 Bishop Kenneth H. Carter currently serves as President of the Council of Bishops.The Bishops of The United Methodist Church, both individually and collectively through the Council of Bishops, provide spiritual leadership to more than 11 million United Methodists in a broad range of settings on four continents, including North America, Europe, Africa and Asia.Since the founding of the Methodist Episcopal Church at the Christmas Conference in Baltimore in 1784, United Methodist Bishops have presided over Annual and Central Conferences (regional areas of the church).