Month: February 2026

Crossing oceans and confronting power: The audacious faith of Dorothy Ripley

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Join us as “Un-Tied Methodism” continues its yearlong series celebrating 70 years of women’s ordination in Methodism.
Long before women’s ordination was formally recognized, Dorothy Ripley was already preaching in bold and radical ways. She crossed the Atlantic Ocean 19 times, chastised President Thomas Jefferson for being an enslaver and was the first woman to speak before Congress.
Dr. Ashley Boggan welcomes Duke University’s Dr. Laceye Warner to explore the remarkable life of this 18th-century evangelist, a woman who navigated institutional resistance and cultural expectations to become known at the time of her death as “perhaps the most extraordinary woman in the world.”

Explore the United Methodist General Commission on Archives and History at ResourceUMC.org/ArchivesandHistory.

Interested in a deep dive into the earliest stories of Methodism? Sign up for a free, online, four-module history course titled “Radicle Methodism: Back to our Roots” at ResourceUMC.org/ArchivesandHistory/Radicle-Methodism.

Listen to other episodes of “Un-Tied Methodism” at UnTiedMethodism.org.

[174] Spirituality on the street with Rev. Tyler Sit

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On this episode of Compass: Finding Spirituality in the Everyday, host Ryan Dunn sits down with Tyler Sit, pastor of New City Church in Minneapolis, to explore how faith communities navigate the complexities of politics, crisis, and community care. Set against the backdrop of heightened ICE activity and community unrest in Minneapolis, Tyler Sit shares firsthand stories of fear and resilience, and how his congregation has transformed both its ministry practices and its spirit of support in response to events in early 2026.

Rev. Tyler Sit is the planting pastor of New City Church in Minneapolis, a second-generation Chinese American, speaker, and author of Staying Awake: The Gospel for Changemakers. He dedicates his work to justice, inclusion, and mobilizing spiritual communities for collective care and transformation.

In this episode:

(00:00) Navigating faith, politics and partisanship
(01:44) Who is Rev. Tyler Sit?
(03:01) How has Operation Metro Surge affected Minnesota and the church?
(04:21) The role of a pastor is to set up blessing
(05:05) Stories of blessing
(09:00) Romans 13 and speaking truth to power
(11:07) Faithful protest
(20:24) Forgetting and rediscovering we are family
(22:40) What the operation is costing Minnesotans
(27:00) A clearer understanding of church
(34:49) Faithful responses from outside Minnesota
(40:10) More episodes to check out!

If this conversation inspired you, don’t forget to like, subscribe, and leave a review. Find more episodes of Compass: Finding Spirituality in the Everyday, brought to you by United Methodist Communications.

www.UMC.org/Compass

[173] Breaking the evangelism stereotype

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Is sharing your faith intimidating? Does the word “evangelism” bring up more anxiety than hope?

Compass dives into the big “E” word—evangelism. Together with Reverend Dr. Stephanie Moore Hand, conference evangelist for the Western North Carolina Conference of the United Methodist Church, we challenge and expand our ideas of what it means to share faith. Rather than pushing formulas, pressure, or awkward encounters, Stephanie Moore Hand paints a picture where evangelism is rooted in authentic relationships, everyday interactions, and showing up with love and presence—whether that’s in a grocery aisle, a park, or even online.

In this episode:
(00:00) Talking about Evangelism
(04:14) Rev. Dr. Stephanie Moore Hand, Conference Evangelist
(05:43) Evangelism 8.0
(07:05) An updated definition of evangelism
(10:07) Our fear of evangelism
(12:33) What is a disciple?
(15:15) Feeling unequipped to share faith
(19:38) Justice work as evangelism
(28:18) AI-assisted evangelism
(31:28) Opening the door to evangelism

Find more episodes of Compass and notes: www.umc.org/compass

Rev. Dr. Stephanie Moore Hand is the Conference Evangelist for the Western North Carolina Conference of the United Methodist Church, a former Fortune 500 executive, nonprofit leader, clergy, consultant, and co-author of Doing Justice Together. Her “Evangelism 8.0” work equips communities to claim their spiritual identity while responding with love and justice in an ever-changing society.