College Union

Rev. Ken Bedell
Associate General Secretary
General Board of Higher Education and Ministry

What are your responsibilities at GBHEM related to campus ministry?

The HE in GBHEM is Higher Education which includes ministry to students who are attending college or university. We have a small staff of only 13 people for all the work that the Division of Higher Education is responsible for. While my most important responsibility is to administer the work we do, with such a small staff every one is involved directly in projects and programs.

GBHEM also has a Division on Ministry. I work very closely with Rev. Mary Ann Moman, the Associate General Secretary of that division. The Division on Ministry supports the ordination process and helps interpret extension ministries like campus ministry to Annual Conferences.

Dr. Jerome King Del Pino is the General Secretary of GBHEM. He coordinates all of the work of the agency and, therefore, has overall oversight of the work we do to support campus ministry.

What is the role of GBHEM related to campus ministry?

Every campus is unique and each ministry on a campus needs to be sensitive to the environment. So, it is not the role of GBHEM to define, direct or control campus ministry. Rather, we have an important function of providing support, encouragement, resources and connections. All of this is within the broader context of the whole United Methodist Church.

What is an example of ways that GBHEM supports campus ministry in the whole United Methodist Church?

This is one of our most important roles. Even though the General Conference says that youth and young people are a priority for the church, there are some church leaders who have not had the necessary experience or background to be able to put that priority into practice. Therefore, it is the role of GBHEM to help Annual Conference leadership, bishops, Boards of Ordained Ministry and the general membership of The United Methodist Church not only understand the importance of campus ministry, but also understand how they can be supportive of campus ministry.

What is the message to the UM leaders?

There are several messages. One is that campus ministry needs to be supported with serious financial resources. But, financial resources are not enough. It is also important that the church be intentional about providing pastors who are equipped and dedicated to campus ministry. Campus ministry needs to be a place where bishops think about appointing their very best clergy leaders. It is also important for Annual Conferences and local churches to integrate campus ministry into the total life of the church.

What is GBHEM doing to get the message out to UM leaders?

One example is the work we do with annual conferences. Under the leadership of Dr. Luther Felder, we have developed a program for annual conferences to carefully evaluate their work in campus ministry. The purpose of this program is not to tell annual conferences or individual campus ministries what they should do. Rather this is a process that makes it possible for an annual conference to look at the big picture as well as determine the specific strengths and weaknesses of individual programs. Any annual conference can request the GBHEM to assist them with a campus ministry audit.

We are also increasing our staff in this area so that we can work directly with not only annual conferences, but also with individual Wesley Foundation and campus ministry committees.

How do you define campus ministry to the church groups you work with?

I believe that campus ministry is much more than making sure that there are religious services and student religious programs on a campus. While the spiritual life of every campus will differ, the role of campus ministry is to foster and encourage the spiritual life of the total campus.

The GBHEM is part of this important ministry when we support the Black College Fund. Our work with the presidents of United Methodist related colleges and universities is part of campus ministry when we provide programs that help them and their staff foster a spiritual environment.

We are also supporting campus ministry when GBHEM develops vocational resources and provides opportunities for student leaders to meet as United Methodist leaders at events such as Student Forum where once a year students from across the country come together for a long weekend.

What are some of the challenges that you see for campus ministry?

I have a great deal of admiration for the creative and serious ministry that campus ministers are involved in. I know that each one faces challenges. I pray every day for God’s continued presence in the work.

I believe that the Wesleyan tradition of The United Methodist Church has an important message for young people who are on college and university campuses. It is a message that begins with Wesley’s understanding of grace as a gift from God that recognizes the goodness in every student.

However, beginning at this point can be a little confusing because young people may not act exactly the way we expect them to or even the way we would like them to. This is where I see the real challenge. For example, I know a number of young people who are deeply committed to Christ, but they have very little interest in the organized church. I believe that the UM Church needs to very quickly reorganize itself so that it is relevant to these young people, but it seems that they have little interest in participating in that reorganization. I think that this needs to be affirmed as well as accepted. After all, it appears that Jesus himself had very little interest in developing an organization or even in transforming organizations that he experienced.

So I see an important role for campus ministers to help the whole UM Church become sensitive to the deep spirituality that many young people have and to help the church move forward so that those young people will find a welcoming home in local congregations when they leave the campus.

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