Bishop Lanette Plambeck delivers the 2026 Episcopal message. Photos by jlynn studios.

“Be ecclesia people who get in the way. Get in the way of fear, hopelessness, injustice, hatred, anything that diminishes others in Christ,” Bishop Lanette Plambeck, resident bishop, Dakotas-Minnesota Area of The United Methodist Church, told those gathered for opening worship at the 33rd Session of the Dakotas Annual Conference.

In the 2026 Episcopal Address, Bishop Plambeck shared the meaning of Ecclesia (or ekklesia) with the 365 in attendance in Bismarck, North Dakota. It is an ancient Greek and Latin term that translates to "an assembly called out".

“When God gathers people, we expect that God is up to something. God is forming us,” stated Bishop Plambeck.

Bishop Lanette reminded attendees of values that ground the ministry of the Dakotas Conference: The Great Commandment, Great Commission, Great Requirement, and Great Proclamation.

The Great Commandment— The Great Commandment is shared in Matthew 22: 36-40, "Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?" He said to him, "'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets."

The Great Commission—To go forth and make disciples, preaching, teaching, reaching, baptizing.  In Matthew 28:16-20, we find The Great Commission: "Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely, I am with you always, to the very end of the age."

The Great Requirement—To do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with God is the Great Requirement, from Micah 6:7-8, "Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams with ten thousand rivers of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? He has told you, O mortal, what is good, and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice and to love kindness and to walk humbly with your God?"

The Great Proclamation— Jesus commanded to “Go into all the world and proclaim the good news to the whole creation. (Mark 16:15)

Plambeck noted the writings of Paul, from prison. “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.” (Philippians 4:8)

Participants were asked to ponder truth in the context of the world today. Bishop Plambeck shared how her recent visit to Fort Totten Indian Boarding School, North Dakota, was about truth.

“We need to allow ourselves to be formed in truth. To dwell on the truth of others. What we dwell on eventually forms us,” she stated.

Mildred Hall gave the bishop's delegation a personal tour of the Fort Totten Indian Boarding School, sharing personal stories about the treatment of the children.

Bishop Lanette listened to the elders of Fort Totten as they recalled stories of boarding school experiences. Mildred Hall spoke of how the children at boarding schools were asked to surrender their hair, dress, language, and traditions.

“She spoke the truth. It causes one to wonder how many losses can a child be expected to carry before they are broken? There we were on the prairie that stretches as far as the eye can see. A place where there is deep, deep beauty; deep, deep poverty. There is silence. The kind of silence that makes you listen more carefully and not forget,” described Bishop Lanette.

Stories about the boarding schools and the recent Metro Surge in the Twin Cities have raised questions, said Bishop Plambeck. “Who belongs?  What is happening to our neighbors? Who are we becoming?”

“I arrived at Fort Totten as a disciple carrying questions about identity, belonging, people with power deciding who belongs. Standing on the sacred grounds listening to the boarding school stories, I realized these are not new questions. These questions have existed for generations,” Bishop Plambeck told attendees.

She encouraged those assembled not to look away from the truth but to listen and learn.

“History lives in us. Listen with all your heart to Paul’s words, ‘Think on these things because discipleship begins with truth.’ We assemble, not to look away but to tell the truth and be formed by God,” said Bishop Plambeck.