Andy Smith Appointed Interim District Superintendent of Capital District

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Robert Schnase, bishop of the Rio Texas Annual Conference, announces the interim appointment of Rev. Andy Smith as District Superintendent of the Capital District. Smith will follow Bishop Laura Merrill, who was assigned to the Arkansas Annual Conference last week.

The interim appointment of Rev. Andy Smith allows Rio Texas cabinet and Bishop Schnase time to process the finding of a superintendent for the Capital District. Smith previously served as District Superintendent for the Hill Country and West districts.

Below is a statement from District Superintendent Andy Smith to the Capital District:

I am so happy and thrilled for our sister Laura Merrill upon her election and consecration as bishop. So, when Bishop Schnase called to ask me to serve as interim Superintendent for the Capital District, I feel honored and blessed to say “yes.” I want to do what I can to make a smooth transition for Laura, and for the pastors and churches of the district as we prepare for the next season of ministry.

Robyn and I moved to Austin earlier this year upon my retirement after a 31-year career as a pastor and district superintendent. I spent about fifteen of those years in the former Austin District. In fact, we are both native Austinites, having graduated together from Anderson High School.

We are active members of Saint John’s UMC. Both of our adult children, and our three granddaughters, live in Austin, as well.

I look forward to serving the churches of the Capital District for the next several months.

Robert Schnase to Return to Rio Texas Conference as Episcopal Leader

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HOUSTON - On the Thursday evening of the 2022 South Central Jurisdictional Conference, it was confirmed that Bishop Robert Schnase will continue as the Episcopal leader of the Rio Texas Conference. Schnase will also serve as the Episcopal leader for the New Mexico Conference.

This announcement was made when the SCJ Committee on the Episcopacy reported the assignments of the Bishops within the South Central Jurisdiction.

The new SCJ Bishop assignments are:

  • Arkansas Annual Conference – Bishop Laura Merrill

  • Central Texas Annual Conference – Bishop Ruben Saenz

  • North Texas Annual Conference - Bishop Ruben Saenz

  • Great Plains Annual Conference - Bishop David Wilson

  • Louisiana Annual Conference - Bishop Dee Williamston

  • Missouri Annual Conference - Bishop Robert Farr

  • Northwest Texas Annual Conference - Bishop Jimmy Nunn

  • Oklahoma Annual Conference and Oklahoma Indian Missionary Annual Conference - Bishop Jimmy Nunn

  • Rio Texas Annual Conference - Bishop Robert Schnase

  • New Mexico Annual Conference – Bishop Robert Schnase

  • Texas Annual Conference - Bishop Cynthia Fierro Harvey

These Episcopal Assignments will begin January 1, 2023.

“It is an honor and a privilege to return to the Rio Texas Conference,” stated Bishop Schnase. “I will continue to serve two conferences with God’s guidance and a lot of prayer. The people I have met the past six years in this conference are true servant leaders and I look forward to our continued ministry partnership. Rio Texas is my home and I’m energized by this reassignment.”

Bishops are elected for life and serve in their assignment until retirement (required by the Book of Discipline to be the jurisdictional conference following their 68th birthday). Bishops are elected at Jurisdictional Conference and then are assigned to Episcopal Areas, which may include one or more Annual Conferences, within that Jurisdiction for a four-year term. Due to the pandemic and the rescheduling of the South Central Jurisdictional Conference, delegates will meet again in July 2024. Therefore, some assignments will be for two years.

During the 2022 South Central Jurisdictional Conference, delegates from the twelve annual conferences have gathered under the theme “Together in Christ; Rooted in Love.” They heard reports and voted on business matters and worshiped together.

South Central Jurisdiction Elects Laura Merrill as Bishop

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HOUSTON - The Rev. Laura Merrill, Capital District Superintendent in the Rio Texas Conference, has been elected as bishop in The United Methodist Church’s South Central Jurisdictional Conference.

Delegates elected Rev. Merrill on November 2, 2022 at the jurisdiction’s meeting in Houston, Texas, on the first ballot. She received 99 votes.

