leading: “From local church meetings to General Conference, we know how to make motions. I wonder what might happen if we gave as much care to discerning how the Holy Spirit moves us.”

Her experiences with the church this year—in Austin, the Valley, and Kenya—have deepened her commitment to bringing often-overlooked perspectives into the conversation.

“As we get to work around these tables, I am trying to bring everyone with me, especially those whose experiences are too often held at the edges of the church’s attention,” she said. “The most vulnerable among us have always been at the heart of God’s good news. How could our dreams for the church’s future begin anywhere but there?”

As Gonzalez, Steele, and Wright join these conversations, people across Rio Texas are invited to pray for them and all who are gathering: that they will listen deeply, learn from one another, and remain open to the movement of the Holy Spirit.

Follow the gathering through livestreamed worship and plenary sessions on the Leadership Gathering page on ResourceUMC where you can also find the program and additional resources