February 27, 2008

OWU Student Earns Coveted Spot at Worldwide Event

Matthew Laferty ’08 also attended the World Methodist Council meeting in Seoul, Korea, in July 2006.

Elected from a pool of 150 candidates at the annual meeting this past June, Matthew Laferty ’08 will serve as a delegate from the East Ohio United Methodist Conference to the worldwide General Conference of The United Methodist Church April 23 through May 2 in Forth Worth, Texas. This is the second General Conference to which Matt has been elected.

“To enter the pool, I had to declare my candidacy and campaign for the position,” says Laferty, who received a majority of votes from the 800 participants at the annual meeting. This year’s General Conference will host a total of 992 delegates from four continents—North America, Europe, Africa, and Asia.

As The United Methodist Church’s highest legislative body, the General Conference meets every four years to approve the Church’s international budget; amend church law and structure; elect members to the Judicial Council, the Church’s highest judicial body, and the University Senate, the higher education accreditation body; and take positions on social issues.

Delegates to the General Conference are assigned to one of 13 legislative committees, with selection based on the delegates’ order of election. Laferty, elected third out of nine layperson delegates in his division, will participate on the Conferences Committee devoted to examining and updating the organizational structure of the Church.

“My mind loves to analyze and examine structures, and I believe that structural changes to the Church can help us in our mission and ministry,” he says. “Ever since I was a child, I remember watching C-SPAN and being fascinated by government.”

Laferty’s hope in attending the General Conference is to help align resources and structures to better facilitate ministry.

“I dream of a [United Methodist] Church that moves beyond fighting and divisiveness to unity in Jesus Christ,” says Laferty. “I dream of a [United Methodist] Church that moves beyond the fortress walls of our church buildings to share the love of Jesus to a hurting and broken world.”

A double major in politics and government and international studies, Laferty’s post-graduation plans include pursuing a master of divinity degree at Yale University, Princeton Theological Seminary, Duke University, Emory University, or Wesley Theological Seminary (Washington, D.C.).

“I certainly think my education [at Ohio Wesleyan] has helped me to better understand government and the political process,” he says, noting that his ultimate goal is to work in a nontraditional role helping people develop systematic theological worldviews and understand the impact of faith on public policy.

– Ann Marcum