“It is a profound honor to be elected by colleagues to serve as a bishop in The United Methodist Church,” stated Merrill. “It is a critical time in the denomination and I look forward to offering my gifts and graces to a conference. With God’s help, we will work to create a fruitful United Methodist Church where the focus is on mission and ministry. I would like to thank the Rio Texas Conference for supporting me in numerous ways over the years. Rio Texas will always be home.”

"I am thrilled for Laura. She will serve The United Methodist Church with great distinction and courage," said Rio Texas Annual Conference Bishop Robert Schnase.

Merrill was elected by the South Central Jurisdiction’s total delegates, an equal number of United Methodist clergy and laity, from the eight states forming the South Central Jurisdiction. The assignments of bishops in the South Central Jurisdiction will be announced once all bishops are elected, usually Friday evening.

Her service as bishop begins January 1, 2023. In the United States, bishops are elected to serve for life tenure and assigned to serve in 4-year periods until retirement.

Rev. Merrill was the endorsed candidate of Rio Texas Conference. She was ordained an elder on June 1, 1999. She has served in numerous leadership roles in the Rio Texas Conference and in the United Methodist connection. She has served as a member of the Committee on Episcopacy and the Commission on General Conference. She is a former member of the General Commission on the Status and Role of Women and the General Board of Higher Education and Ministry. She currently serves as the board secretary for the Texas Methodist Foundation. She was previously endorsed as an episcopal nominee by the Rio Texas Delegation in 2022 and by the South Central Jurisdiction Women’s Leadership Team in 2020.

Rev. Merrill received her undergraduate degree in International Studies from Southwestern University and her Master of Divinity from Candler School of Theology at Emory University where she was named the valedictorian. She is a member of Omicron Delta Kappa and Theta Alpha Kappa honor societies. She is the proud mother to Caroline and Joe. She enjoys music, theater, thrift shops, and daily walks with her dog.

In The United Methodist Church, bishops are ordained elders who are called to “lead and oversee the spiritual and temporal affairs of The United Methodist Church.” Bishops, in consultation with district superintendents, are responsible for appointing clergy. They also preside at annual conferences, jurisdictional conferences and General Conference, the denomination’s top lawmaking assembly.

A Reminder Regarding Discerning Pathways - Disaffiliation

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Friends,

As summer calendars and ministries are in full bloom, I truly pr­­­ay you can find some time to rest and enjoy family. Even as I have spent time in retreat, I have noticed VBS events, UM ARMY work, and mission trips occurring in the conference. I am grateful for each of you and thank God for your ministry. 

I would like to give further clarifying statements around our Discerning Pathways disaffiliation process in the Río Texas Conference. Some in our conference believe there is a need to rush or press this process since ¶2553 mentions a deadline. Please know that the disaffiliation guidelines provided by our trustees indicates using the same process even after the expiration of ¶2553.  The citation from page 5 of our Discerning Pathways – Disaffiliation document reads as follows:

Since ¶2553 is no longer valid after December 31, 2023, disaffiliations after that date will be handled under ¶2548 with the process outlined above required for the necessary bishop’s approval. This includes a 2/3 vote of the charge conference, a period of discernment, and apportionment and liability payments

Since Annual Conference, we have had only a handful of churches request to begin this process and I appreciate the spirit and sincerity offered in such requests. It is the Río Texas Discerning Pathways disaffiliation document that will be used in our conference, not information or resources from other areas. Kindly listen to a portion of my annual conference presentation that addresses these guidelines disaffiliation.

A few reminders from my address:

First, the default is that every congregation remains a part of The United Methodist Church and in connection to the Río Texas Conference. Only those congregations who believe they absolutely cannot continue in relationship have any need to consider disaffiliation. Our conference policy is different from most others because it explicitly invites every congregation, traditionalist, moderate, or progressive to remain a part of the conference. There is room for you and your church in our conference.

Second, there is no rush. Disaffiliation is full of implications; it is a serious decision. Even if your church is inclined to leave the Río Texas Conference, you can wait until GC 2024 for something like the protocol of 2020 to be adopted.  Part of inaccurate information is that this must be done before the end of 2023. There will always be a means by which a congregation can disaffiliate.

I hope this information helps clarify what can be misconstrued. Once again, please know I appreciate each one of you and all you do for the purposes of Christ and The United Methodist Church.

Robert Schnase
Bishop
Río Texas Annual Conference