Is This the End of the Guarenteed Appointment

Is the guarenteed appointment gone? You judge. You can find more information at: http://calms.umc.org/2012/Menu.aspx?type=Petition&mode=Single&number=303 This petition is from the Study of Ministry(20303-MH-¶337) This paragraph was struck: ¶ 337. General Provisions— 1. All elders in full connection who are in good standing in an annual conference shall be continued under appointment by the bishop unless they are granted a sabbatical leave, an incapacity leave (¶ 357), family leave, a leave of absence, retirement, or have failed to meet the requirements for continued eligibility (¶ 334.2, .3), provided that if the elder is appointed to serve in an affiliated relationship in a missionary conference (¶ 586.4.b) and that appointment is terminated by the bishop who presides in the missionary conference, then the responsibility for meeting this obligation rests with the bishop of the conference of which the elder is a member.19 This was added: In the case that an elder or associate member in good standing is not continued under appointment one of the following steps shall be taken: a) If the elder is not continued because a missional appointment is not available, then the bishop shall recommend the elder to the Board of Ordained Ministry for transitional leave (¶XXX). b) If the elder is not continued because of ineffectiveness then the bishop shall initiate a complaint according to the processes in ¶361 at least 90 days prior to the annual conference. General conference committee amended this way: In paragraph 337.3b strike "a complaint according to the" and replace with "an administrative" Amend by inserting a new paragraph 337.4 as follows: 337.4a: “Each annual conference shall quadrennially name a task force consisting of: four members named by the Conference Lay Leader; at least two clergy members from the Board of Ordained Ministry nominated by the Chair of the Board of Ordained Ministry and elected by the clergy session; a superintendent named by the Bishop; and the Bishop. The task force shall meet annually to develop a list of criteria to guide the Cabinet and Bishop as they make missional appointments. 337.4b: “The Cabinet shall report the following information annually to the Board of Ordained Ministry Executive Committee: 1) those elders, provisional elders and associate members who have not received a full-time missional appointment and the rationale; 2) those elders, provisional elders and associate members who have not received an appointment for reasons of ineffectiveness and the steps which have been taken in the complaint process; 3) statistics by age, ethnicity and gender of elders who have not received a full-time missional appointment; and 4) learnings that have been gleaned as appointment-making is carried out in a new way. This data will also become a part of the agenda of the Committee on the Episcopacy at the conference and jurisdictional levels. This data will also become part of the evaluation of bishops by the Committee on the Episcopacy at the conference and jurisdictional levels.”