Terri Hord Owens reelected as General Minister and President
Teresa “Terri” Hord Owens was reelected to a second term as General Minister and President of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in the United States and Canada. Hord Owens is the first African American and second woman to lead the Disciples, and the first African American woman to lead a mainline Christian denomination. She is also a DDH and DIvinity School MDiv alumna, and a former Dean of Students at the Divinity School. This spring she was honored as the Divinity School's Alumna of the Year.
Belva Brown Jordan, the Moderator of the Assembly, led a service of installation on August 1. Pictured here, they were joined by Hord Owen's family and the previous General Minister, Sharon Watkins. Hord Owens was charged with continuing a ministry of visionary love, spiritual leadership, prophetic imagination, and ecumenical service. She encouraged the Assembly to “imagine new ways of being church and to stay at the table no matter what we face. Our commitment to staying at the table is grounded in our covenant relationship with God and with one another.”
The vote took place on the final day of the General Assembly of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), which convened in Louisville, Kentucky, from July 29 to August 1, 2023. The nomination process, which was set in motion months ago by the Administrative Committee of the General Board, resulted in the General Board forward her name to the Assembly for consideration. The nomination was readily approved by the Assembly. Read the press release.