Category: Events

Concert by Renowned Organist and Composer Mark A. Miller

Concert by Renowned Organist and Composer Mark A. Miller

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Renowned Methodist organist and composer Mark A. Miller will be in concert in Rome on Friday, 9 January at 19:00/7:00 PM.

The concert is organized by the Methodist Ecumenical Office and the Caravita Community. 

The concert will take place on Friday, 9 January at 19:00/7:00 PM at the Oratory of Francis Xavier of Caravita, located at Via del Caravita 7, 00186 Rome.

The concert is free and open to the public.

About Mark A. Miller
Mark Miller believes that everyone is a child of God and that music is instrumental in healing the world.  He also adheres to Cornel West’s belief that “Justice is what love looks like in public.”

Since 2006 he has been a Lecturer in Sacred Music at Yale’s Institute of Sacred Music and Divinity School.  Mark is Professor of Church Music, Director of Chapel, and Composer In Residence at Drew University in Madison NJ, and is the Minister of Music of Christ Church (UCC & American Baptist) in Summit, New Jersey. Mark believes that music, social justice, and the beloved community are inextricably tied.

His hymns and anthems are sung by communities of faith throughout the world and are published by Choristers Guild, Hal Leonard, Hinshaw, Abingdon Press, Santa Barbara Music Publishing and others. Mark’s popular compositions for pipe organ are published by GIA and Morningstar. His songbook “Roll Down Justice! Sacred Songs & Social Justice”, was published in 2014 by Choristers Guild. His album, “Imagine the People of God”, is available on itunes.

In 2017 he was appointed to serve on the Hymnal Revision Committee of The United Methodist Church. Miller spends a portion of the year traveling the country, often with his band S2C (Subject to Change), leading worship and workshops, preaching and presenting concerts focused on creating community and advocating for social justice. Overseas he has led choirs and performed in Sweden, South Africa, Austria, Russia, and the Baltic states.  

Mark is a lifelong United Methodist. He is the grandson, son, brother, uncle, and cousin to clergy in The United Methodist Church.

Mark is a graduate of Julliard (M.Mus. in Organ Performance) and Yale University (B.A. Music) and was Assistant Organist and Music Associate at The Riverside Church from 1999-2001 and Director of Contemporary Worship at Marble Collegiate Church from 2002-2007, both in the city of New York.

When he’s not working, Mark is home in Plainfield, NJ, with his husband Michael Murden. They have two adult children – Keith and Alyse. 

Public Conversation with Bishop Knut Refsdal of Norway on 26 November

Public Conversation with Bishop Knut Refsdal of Norway on 26 November

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The Methodist Ecumenical Office Rome and the Caravita Community invite you to a public conversation with Bishop Knut Refsdal on Wednesday, 26 November 2025 at 7:00 PM/19:00.

The event will be held in a conversation-style format as Bishop Knut shares on the theme “the Church in Search of New Vitality, Purpose, and Hope,” sharing how Methodists in northern and eastern Europe are discerning in the Holy Spirit their future and working for a church with a witness marked by renewed vibrancy and hope.

The event will be one hour and will be held in English.

The event will be held on Wednesday, 26 November 2025 at 19:00 (Rome) at the Oratory of Francis Xavier of Caravita, located at Via del Caravita 7, 00186 Rome.

About Bishop Knut

Born in Porsgrunn, Norway, Bishop Knut is the bishop of the Nordic, Baltic, and Ukraine Area of The United Methodist Church, overseeing Methodists in 6 nations in northern and eastern Europe. He was elected and consecrated bishop in April 2025. Bishop Knut was the general secretary of the Christian Council of Norway (2012-2018) and UMC district superintendent in eastern Norway (2018-2023). He was the pastor in the Church of Norway parish in Jeløy, Norway, immediately prior to his episcopal election and consecration; The United Methodist Church and Church of Norway have a full communion agreement which authorizes the interchangeability of ministers between the churches.

