September 23, 2013
Pastorgraphs: “We Are Brethren”
It seemed
to me that we have been working on this for a hundred years. Then I learned it
was actually 101 years. It has some very interesting connections, twists and
turns. (Read to the end of this Pastorgraph and you might be surprised.)
“It” is
that our Board of Trustees voted unanimously on Saturday to officially create
Christ United Methodist Ministry Center. (I know, you thought that was a “done
deal”.) When the California-Pacific Conference voted to “discontinue” (close)
Christ United Methodist Church in June 2011, the Conference simultaneously
created Christ United Methodist Ministry Center. Over the past two years we have
meticulously considered our legal and Disciplinary options. Should we dissolve
the old church “corporation” and create a new one? Should we seek our own
501(c)(3) designation (IRS tax exempt status)? What should be the relationship
between the Ministry Center and the three congregations that were once
affiliated with Christ UMC? I am glad we took our time, did not rush out and
create something we would later have to dissolve. It has been a lesson in
patience, and waiting for God’s timing.
It was in
the May 23, 2005 Pastorgraph that I first proposed creation of Christ Ministry
Center in response to an article written by Shane Stanford (who is now Pastor
of Christ UMC of Memphis where I attended the Russian Mission Conference
earlier this year. Shane and I were in the same ordination class in the
Mississippi Conference.)
“The
following article came to me from The Methodist Foundation last week. I find it
to be an informative “wake up call” for urban churches. I also
find it encouraging that we, at Christ UMC, have already begun to address the
issues. Please read, with attention to the phrases I underlined.
Five
Issues Congregations Must Face in the Next 10 Years
By Shane
Stanford (2005)
The
following are five issues identified as “rising Stewardship issues” for
congregations over the next 10 years.
1. The
“Graying of the Church”: As the average age of
congregations continues to rise, the financial implications for the local
church are significant. Increased focus must be placed on educating
younger generations in terms of tithing and sacrificial giving. Other
implications include uncertain futures for corporate pensions, Social Security
issues and personal financial behavior.
2.
Personal
Financial Dysfunction: The consumer and long term
debt of Americans is rising, inhibiting faithful financial participation in the
local church.
3. Technology
Investment: As the culture changes, so do
methodologies… As churches move further into the 21st century, an increase
in technology will become important for effectively communicating the message
and connecting the faithful. This phenomenon will become an issue for
smaller churches as well as larger ones.
4. Capital
Investment for Facility Improvements and Maintenance: In part referring to numbers 1 & 2, facility
concerns will increase in the next 10 years as churches (especially those in
transition) face increased capital costs for improvements and
maintenance. More creative use of facilities, including out/in sourcing
of space will become more commonplace.
5.
The
Other Stewardship Resource Development Question: Time and spiritual gifts join money as the other
crucial elements of stewardship and are also valuable resources in today’s
world. Churches must focus specifically on the calling forth, training
and sending of volunteers in systemic ways to maximize the increasingly
valuable commodity of a person’s time.
We have
already begun to address items #1, #3 and #4. The new model
for us is Christ UMC "Ministry Center", where four
congregations, a half dozen weekday ministries for youth, women, refugees, and
the economically oppressed, plus twelve step organizations who help people win
victories over addictive behavior, unite to do far more together than any of us
can do alone...to the honor and glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Shane was
prophetic, and we saw the handwriting on the wall. A month later (June 2005),
we created The Ebenezer Fund to purchase a new electronic church sign
with the name “Christ United Methodist Church and Ministry Center”.
It was not an attempt to avoid “discontinuance”, but an honest experiment to
transform an aging urban church into a bee-hive of daily ministries focused on
feeding the hungry, quenching spiritual thirst, clothing the naked, caring for
the sick and captives, and welcoming/befriending strangers as Christ taught in
Matthew 25.
Our
attorney sent me a copy of the original Articles of Incorporation filed May 1,
1912 with the California Secretary of State. The original name of the corporation
was “First Church of the United Brethren in Christ of San Diego”. (Notice United
and Christ were part of the original name.) The name has been
amended twice since: (1) to First Evangelical United Brethren Church and then
(2) to Christ United Methodist Church due to denominational mergers.
I am glad
we decided to amend the original articles rather than dissolve that church
corporation and start a new one. I want us to claim our United Brethren
heritage. Did you know?
1.
The
United Brethren in Christ denomination, created in 1800, is the first
indigenous church formed in America. (All others up until that time were
transplanted from mother churches in England and Europe.)
2.
The
UBs and Methodists were always closely aligned in Wesleyan doctrine and polity.
UB Bishops Otterbein and Boehm participated in America’s first Methodist Bishop
Francis Asbury’s ordination, and Asbury in turn officiated at both Otterbein
and Boehm’s funerals.
3.
Milton
Wright (father of the Wright Brothers of Kitty Hawk fame) was a Bishop in the
United Brethren in Christ Church.
4.
The
beautiful original Greek Revival architecture building built by the United
Brethren in San Diego in 1912 still stands at the corner of Third and Robinson.
After the merger of 1946, it became a Free Methodist Church, later an art
gallery, and finally was converted to apartments.
So
everything old is new again. We will file the third amendment to the original
1912 articles of incorporation and officially begin the next chapter in what
has been a rich legacy. The best days of Christ United are yet to come!
Finally,
this Sunday, September 29, I will preach at Exodus Church (10:15 AM). My
sermon will be “Why I am a Methodist” followed by a question and answer time. I
invite everyone to this important service where we will discuss the possibility
of forming a cooperative parish of several congregations, along with their
relationships to The United Methodist Church and Christ Ministry Center. More
about that separate new beginning next week.
Exciting
times! To God Be The Glory.
Devotedly, Bill
Jenkins
From the
Quote Garden:
“Wir sind Brüder (We are Brethren).”
~ Bishop Philip William Otterbein to
Bishop Martin Boehm, May 1800, Lancaster, PA
(thus
forming the first indigenous American denomination (United Brethren in Christ)
and helping start “The Great Awakening” Revival).
Christ United
Methodist Ministry Center proudly traces our roots to the United Brethren in
Christ!
Christ United Methodist Ministry
Center
“Christ
in the Heart of San Diego”
3295
Meade Avenue - San Diego, CA 92116 - (619) 284-9205
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