United Methodists are gearing up for the third annual Change the World event on May 19-20, 2012 to build community locally and fight malaria globally.

Americans believe Christmas is the most important holiday, followed by Independence Day, Thanksgiving and Easter, according to a new holiday survey commissioned by United Methodist Communications.

About 62% of adult Americans have a favorable impression of United Methodists. That’s according to a new survey from LifeWay Research that looks at perceptions of faith groups among adults in the U.S.

United Methodist Communications and the United Methodist General Board of Church and Society are urging communities to Rethink Church with America’s Sunday Supper on January 15, 2012, in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and Human Relations Day.

The United Methodist Church will get a surge of support for its work to eliminate deaths and suffering from malaria in Africa, thanks to a $3 million supplemental grant from the United Nations Foundation.

Mobile device users can easily access information about The United Methodist Church on the go with a new free United Methodist application.

A new website aims to equip and empower local churches to become vital and healthy congregations. UMVitalCongregations.org is designed to help churches move through a process of evaluation and assessment as they begin to set goals, and then find key resources to help them achieve those goals.

Themed around Africa University, the official 2012 United Methodist Program Calendar—now available from United Methodist Communications—offers planning pages full of information at-your-fingertips and puts the spotlight on Africa University students who are using education to bring hope to the continent.

KimAnn Shockley has been named coordinator of a new project to discover more about the renewal of existing local churches and the practices that lead to transformation.

Thousands of United Methodists will team up to make a positive difference—locally and globally—during the second annual Change the World event on May 14-15, 2011.

United Methodist bishops from Africa, Europe, Asia and the U.S. will gather in St. Simons Island, Ga. for the semi-annual Council of Bishops meeting May 1-6; 113 bishops are expected to attend.

Right now, in the heart of New York City, a message of need is being broadcast to more than 1.5 million people who pass through Times Square every day. Imagine No Malaria, a ministry of The United Methodist Church, is airing a video message to underscore the urgent need to fight a disease that claims nearly a million lives each year.

On World Malaria Day, The United Methodist Church’s Imagine No Malaria campaign is using technology to fight mosquitoes with the launch of a new mobile application that keeps mosquitoes away and also raises funds for the fight against malaria.

Imagine No Malaria, a ministry of The United Methodist Church, has produced a documentary to increase awareness and action against malaria, a disease that kills a child in Africa every 45 seconds.

Imagine No Malaria, a ministry of The United Methodist Church, is pleased to introduce actress Pauley Perrette to its growing community of supporters working together to reduce deaths caused by malaria.

Petitions for consideration by the 2012 General Conference may be submitted to the Petitions Secretary beginning April 1 and continuing through September 27, 2011.

Bishop Larry M. Goodpaster, President of the Council of Bishops, is urging United Methodists to pray for the victims of a devastating earthquake and tsunami that occurred last week, and encouraging support of relief efforts through the United Methodist Committee on Relief.