General Secretary of GBHEM announces Retirement

The Rev. Dr. Greg Bergquist, General Secretary of the General Board of Higher Education and Ministry (GBHEM) of the United Methodist Church, announced his retirement. He also informed that GBHEM and the General Board of Global Ministries (GBGM) will be moving toward greater collaboration, having Roland Fernandes as the common General Secretary after Bergquist’s retirement. GBHEM, GBGM, and UMCOR will remain as separate entities, but this articulation will enable them to collaborate more effectively. Read the joint announcement here.
This decision expands on a joint statement issued in June 2023 to celebrate the 320^th birthday of John Wesley (1703-2023), in which the two General Secretaries of the two general agencies of the United Methodist Church reaffirmed the Wesleyan legacy, emphasized the centrality of grace, and vowed to collaborate in order to uphold the spirit of the movement created by Wesley. The General Secretaries of the General Board of Higher Education and Ministry (GBHEM), Greg Bergquist, and the General Board of Global Ministries (GBGM), Roland Fernandes, issued a statement, A Season for Renewal and a Joint Commitment in which they commit themselves to engage more directly in the task of affirming the Wesley legacy, reinterpreting it, and implementing it more boldly in their theological, missional, and educational work. More details on their statement can be read on their websites: www.gbhem.org and www.umcmission.org.