Kenneth Lee Carder
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Kenneth Lee Carder (born November 18, 1940) is a retired American bishop of the
United Methodist Church The United Methodist Church (UMC) is a worldwide mainline Protestant Christian denomination, denomination based in the United States, and a major part of Methodism. In the 19th century, its main predecessor, the Methodist Episcopal Church, was ...
, elected in 1992. Carder distinguished himself as a pastor, a member of Annual Conference and General U.M. agencies, a bishop, seminary professor, and an author.


Birth and family

Born in
Washington County, Tennessee Washington County is a county located in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 census, the population was 133,001. Its county seat is Jonesborough. The county's largest city and a regional educational, medical and commercial center is ...
, Kenneth is one of five children of Allen and Edith Carder. Ken married Linda Miller June 30, 1961. She is a graduate of
Emory and Henry College Emory & Henry University (E&H or Emory) is a private university in Emory, Virginia, United States. The campus comprises of Washington County, which is part of the Appalachian highlands of Southwest Virginia. Founded in 1836, Emory & Henry U ...
. They are the parents of two daughters, Sheri Carder Hood and Sandra Carder Nash, and they have five grandchildren.


Education

Ken graduated with
honors Honour (or honor in American English) is the quality of being honorable. Honor or Honour may also refer to: People * Honor (given name), a unisex given name, including a list of people with the name * Honour (surname), English-language surnam ...
from
East Tennessee State University East Tennessee State University (ETSU) is a public research university in Johnson City, Tennessee. It was historically part of the State University and Community College System of Tennessee under the Tennessee Board of Regents, but since 2016, ...
in 1962, and from
Wesley Theological Seminary Wesley Theological Seminary is a United Methodist Church seminary in Washington, D.C. It was founded in 1882. History Wesley Theological Seminary can trace its roots back to the 1881 meeting of the Methodist Protestant Church's Maryland Ann ...
in 1965. In 1980 he earned a
Doctor of Ministry The Doctor of Ministry (DMin) is a doctorate in religious ministry. It often includes an original research component, and may be earned by a minister of religion while concurrently engaged in ministry. It is categorized as an advanced doctoral de ...
Degree from
Vanderbilt Divinity School The Vanderbilt Divinity School and Graduate Department of Religion (usually Vanderbilt Divinity School) is an interdenominational divinity school at Vanderbilt University, a major research university located in Nashville, Tennessee. It is one of o ...
. He was awarded an honorary Doctor of Divinity Degree from Millsaps College in 2004.


Ordained ministry

Ken was ordained deacon in 1963 by Bishop Roy H. Short. He was ordained elder in 1965 by Bishop H. Ellis Finger, Jr. Prior to his election to the
episcopacy A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of dioceses. The role ...
, Ken pastored churches in
Gaithersburg, Maryland Gaithersburg ( ) is a city in Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. At the time of the 2020 United States census, Gaithersburg had a population of 69,657, making it the third-largest incorporated city and the ninth-most populous communit ...
;
Bristol, Tennessee Bristol is a city in Sullivan County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 27,147 at the 2020 census. It is the twin city of Bristol, Virginia, which lies directly across the state line between Tennessee and Virginia. The boundary be ...
;
Abingdon, Virginia Abingdon is a town in and the county seat of Washington County, Virginia, United States, southwest of Roanoke. The population was 8,376 at the 2020 census. The town encompasses several historically significant sites and features a fine arts a ...
; and Oak Ridge, Tennesseeak Ridge and
Knoxville Knoxville is a city in Knox County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. It is located on the Tennessee River and had a population of 190,740 at the 2020 United States census. It is the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Division ...
, Tennessee. He chaired the Task Force on Genetic Science, which presented its report to the 1992 U.M. General Conference. In addition to dialogue between science and theology, Ken has special concern for prison ministries, racial justice, and ministry with the poor and marginalized. Ken Carder was a delegate to the Southeastern Jurisdictional Conference of the U.M. Church in 1980. He was elected General Conference delegate, 1984–92. He has served in several Annual and General Conference positions, including Chair of the Conference Council on Finance and Administration, a Director of the General Board of Church and Society, and president of the General Board of Discipleship. He was also a trustee of
Emory University Emory University is a private university, private research university in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. It was founded in 1836 as Emory College by the Methodist Episcopal Church and named in honor of Methodist bishop John Emory. Its main campu ...
, and Henry College,
Martin Methodist College The University of Tennessee Southern (UT Southern or UTS) is a public university in Pulaski, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1870, it was a private institution for over 150 years until joining the University of Tennessee System in 2021. It ...
,
Lambuth University Lambuth University was a private Methodist university in Jackson, Tennessee. It was active from 1843 to 2011 and was supported by the Memphis Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church. The university began as the Memphis Conference Fema ...
, and
Millsaps College Millsaps College is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Jackson, Mississippi. It was founded in 1890 and is affiliated with the United Methodist Church. History The college was founded ...
, Rust College, and a member of the Board of Governors of Wesley Seminary. He also served as a Trustee of Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare in Memphis, Tennessee, and Methodist Rehabilitation Hospital in Jackson, MS.


