1. Presented by Pat Loomis 2012 CTC Annual Conference
How Inclusive is CTC?
Presented by Pat Loomis
2012 CTC Annual Conference
Inclusiveness – what does that mean? It is simply respect and equal treatment for all of God’s children. Let’s take a look at how inclusive we are today. Our first look will be at the general population within CTC geographic boundaries. We’ll compare that with the makeup of our congregations. Then we’ll look at how inclusive we are in our clergy ranks. And, finally, we’ll talk about some of the ideas we have to help our church grow into full inclusiveness to be the church Jesus would have us be.

2. General Population
Here is a picture of the racial/ethnic makeup of the general population within our Conference boundaries. As I hope you can see, the whites are the largest group, followed by Hispanics, African Americans, Asians, and the “Combined” group which includes Pacific Islanders, Native Americans, and multi-racial individuals. You may have read in the news lately that over half of the population growth in Texas is now minority groups. The racial/ethnic makeup of our population will continue to evolve.
Note to self: Percentages – White – 58.9
Hispanic – 23.5
African American
Asian – 3.3
Combined – 2.5

3. General Population vs. CTC Membership
Now look at the general population as compared to the MEMBERSHIP in our Conference. The circle on the left shows the overall population in CTC’s geographic area that we just looked at. The circle on the right is our membership. Huh, looks like we have some work to do to be reflective of our community!
Note to self: Membership percentages:
Whites – 94.35
African American – 2.73
Hispanic – 1.29
Combined – 1.12
Asian - .51
African American Asian Hispanic Combined White

4. Racial/Ethnic Representation in Clergy
2000
2006
2012
African American 10 30 35
Asian 1 3 6
Hispanic 8 9
Combined 4
White
459
503
505
Let’s move away from the population numbers and take a look at the clergy in our conference. These figures include retired clergy, so the numbers may be a bit skewed from the CURRENT clergy count. As you can see, each of the racial/ethnic groups has continued to grow from 2000 to 2006 and to the present. Remember the general population figures showed racial/ethnic groups made up 41% of the total population but only 6% of our membership. Today racial/ethnic clergy make up 10% of our total clergy (retired and active). We have made strides in recognizing the gifts and talents of people of color, but we must continue to bring more into our fold and to be vigilant in recognizing the contributions of these outstanding ministers.

5. Gender Representation in Clergy
This slide shows how the relationship of male and female clergy has changed through the years. The female clergy are represented by the orange (or UT color if you prefer) and the male clergy is the maroon (or the A&M color). The trend shows how we have changed from 2000 to 2006, and to the present. Again, the only data we have available includes retirees, so these numbers are somewhat skewed if you’re looking for current clergy only. While the male clergy number has remained reasonably constant, the female clergy number continues to rise. I hope that you will agree that we have something to celebrate here, but obviously still have some work to do. We have some outstanding, talented women in our Conference.
Note to self: – Female 103; Male 374
2006 – Female 155; Male 392
2012 – Female 176; Male 383

6. Clergy Age Breakdown
This shows an age breakdown of our CURRENT clergy. Wow – look at that column on the far right. These are the clergy that are beginning to think about retirement. We must continue to bring brothers and sisters in Christ into ministry to replace those that will be leaving in the next few years. Now, look at the other 2 groups. There’s a ton of potential in these groups and they are the next generations to lead our church. It is incumbent on us to identify their gifts and talents, train and coach them, and guide them into leadership positions.
Note to self: yrs – 21
31-55 yrs – 171
+55 yrs - 129

7. Now What???
Clergy –
Continued focus on awareness of our current reality
Training, mentoring, and support to ensure all clergy reach their potential
Continued awareness of inclusiveness by Cabinet in making appointments
What do we do with this information? I’ve separated our considerations into 2 areas – clergy and membership. For our “in-house” focus, we must first be aware of our current reality to improve. Today, we’ve looked at the makeup of our clergy in the racial/ethnic, gender, and age arenas. That is the first step in “owning” who we are. We realize we should celebrate the improvements we are making in ALL areas of inclusiveness. At the same time, we also see we are not there yet and we have some work to do. We are making progress, but we must continue the journey. We would like to provide training, mentoring, and support to ensure all clergy reach their potential. The Cabinet will have a continued awareness of inclusiveness in making appointments. And, we will continue to monitor our progress in inclusiveness awareness and action.

8. In the area of clergy development and as one of the ways we are living into the Act of Repentance, we want to make available the native American Course of Study preparing Native Pastors for Church ministry. The information about this new clergy leadership development tool is available at the Intentional Faith Development Table of the Center for Mission Support if you’re interested in learning more about this program.

9. Now What???
Membership -
Develop strategies to cross socio-economic barriers
Identify ways to be a church to those on the fringes
Provide ministry settings for families with disabilities
We are putting together a task force of talented professionals who are dedicated to inclusiveness to provide resources to energize and equip the local churches in the mission field. We would like to develop ways to cross barriers that we may have been unsuccessful in crossing in the past. And, we want to address the REAL issues that can make a difference in reaching those who may not feel included in ministry. These initiatives may mean we need to worship and offer ministry in new and innovative ways. To improve, we must continue to change. .

10. If you have any suggestions, please contact me:
Pat Loomis
If you have ideas or suggestions on resources you would like to have to assist you in improving your church’s inclusiveness, please give me a call or me.
If you would like to work on the inclusiveness in your church, the Mission Insight information with the demographic breakdown for your local church area is available at the resource table for the Center for Evangelism and Church Growth to help you identify the ethnic/cultural make-up of your mission field. This information will give you insight in knowing who you can reach out to. Visit that resource table before you leave today!
Let’s keep inclusiveness “front and center” as we continue to grow into the church Jesus would have us be.
I would like to conclude my presentation with a 3 minute video to celebrate the 40th Anniversary of the General Commission on the Status and Role of Women in the United Methodist Church.
Thank you and enjoy the remainder of the conference.