Videos from WMC Webinars on 1700th Anniversary of the Council of Nicaea

Videos from WMC Webinars on 1700th Anniversary of the Council of Nicaea

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The 1700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea is being marked in 2025 as an important commemoration of the common Christian faith shared among the various Christian confessions. In March 2025, the World Methodist Council through an ad-hoc committee chaired by former WMC vice president Ms. Gillian Kingston organized three webinars to reflect on the Council of Nicaea and its importance for the worldwide Methodist/Wesleyan family. The series “A Wesleyan Response to Nicaea: Reflections on Faith, Unity, and Mission” had three regional foci – the Americas, Asia and the Pacific, and Africa and Europe.

Asia and the Pacific

The webinar was held on 3 March 2025.

Speakers:

  • Prof. Te Aroha Rountree, Methodist Church in New Zealand Te Hāhi Weteriana o Aotearoa, Trinity Methodist Theological College, Auckland, New Zealand
  • Rev. James Bhagwan, Methodist Church in Fiji, General Secretary of the Pacific Conference of Churches
  • Rev. Dr. Hermen Shastri, Methodist Church Malaysia, former vice moderator of the WCC Faith and Order Commission
  • Rev. Dr. Lisette Tapia Raquel, The United Methodist Church, Union Theological Seminary, Manila, Philippines

Moderator: Revd Dr Seferosa Carroll, Uniting Church in Australia, United Theological College, North Parramatta, Australia

The Americas

The webinar was held on 4 March 2025.

Speakers:

  • Rev. Dr. Blanches de Paula, Methodist Church Brazil, Methodist University, Sao Paulo,Brazil
  • Rev. Dr. Pablo Rubén Andiñach, Methodist Church Argentina, Universidad del Centro Educativo Latinoamericano, Rosario, Argentina
  • Prof. Sarah Lancaster, The United Methodist Church, Methodist Theological School in Ohio, Columbus, OH, USA
  • Prof. Gladson Jothanna, Church of South India, Drew University, Madison, NJ, USA

Moderator: Rev. Dr. Edgardo Colon-Emeric, The United Methodist Church, Duke Divinity School, Durham, NC, USA

Africa and Europe

The webinar was held on 18 March 2025.

Speakers:

  • Rev. Jackline Makena, Methodist Church Kenya, St. Paul University, Limuru, Kenya
  • Prof. Simangaliso R. Kumalo, Methodist Church Southern Africa, University of Kwazulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, SA
  • Rev. Dr. Jane Leach, Methodist Church Britain, Wesley House, Cambridge
  • Rev. Dr. Sergei Nikolaev, The United Methodist Church, Moscow Theological Seminary, Moscow, Russia

Moderator: Revd Dr Martin Mujinga, Methodist Church Zimbabwe, Africa Methodist Council, Accra, Ghana

The Methodist Ecumenical Office Rome provided technical support for the webinar series.

Photo by A. Hilbert/WCC

Ecumenical Prayer Service for the Sick and for Pope Francis – 21 March 2025

Ecumenical Prayer Service for the Sick and for Pope Francis – 21 March 2025

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The Methodist Ecumenical Office Rome, the Reformed Churches Ecumenical Office Rome, and the Anglican Centre in Rome with the Taize Community, the Office of Ecumenism and Dialogue of the Vicarate of Rome, and the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity of the Holy See cordially invite you to an ecumenical prayer service for the sick and suffering and for the health of Pope Francis on Friday, 21 March 2025 at 15:00 at the Church of San Lorenzo in Piscibus (Centro Internazionale Giovanile San Lorenzo). The church is located at Via Padre Pfeiffer Pancrazio 24, 00193 Roma.

The ecumenical prayer service will be led by Br. Matthew, Prior of the Taize Community, along with other Taize brothers using the Taize Community’s liturgy and music.

There is no parking available on-site, though there are several parking garages in the vicinity.

Please note that there will be a photographer/ videographer present for communication purposes. Kindly let us know if you prefer not to appear in any communications about the event.

