Roots 1736 - 1816
The United Methodist Church shares a common history and heritage with other Methodist and Wesleyan bodies. The lives and ministry of John Wesley (1703-1791) and his brother, Charles (1707-1788), mark the origin of their common roots. Both John and Charles were Church of England missionaries to the colony of Georgia, arriving in March of 1736.It was their only occasion to visit America. Their mission was far from an unqualified success, and both returned to England disillusioned and discouraged, Charles in December 1736, and John in February 1738.
Both of the Wesley brothers had a transforming religious
experiences in May 1738. In the years following, the Wesleys succeeded in
leading a lively renewal movement in the Church of England. As the Methodist
movement grew, their ministry spread to the American colonies as some Methodist
made the voyage to the New World and brought the Methodist Doctrine with them.
The common core of Christian beliefs are the foundation of our faith:
The reality of God
The authority of the Bible
The role of the church as the body of Christ
The reality of the Holy Spirit as a divine presence in our lives
God's act of salvation through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus
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Organized Methodism in
America began as a lay movement. Among its earliest leaders were Robert
Strawbridge, an immigrant farmer who organized work about 1760 in Maryland and
Virginia, Philip Embury and his cousin, Barbara Heck, who began work in New York
in 1766, and Captain Thomas Webb, whose labors were instrumental in Methodist
beginnings in Philadelphia in 1767. African Americans participated actively in
these ground breaking and formational initiatives though much of that
contribution was acknowledged without much biographical detail.
To strengthen the Methodist work in the colonies, John Wesley
sent two of his lay preachers, Richard Boardman and Joseph Pilmore, to America
in 1769. Two years later Richard Wright and Francis Asbury were also dispatched
by Wesley to undergird the growing American Methodist societies. Francis Asbury
became the most important figure in early American Methodism. His energetic
devotion to the principles of Wesleyan theology, ministry, and organization
shaped Methodism in America in a way unmatched by any other individual. In
addition to the preachers sent by Wesley, some Methodists in the colonies also
answered the call to become lay preachers in the movement.
The first conference of Methodist preachers in the colonies
was held in Philadelphia in 1773. The ten who attended took several important
actions. They pledged allegiance to Wesley's leadership and agreed that they
would not administer the sacraments because they were laypersons. Their people
were to receive the sacraments of baptism and the Lord's Supper at the local
Anglican parish church. They emphasized strong discipline among the societies
and preachers. A system of regular conferences of the preachers was inaugurated
similar to those Wesley had instituted in England to conduct the business of the
Methodist movement.
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The Churches Grow, 1817-1843
The Second Great Awakening was the dominant religious development among
Protestants in America in the first half of the nineteenth century. Through
revivals and camp meetings sinners were brought to an experience of conversion.
Circuit riding preachers and lay pastors knit them into a connection. This style
of Christian faith and discipline was very agreeable to Methodists, United
Brethren, and Evangelicals, who favored its emphasis on the experiential. The
memberships of these churches increased dramatically during this period. The
number of preachers serving them also multiplied significantly.
Lay members and preachers were expected to be seriously
committed to the faith. Preachers were not only to possess a sound conversion
and divine calling but were also to demonstrate the gifts and skills requisite
for an effective ministry. Their work was urgent and demanding. The financial
benefits were meager. But, as they often reminded one another, there was no more
important work than theirs.
The deep commitment of the general membership was exhibited
in their willingness to adhere to the spiritual disciplines and standards of
conduct outlined by their churches. Methodists, for example, were to be strictly
guided by a set of General Rules adopted at the Christmas Conference of 1784 and
still printed in United Methodism's Book of Discipline. They were urged to avoid
evil, to do good, and to use the means of grace supplied by God. Membership in
the church was serious business. There was no place for those whom Wesley called
the "almost Christians."
The Slavery Question and Civil
War, 1844-1865
John Wesley was an ardent opponent of
slavery. Many of the leaders of early American Methodism shared his hatred for
this form of human bondage. As the nineteenth century progressed, it became
apparent that tensions were deepening in Methodism over the slavery question. In
this matter, as in so many others, Methodism reflected a national ethos because
it was a church with a membership that was not limited to a region, class, or
race, Contention over slavery would ultimately split Methodism into separate
northern and southern churches.
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Reconstruction, Prosperity, and New Issues, 1866-1913
The Civil War dealt an especially harsh blow to The Methodist Episcopal
Church, South. Its membership fell to two-thirds its pre-war strength. Many of
.its churches lay in ruins or were seriously damaged. A number of Its clergy had
been killed or wounded in the conflict. Its educational, publishing, and
missionary programs had been disrupted. Yet. new vitality stirred among southern
Methodists, and over the next fifty years Its membership grew fourfold to more
than two million.
