For the past four years I have attended West Ohio Annual Conference Sunday-Wednesday at Lakeside and then packed up a few days later for East Ohio Annual Conference Sunday-Thursday also at Lakeside. This was my last year attending West Ohio (for a while) and every year people on both sides ask me what the other side does. So, I thought it worth commenting on.
I had initially considered the idea of writing a blog on East vs. West, but I feel like if you attend conference prepared to compare it or criticize it then you are not going to get the most out of it. I have never been one for critiquing worship (apart from a few whispered comments to my husband from time to time). So, here are some brief reflections on each one.
Since this was my last year (at least for a while) attending West Ohio I decided I would attend every minute of every worship service. Which is much easier to do during West Ohio than it is at East Ohio since the worship services were Monday morning, Tuesday afternoon and Wednesday morning. The morning ones started at the normal conference starting time, which is easier for me than the early East Ohio services (and late evening services) since my son wakes up when I wake up and won’t go to bed without nursing.
The worship services were great. One of the pastors brought his baby to be baptized during the opening worship service which was really beautiful and we sang “Down to the River to Pray” which I love and we sang at my son’s baptism. For many people reading this I do not need to say more than “Bishop Palmer preached” and you will understand how awesome it was. I also appreciated and found meaning in the traditional approach to worship that Bishop Palmer brought and the beautiful words of the liturgy written by a very talented colleague. All of the worship services were great. I was surprised that the Tuesday worship included: remembering clergy and spouses that have died in the past year, retirements, commissioning and ordination all in one service! The business sessions moved pretty quickly. I don’t really understand how West Ohio is so much shorter than East Ohio since it is a bigger conference and we had the professor from St. Paul’s School of Theology do the Bible study sessions. I guess things just moved more quickly, there were fewer reports and those who spoke were brief.
One of the things I have disliked about West Ohio Conference in the past is how impersonal it has felt. This is not due to anything other than the fact that I am new here. Because there is no assigned seating by district as there is in East Ohio and because I did not know anyone in West Ohio before I moved here, I could go about my day without seeing anyone I knew. I thought that was kind of lonely. But, after four years of saying yes to any opportunity for District or Conference involvement, two great cluster groups and new friends things were different. When I walked down the street I was stopped frequently to greet and chat with people I know. I also decided to take part in one of the family activity offerings this year and escorted my son in the kid’s 2K race. If I were to stay in West Ohio I would probably dislike the fact that they do not have childcare or Vacation Bible School like East Ohio does, but because my son is too young for that I appreciated the fun family activities offered. The 2K race was great and I will always remember my son’s victory dance as the crowd clapped when he crossed the finish line.
Another reason why I would not compare the two conferences is because East Ohio has an unfair advantage- it is home. East Ohio is where I retain my conference membership, it is where I grew up, where I used to attend Youth Annual Conference and where the faces of beloved pastors are. Many people say conference is like a family reunion and for me East Ohio literally is. My mom and I share a rented cottage for the week as she is a diaconal minister, my dad has recently become a local pastor, Jeremiah’s grandma is a delegate for her church and his other grandma is a local pastor! So I am certainly never lonely at East Ohio. Besides that I had a much easier time connecting with other young clergy when I was serving in East Ohio which I think may partly be due to the fact that there were fewer of us since West Ohio has two seminaries.
The District Superintendent in my home district has been incredibly welcoming to me and so even though I am sort of displaced, I never feel that way. I have to confess that I missed many worship opportunities at East Ohio this year but I hope that next year will be different when my son is a bit older and it will be easier to get out of the house early and come home later. So I will say this about East Ohio- most of the people who give reports talk too long, the mayflies were back and some of the voting on resolutions frustrated me, but it was still a great conference.
Both East and West Ohio are well-run conferences led by great Bishops. I feel I can say that honestly because I am not currently hoping for a good appointment from either of them. What makes any conference great is not the quality of the videos on the big screens, the lack of amendments to the amendments on resolutions or even the temperature. Rather what makes them great is the presence of the Holy Spirit and just like me, the Holy Spirit sticks around for both.
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