The event is open to the public.

A Wesleyan Response to Nicaea: Reflections on Faith, Unity, and Mission on the 1700th Anniversary of the Council of Nicaea

A Wesleyan Response to Nicaea: Reflections on Faith, Unity, and Mission on the 1700th Anniversary of the Council of Nicaea

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The World Methodist Council invites you to three special webinars to mark the 1700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea and the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed as scholars reflect on the anniversary and the role of the creed in the 21st century.

Register for the webinars

This year marks the 1700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea, a council of church leaders and others called by the Emperor Constantine to reflect on the being of Jesus Christ. Controversy about the exact nature of Christ – human or divine or both? – was threatening to divide the Empire, and Constantine and his imperial colleagues were concerned. Thus, there were mixed motives for this event – concern for the faith, for the unity of the church, undoubtedly, but also issues of power, ambition, control… However, out of this gathering, and a subsequent gathering at Constantinople in 381 AD, emerged one of the great Creeds of the church – the Nicaean-Constantinopolitan Creed, the creed in the words of which we, together, as the people of God, affirm the Christian faith: “We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty…in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God…in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life.”

Under the title “A Wesleyan Response to Nicaea: Reflections on Faith, Unity and Mission”, the speakers will be invited to consider the historical complexity of the 325 AD gathering at Nicaea; the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed as an agreed statement of faith by Christians of many traditions and denominations; what may be the role, if any, of creeds in the twenty-first century, all of this from a Wesleyan perspective.

March 3 (with focus on Asia and Pacific) 07:00 to 08:30 GMT (15:00 Manila, 16:00 Seoul, 20:00 Auckland)

Speakers:

  • Prof. Te Aroha Rountree, Trinity Methodist Theological College, Auckland, New Zealand
  • Rev. James Bhagwan, Methodist Church in Fiji, General Secretary of the Pacific Conference of Churches
  • Rev. Dr. Hermen Shastri, Methodist Church Malaysia, former vice moderator of the WCC Faith and Order Commission
  • Rev. Dr. Lisette Tapia Raquel, United Methodist Church, Union Theological Seminary, Manila, Philippines

Moderator: Revd Dr Seferosa Carroll, United Theological College, North Parramatta, Australia

March 4 (with focus on the Americas) 20:00 to 21:30 GMT (15:00 Eastern, 09:00 March 5 Auckland) – Translation to Spanish will be available

Speakers:

  • Rev. Dr. Blanches de Paula, Methodist Church Brazil, Methodist University Sao Paulo,Brazil
  • Rev. Dr. Pablo Rubén Andiñach, Methodist Church Argentina, Universidad del Centro Educativo Latinoamericano, Rosario, Argentina
  • Prof. Sarah Lancaster, United Methodist Church, Methodist Theological School in Ohio, Columbus, USA
  • Prof. Gladson Jothanna, Church of South India, Drew University, Madison, NJ, USA

Moderator: Rev. Dr. Edgardo Colon-Emeric, United Methodist Church, Duke Divinity School, Durham, NC, USA

March 18 (with focus on Europe and Africa) 14:00 to 15:30 pm GMT (09:00 Peru, 10:00 Eastern, 15:00 Rome, 17:00 in Moscow and Nairobi)

Speakers:

  • Rev. Jackline Makena, Methodist Church Kenya, St. Paul University, Limuru, Kenya, Vice Moderator of the WCC Faith and Order Commission
  • Prof. Simangaliso R. Kumalo, Methodist Church Southern Africa, University of Kwazulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, SA
  • Rev. Dr. Jane Leach, Methodist Church Britain, Wesley House, Cambridge
  • Rev. Dr. Sergei Nikolaev, The United Methodist Church, Moscow Theological Seminary

Moderator: Revd Dr Martin Mujinga, Methodist Church Zimbabwe, General Secretary of the Africa Methodist Council, based in Accra, Ghana

Register for the webinars