World War and More Change, 1914-1939
In the years immediately prior to World
War I, there was much sympathy in the churches for negotiation and arbitration
as visible alternatives to international armed conflict. Many church members and
clergy openly professed pacifism. However, when the United States officially
entered the war in 1917, pacifism faded. The antecedent churches of United
Methodism were not unlike other American denominations in expressing their
national loyalties.
When the war ended, the churches were again free to expend
their energies in other directions. One of their perennial concerns was
temperance, and they were quick to recognize it among their highest priorities.
They published and distributed large amounts of temperance literature. Members
were asked to pledge that they would abstain from alcoholic beverages. The
United Methodist Church still encourages such abstinence.
There was significant theological ferment during this period.
Liberal Protestant theology, an important school of thought in the late
nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, was questioned. It was attacked by a
militant fundamentalism and later by neo-orthodoxy, which accused it of
undermining the very essence of the Christian message. Since all three of these
theological parties -- liberal, fundamentalist, and neo-orthodox -- were well
represented in the forerunners of United Methodism, it is not surprising that
heated doctrinal disputes were present in these churches.
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Movement Toward Union, 1940-1967
Although Methodists, Evangelicals, and United Brethren each
had published strong statements condemning war and advocating peaceful
reconciliation among the nations, the strength of their positions was largely
lost with American involvement in the hostilities of World War II. Nevertheless,
throughout the war many churches continued to express their disdain for violence
and their support for conscientious objection.
As the war ended, the churches actively worked to secure
world peace and order. Many laypeople, pastors, bishops, and church agencies
supported the establishment of a world organization to serve as a forum for the
resolution of international social, economic, and political problems. In April
1945, their labors contributed to the founding of the United Nations.
During this era, 1940-1967, there were at least three other
important matters that occupied the attention of the churches that now compose
United Methodism. First, they maintained their concern for ecumenicity and
church union. On November 16, 1946, in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, The Evangelical
Church and The United Brethren Church were united into The Evangelical United
Brethren Church, after twenty years of negotiation. At the time of union, the
new church included about 700,000 members. The Methodist Church was also
interested in closer ties with other Methodist and Wesleyan bodies. In 1951 it
participated in the formation of the World Methodist Council, successor to the
Ecumenical Methodist Conferences that were begun in 1881. As expressions of
their wider ecumenical commitment, Methodists and the Evangelical United
Brethren became active members of the World Council of Churches, founded in
1948, and the National Council of Churches, founded in 1950. These assemblies
provided a means for their members to engage in cooperative mission and other
ministries. The two churches also cooperated with I seven other Protestant
denominations in forming the Consultation on Church Union in 1960.
Second, the churches demonstrated growing uneasiness with the
problem of racism in both the nation and the church. Many Methodists were
especially disturbed by the manner in which racial segregation was built into
the fabric of their denominational structure. The Central Jurisdiction was a
constant reminder of racial discrimination. Proposals to eliminate the Central
Jurisdiction were introduced at the General Conferences from 1956 to 1966.
Finally, plans to abolish the Central Jurisdiction were agreed upon with the
contemplated union with the Evangelical United Brethren in 1968, although a few
African American annual conferences continued for a short time thereafter.
Third, clergy rights for women were debated by the churches.
The issue was especially critical in the creation of The Evangelical United
Brethren Church. The Evangelical Church had never ordained women. The United
Brethren had ordained them since 1889. In order to facilitate the union of these
two churches, the United Brethren accepted the Evangelical practice, and women
lost their right to ordination. Methodists debated the issue for several years
after their unification in 1939. Full clergy rights for women were finally
granted in 1956, but it took a decade more before the number of women in
seminaries and pulpits began to grow significantly. When Methodists and the
Evangelical United Brethren united in 1968, the right of women to full clergy
status was included in the plan of union.
As this period ended, negotiations between The Methodist
Church and The Evangelical United Brethren Church were proceeding toward their
anticipated union into The United Methodist Church.
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Developments and Changes Since 1968
When The United Methodist Church was created in 1968, it had
approximately 11 million members, making it one of the largest Protestant
churches in the world.
Since its birth, United Methodism has experienced a number of
changes in its life and structure. It has become increasingly aware of itself as
a world church with members and conferences in Africa, Asia, Europe, and the
United States. While its membership in Europe and the United States has declined
noticeably since 1968, membership in Africa and Asia has grown significantly.
An increasing number of women have been admitted to the
ordained ministry, appointed to the district superintendency, elected to
positions of denominational leadership, and consecrated as bishops. In 1980
Marjorie Matthews was the first woman elected to the Church's episcopacy.
The Church has endeavored to become a community in which all
persons, regardless of racial or ethnic background, can participate in every
level of its connectional life and ministry.
United Methodism has struggled with a number of critical
issues. It has created and refined theological and mission statements. It has
discussed and acted on matters of social importance such as nuclear
power and world peace, human sexuality, the environment, abortion, AIDS,
evangelism, and world mission.
