The Bishop: Getting our priorities straight


Bishop Bledsoe

Written: 11/6/2009

BY BISHOP W. EARL BLEDSOE
North Texas Conference

The words from Bishop Alfred L. Norris’ sermon at Africa University this past summer still linger in my heart and mind: “We Care!” Bishop Norris preached the sermon on the occasion of the dedication of the new Health Clinic in Old Mutare, Zimbabwe, Africa. The words lingered as I witnessed firsthand what a difference people who care can make in the world when we unite around a common cause.

That same feeling welled up inside me as I traveled a few weeks ago to New York City to the United Nations Foundation to hear a presentation on the elimination of malaria on the continent of Africa by 2015. Why the urgency? Why now and not later? Well, every thirty (30) seconds, a child in Africa dies from malaria. Only one in five children will live to see their fifth birthday.

 Malaria is treatable and preventable. The only difference b


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Children from Fairfield Children’s Home in Old Mutare, Zimbabwe, prepare to recite a poem teaching them to beware of the malaria mosquito.
etween it being eliminated and prevented is whether there are enough people in the world who care enough to put our discipleship into action. Anyone who has lost a child to death knows how devastating it is to have to go through that kind of pain and agony. Any pastor who has had to comfort a family or conduct the service of a child knows how inadequate words can be in the situation.

The 2008 General Conference of The United Methodist Church adopted global 2009 Christmas season materials available health as one of our four areas of focus in the upcoming quadrennium. I, for one, will do all that I can to join with others in helping to eliminate this disease. I ask you to join me in this worthwhile effort.

Over the next few months you will be hearing and receiving information about an initiative called “Imagine No Malaria.” It is an effort by the entire denomination to do all we can to help save lives and to help alleviate the suffering of God’s children on earth.

“Imagine No Malaria” will expand grassroots programs like the highly successful “Nothing but Nets” campaign and develop comprehensive efforts to promote prevention and education activities, strengthen health delivery systems and train health care workers to treat the disease more effectively.

Why was the UMC approached to be a partner in this effort? One main factor is that the denomination has an intact infrastructure for health delivery systems in Africa. According to my colleague Bishop Thomas Bickerton of the Western Pennsylvania Conference, who chairs the Global Health Initiative for the Council of Bishops, it is our distinctly Methodist system, the connectional system, that binds our churches together around the world in a manner that serves as a model for the campaign.

I pray that we will do all we can to help eliminate malaria through connectionalism!

Open Hearts. Open Minds. Open Doors.   The People of The United Methodist Church