Every organization has a structure, and the United Methodist Church is no different. What follows is a brief description of how the United Methodist Church works.

The highest governing body in the United Methodist Church is the General Conference. Consisting of leaders from the national, regional, district and local levels, it meets every four years to discuss and decide upon major policy issues.

Under the General Conference are the Boards and Agencies. They guide the church in missions, discipleship, social concerns, higher education and ministry. Commissions work on the topics of Christian Unity, Religion and Race, and the Status and Role of Women.

Also under the General Conference are five Jurisdictional Conferences, large geographic units that elect bishops and direct
programs on a regional level.

If you'd like to go to the national web site of the United Methodist Church, click on http://www.umc.org. The national church is much more than a bunch of committees. It carries out many ministries that help people. Visit the web site to see what the United Methodist Church is doing on all levels.

Annual Conferences are smaller units, mostly consisting of geographic divisions of states. They're the "working units" of the church in many ways. Central United Methodist Church is part of the Central Pennsylvania Annual Conference. If you'd like to go to the CPC web site, click on http://www.cpcumcumc.org. . On it you'll find information about the missions and other programs sponsored by the conference.

Annual Conferences are divided into Districts, administered by a District Superintendent. Districts sponsor numerous programs and events for their churches and the clergy. Christ Church belongs to the Chambersburg District. To go to this web site, click on: http://www.appleburg.org.

The local church -in our case, Christ UMC is "where the action is" when it comes to helping people become disciples of Jesus Christ.

The Church Council is the highest governing body of the individual church. It consists of elected leaders, chairs of key committees, pastors and staff. It decides policy issues and makes decisions about budget, programs to minister to people, etc.

Many committees are appointed or elected to deal with financial issues, church property, personnel, and ministry programs. In the
United Methodist Church our non-professional volunteers lead us. They serve on committees, work with children and youth, sing
and ring, listen to those who have a burden, and serve in many other ways too numerous to mention here. Without these wonderful people, the ministry of the church would come to a halt. Service on a committee is a wonderful way to make new friends and
add richness and satisfaction to your life.

If you want to see a list of places where you might "plug in" to Christ United Methodist Church contact us at ChristInWaynesboro@embarqmail.com or Rev. Dr. Bob Cook at kerygma5@yahoo.com.