Methodist Council announces nomination of Secretary of the Conference

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The Methodist Council, which is meeting from 15 to 16 October atthe High Leigh Conference Centre in Hoddeston, has agreed tonominate to the Conference the Revd Gareth Powell to serve as theSecretary of the Conference from 1 September 2015. The role is oneof the most senior positions of Church leadership in Methodism,alongside the roles of President and Vice-President of theConference.

Gareth will succeed the Revd Dr Martyn Atkins, who remains in postuntil 31 August 2015. "I congratulate Gareth in this nomination tobe the next secretary of the Conference," said Martyn. "He is aperson of great gifts and I look forward to the next nine monthswhen we shall work together in a time of transition seeking thehealth, unity of benefit of the whole Methodist Church."

Gareth said: "Martyn has helped to create in the Church a freshenthusiasm for God's calling on Methodists to engage joyfully andseriously with mission and evangelism. My commitment to this visionmeans that I want the church to pay careful and consideredattention to its patterns of oversight and pastoral care. In doingso, I hope we will be better resourced and enabled to respond tothe challenges of the Gospel and of contemporary society."

Gareth has been the Assistant Secretary of the Conference since2011 and is currently Head of Governance Support in the ConnexionalTeam. He read theology at Westminster College, Oxford and thenundertook ministerial training at The Queen's College, Birmingham,obtaining an MA in Pastoral Theology before spending time at theGraduate School of Ecumenical Studies, the University of Geneva.Having served in the Coventry Circuit, he was ordained in 1999,when he was stationed to the Cardiff Circuit as a circuit ministerand university chaplain. From 2002-2008 he was Methodist Chaplainand Chaplaincy Coordinator at Cardiff University.

In 2009 he was directly stationed to the Connexional Team to bebased in the Governance Support Cluster as the President'sAssistant. Since 2010 Gareth has been a member of the Council ofCardiff University. He has vast experience of ecumenicalpartnerships and is highly respected in such circles. He is amember of the Council of Christian Unity of the Church of England.He was a member of the Methodist/Roman Catholic Committee from 2001to 2012 and was The Ecumenical Officer of Y Gymanfa from 2005-7. Hehas served on a variety of committees of the Methodist Church.

Notes

1. The Methodist Council meets three times annually toundertake ongoing work on behalf of the Methodist Conference, whichis the governing body of the Methodist Church. The 2015 MethodistConference will take place in Southport from 25 June to 2 July.Visit the MethodistConference website for more information.