The highlight of the first day of the 12th Session of the General Conference was undoubtedly the Episcopal Election, which resulted in the election of the Rev Dr Gordon Wong as the Bishop of The Methodist Church in Singapore for the next quadrennium. The Rev Dr Wong was elected on the second ballot from a pool of 46 candidates in the election held on the afternoon of 7 Sep 2020.
Bishop Dr Chong Chin Chung congratulated the Bishop-elect and invited representatives from the three Annual Conferences—Mr Guan Yeow Kwang (CAC), Mr Richard Jeremiah (ETAC) and Mr Henry Tan (TRAC)— to pray for him. He then invited Rev Dr Wong to address delegates.
The Rev Dr Wong thanked the delegates for electing him and, when asked to say a few words, quoted the words Jesus put into the mouth of a sinner in a parable: “Lord, have mercy on me, for I am a sinner.” He added, “Let’s join together and pray that God will work through all circumstances to bring forth something good according to His good purposes.”
In his statement to the press, he said, “May the Lord have mercy on us all as MCS faces the future together, serving the community as best we can in these still very uncertain times.”
Responding to a query from Christian news website Salt & Light about his thoughts on the new Bishop-Elect, Bishop Dr Chong shared that the Episcopal Election “was a smooth one despite being conducted online. I am thankful for the Lord’s faithfulness in bringing forth the Rev Dr Gordon Wong as our next Bishop. He is a faithful servant and a courageous leader with a shepherd heart. I am happy to be handing over the reins to him.”
The news of our newly-elected Bishop spread rapidly and Methodists from all 46 churches were quick to share their congratulatory messages and words of affirmation on social media.
Lynn Tan is the MCS Community Communications Manager. / Photos courtesy of the MCS Communications Team