Episcopal ministry

Bishop Carder was elected to the episcopacy in 1992 by the Southeastern Jurisdictional Conference of the U.M. Church. At the time he was the pastor of the Church Street U.M.C. in Knoxville. He was assigned to the
Nashville Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...
Episcopal Area, effective September 1, 1992. He was assigned to the Mississippi Area in 2000, where he served until retiring in 2004. Among the offices he held in the Council of Bishops are the following: chairperson of the Teaching Concerns Committee, Secretary of the Task Force on the Episcopal Initiative on Children and Poverty, and the Council's Laison to United Methodist Seminaries. He authored the Foundation Document for the Initiative on Children and Poverty. He was also a member of the University Senate and chaired Commission on Theological Education. He was selected by the Council to deliver the Episcopal Address at the 2004 General Conference. Academic Ministry Bishop Carder joined the faculty of Duke University Divinity School upon retiring from the active Episcopacy in 2004 where he was named as the Ruth W. and A. Morris Williams, Jr. Professor of the Practice of Christian Ministry. Among the courses taught were the following: Introduction of Ordained Ministry; the Local Church in Mission; Preaching in the Wesleyan Tradition; Prophetic Ministry: Shaping Communities of Justice; Evangelism and Leadership in the Wesleyan Tradition; and Prison Ministry, Restorative Justice, and the Church. Upon retiring from Duke, he taught part-time as Senior Visiting Professor of Wesley Studies at Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary, in Columbia, SC. Bishop Carder is the author of the following books: ''Sermons on United Methodist Beliefs'', Abingdon Press, 1991 ''Who Are We? Doctrine, Ministry and Mission of The United Methodist Church'' Leader's Guide, The United Methodist Publishing House, Revised edition 2001 ''Living Our Beliefs: The United Methodist Way'', Discipleship Resources, Revised edition 2009. ''Grace to Lead: Practicing Leadership in the Wesleyan Tradition,''(Co-authored with Lacey C. Warner), General Board of Higher Education and Ministry, Revised edition 2016 ''Ministry with the Forgotten: Dementia Through a Spiritual Lens'', Abingdon Press, 2019


See also

*
List of bishops of the United Methodist Church This is a list of bishops of the United Methodist Church and its predecessor denominations, in order of their election to the episcopacy, both living and dead. 1784–1807 ;Founders * Thomas Coke 1784 * Francis Asbury 1784 * Richard Whatcoat ...


References

* InfoServ, the official information service of The United Methodist Church.

* The Council of Bishops of the United Methodist Churc

* United Methodist News Service story: ''"Southeastern United Methodists Elect, Assign Bishops,"'' July 20, 1992.


External links


Photo of Bishop Carder
{{DEFAULTSORT:Carder, Kenneth Lee 1940 births Living people United Methodist bishops of the Southeastern Jurisdiction East Tennessee State University alumni Wesley Theological Seminary alumni Duke University faculty 20th-century Methodist bishops