District superintendent included in process

Friday, July 12, 2002

Dawn Cribbs, Associate Editor

The decision to assign the Rev. Randy Sailors to the southwest district superintendent position was conferred by a panel of eight superintendents according to the Rev. Glenn Loy, one of the eight superintendents.

"I was a part of the decision making process," said Loy, "and I agree with it wholeheartedely."

United Methodist pastors "go where they are sent," explained Loy. The district superintendents discuss placement assignments, giving the consensus opinion to the bishop, who makes the final call.

Thursday, Bishop Rhymes Moncure Jr. of the Nebraska Conference of United Methodist Churches, announced that Sailors was being reassigned to the district superintendent position for the southwest district.

Loy, who declined to reveal his new assignment at this time, said, "I will leave somewhat relunctantly because it has been a fantastic four years. But I am excited about the new assignment as well." Loy will announce his new assignment "at the appropriate time."

Sailors, the senior pastor of one of the state's largest United Methodist congregations has been reassigned to the administrative position in McCook after admitting to downloading pornography.

Sailors will have no regular pastoral duties, but could on occasion fill in for a pastor and conduct services, Moncure said.

Sailors, senior pastor of St. Mark's United Methodist Church in Lincoln since 2000, told church officials that he downloaded the pornography on his office computer. He apologized to his 4,000-member congregation last month.

Moncure stressed that he was convinced that Sailor's conduct was an isolated incident.

Moncure said the pornography was contained in an e-mail link Sailors saw while on the Internet last year.

"In this case, as in many cases, the rumors are more juicy than the reality," Moncure said. "He has done a tremendous job at St. Mark's."

Loy was also very supportive of Sailors, stating, "All of the publicity surrounding his circumstances at St. Mark's have nothing to do with the reality of his ministry. I know that he will do wonderfully in this assignment."

The southwest district that Sailors will oversee includes more than 50 churches. Besides McCook, it also includes the towns of Arapahoe, Cambridge, Curtis, Imperial, North Platte, Minden, Red Cloud and Superior.

Sailors is a native of Pender, Neb. He was out of town and The Associated Press could not reach him for comment.

The United Methodist Church has 9.5 million members nationwide and is the second-largest Protestant denomination in the United States.