Today, we looked towards the future as the new Bishop, Silvio Ceballos, was inducted as the new Bishop of the IEMUE. It was a wonderful celebration and declaration of a church that is so passionate about working collaboratively with one another and with overseas partners. After the pastors of the church and the overseas guests entered the church in procession, there were songs of worship and a sermon by Bishop Pablo Morales, head of the Methodist Church in Panama. Bishop Stanley Moraes from the Methodist church in Brazil and Bishop Pablo Morales then laid hands on Silvio Ceballos, along with Salomon Cabezas, and inducted him as the new head of the church in Ecuador. The congregation was then given opportunity to say a few words to Bishop Silvio, and I brought him greetings from the Methodist Church in Britain and assured him of our support, our solidarity and our love, in spite of the miles that separate us. As a demonstration of our partnership, I gave him a copy of Singing the Faith. Many others followed in their assurances of support to the Bishop in his new role. After the wonderful ceremony, I was able to sit down with the Bishop and some of the church pastors and discuss ways in which we could develop our partnership. Other conversations I have had with several leaders of the church included the possibility of linking the IEMUE's women's federation to MWiB, the youth federation with youth in the Methodist Church in Britain and more. If anyone would like to explore these links please contact us at the World Church Relationships Office, and we would be very happy to discuss this with you. Sandra
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