The Church has been concerned with the faithfulness and
vitality of its worship. It published a hymnal in 1989, which included a new
Psalter and revised liturgies for baptism, the Lord's Supper, weddings, and
funerals. Its 1992 General Conference authorized a new Book of Worship, A
Spanish language hymnal, Mil Voces Para Celebrar,
was published in 1996. A Korean language hymnal, Come, Let Us Worship: The
Korean-English United Methodist Hymnal, was published in 2000.
The United Methodist Church represents the confluence of
three streams of tradition: Methodism, the Church of the United Brethren in
Christ, and The Evangelical Association. With other churches that are also
members of the body of Christ, it humbly and gratefully offers up its praise to
God through Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit for creating and sustaining grace.
It seeks further grace as its ministers to the world.
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Basic Christian Affirmation
as expressed in the Book of Discipline
of the United Methodist Church
We hold in common with all Christians a faith in the mystery of salvation in and through Jesus Christ.
We share the Christian belief that God's redemptive love is realized in human life by the activity of the Holy Spirit, both in personal experience and in the community of believers.
We understand ourselves to be part of Christ's universal church when adoration, proclamation, and service we become conformed to Christ.
With other Christians we recognize that the reign of God is both a present and future reality.
We share with many Christian communions a recognition of the authority of Scripture in matters of faith, the confession that our justification as sinners is by grace through faith, and the sober realization that the church is in need of continual reformation and renewal.
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Methodism in Sunnyside
The first Methodist
Episcopal Church in this area was organized at Prosser in 1894. Other points on
the circuit included Kiona (now Benton City), Pasco, Kennewick, Mabton, and
Sunnyside.
The Sunnyside Methodists organized a Sunday School class in 1895 with
a membership of five, headed by Reverend Henry Mays, who also held religious
services.
Methodist activity in the Liberty area began in 1900 with a Sunday School. The
first preaching service was held in 1902, and the church was organized in 1903.
The Reverend B. J. Hoadley of the Sunnyside Methoidist Church was one of the two
organizing pastors.
Other denominations were now forming in Sunnyside, and, since
membership in each of them would be sparse at best, a federation was considered.
Churches considering such a move were the Methodists, Presbyterians, Christians,
Congregationalists, Baptists, and Brethren. But would it work? An early source
tells us: "All had had experience with union churches, with unpleasant memories.
But after taking stock of resources, a spiritual and temporal dearth ever
present, each found itself too weak to start alone. Each group had its own
minister or leader. All preferred federation to a denomination with which they
could not affiliate. A committee of six, one from each of the denominations was
appointed to formulate a basis for cooperation. The committee met weekly for two
months. Their report was finally made and unanimously adopted. The Federation
conducted services in the Emerson School until the new church was built in 1901.
The denominations involved raised the building cost of $3800. The church was
debt free when completed."
Each denomination agreed to stay in the Federation for five
years. A rule put forth in the constitution was that the amount of time given
each church for preaching was regulated by the amount of money each group paid
in.
The Methodists decided to withdraw from the Federation in
1907and build a church at Ninth and Edison. The church was dedicated on January
19, 1908.
By 1955 it was obvious that the church building was not large enough
to accommodate the services demanded of it. Even though the basement had been
further excavated for more kitchen and Sunday School rooms, the whole place was
overflowing. Youth department classes were held in the unheated north side of
the church, and there was a Junior Department class in the kitchen heated only
by the antiquated cook stove. Classes were held in the hallway of Epworth House
(the old parsonage) at the same time that the hallway served as a passageway to
other classes. In addition, the many stairs both inside and outside the building
posed increasing difficulty and hazard to many of the elderly.
In May of that year at the Quarterly Conference a building
committee was elected to consider the best way to resolve the difficulties.
Would it be better to remodel or rebuild? If rebuild, would it be better at the
present location or at another site? If another site, where? After much
prayerful study and consideration the committee was convinced it would be a
mistake to attempt to remodel.
A special congregational meeting was held on October 14,
1956, at which the congregation gave resounding approval to the beginning of a
full scale building program.
In January of 1958 the building which had served as a
parsonage for nearly fifty years was moved to a lot at
318 North 10th.
In 1954, after the church had acquired a new parsonage, this building had been
renamed Epworth House and had been used for Sunday School classes until it was
moved.
March 16, 1958 was a
historic day in the history of Sunnyside Methodist Church for it was the ground
breaking for the present church. District Superintendent Reverend William
Callahan officiated.
The final service in the old church sanctuary, which had
served_ this congregation for over fifty years, was held Sunday, January 25,
1959.
The new church sanctuary was opened on Sunday, February 1,
1959 with three services, two in the morning and a special service in the
afternoon.
On Sunday, May 10, 1959 Bishop A. Raymond Grant, Resident
Bishop of the Portland area of the Methodist Church officiated at the
cornerstone laying and consecration service. Cornerstone laying was conducted
in front of the church at 10:30 a.m., followed by the consecration service in
the sanctuary at 11:00 a.m.
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