Rogers-Lowell Area News

Nationally Known Bishop to Speak at FUMC in Rogers September 29-30

A leading advocate for immigration reform and inclusion for the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community will bring her powerful message to Rogers and Northwest Arkansas in September. In her advocacy on immigration concerns, Bishop Carcaño has participated in meetings with President Barack Obama, former head of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano, numerous Congressional leaders, and testified before the Subcommittee on Immigration and Border Security Committee on the Judiciary of the U.S. House of Representatives. She has also participated in United Nations global forums on immigration. She serves as the chair of the United Methodist Council of Bishops Immigration Task Force and leads The United Methodist Church’s global migration efforts.

First United Methodist Church Rogers presents Bishop Minerva Garza Carcaño as featured speaker for their Lewis Lecture Series, September 29 and 30, 2018. Elected in 2004, Minerva Garza Carcaño is the first Hispanic woman to be elected to the episcopacy of The United Methodist Church, the second-largest Protestant denomination in the United States.

Bishop Carcaño will speak on “Immigration Reform in America” at 6:30 pm, Saturday September 29. She will then speak at both the 8:15 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. services Sunday the 30 about “A Way Forward in the United Methodist Church”. All events take place at FUMC Rogers, 307 W. Elm St. in historic downtown Rogers, and are open to the public.

Bishop Carcaño had an early influence on several Northwest Arkansas pastors. First UMC Rogers pastor, Rev. Michael Mattox, says “Rev. Carcaño was a professor at seminary at Southern Methodist University before she was elected to the episcopacy, and was engaging and encouraging to all students”. Rev. Ramiro Lizcano, senior pastor at Grace UMC in Rogers, became acquainted with Bishop Carcaño when they both served in the Texas area. Lizcano says “When I was exploring ministry, she was very inspirational to me and encouraged me to seek a deeper education for ministry."

Established in 1991 by the family of the late Rogers pharmacist John Lewis, the bi-annual Lewis Lectureship Series has featured such speakers as former Surgeon General of the United States Dr. Jocelyn Elders, United Methodist Pastor and U. S. Congressman Dr. Emmanuel Cleaver, and Dr. Mouzon Biggs, former Senior Pastor at Boston Avenue UMC, Tulsa, addressing topics impacting the church and the community, and bringing another dimension of Christian leadership to Rogers and Northwest Arkansas.