Less than a year has gone by since White Rock Church members decided to end their relationship with the Baltimore-Washington Conference of the United Methodist Church (UMC) because they disagreed with the treatment of African American churches and smaller congregations within the denomination.
The congregation was told by Bishop John R. Schol, then the head of the Baltimore-Washington Conference, that if they wanted to break ties they could. If they walked, however, they would have to leave behind the building and the surrounding property even though the UMC neither helped clear, pave, build or maintain the church, which was founded by former slaves in 1868, or its land.
“We’re just simply not going to move,” said Sands, 78, a long time civil rights advocate who was instrumental in helping to desegregate lunch counters and public facilities in Baltimore. “We are occupying the building and just plain staying there. We are going tostand our ground to change what is clearly unconstitutional.”
White Rock’s battle commenced on the day of the 143rd anniversary of the church, Nov. 13, when a representative of the UMC gave the Carroll County, Md., congregation a two-week notice that they had to leave the property or pay for the assets.
At the heart of the issue is language within the UMC Book of Discipline, the document governing UMC churches, which states that individual congregations hold any and all assets in trust for the conference. A state law was established in Maryland in 1976.
Conference officials said church officials and members know that any property belongs to the UMC. Members said they believe members should own the assets because in many cases they purchased the buildings and kept them up with little or no help from the conference.
“The United Methodist Church has been very effective in getting state governments to pick up this clause and put it into law,” said state Sen. Lisa A. Gladden (D-Baltimore City), who introduced a bill to have the Maryland law repealed. “I think this story is bigger than Maryland.”
Gladden’s bill never made it to a vote in Annapolis during the last legislative session, though testimony was heard from both sides.
Gladden adds that the asset forfeiture clause, which holds that church property must remain with the UMC if congregations decide to leave, is a key way of “ensuring membership.”
“Is it right? Probably not, because God is bigger than churches and religion,” she said, stating that congregations in California and Alaska are waging the same battle. “We should let people seek the Lord any way they want to. We don’t need to threaten them by taking their property.”
Schol told the AFRO he is not trying to close churches. He has been accused by Black pastors of moving against small, predominantly African American UMC churches in the conference. Some pastors said he is also consolidating some churches by joining two or three into one new congregation.
“We are not closing African-American churches, and when two churches merge, both have to agree. We can’t force them into that particular relationship,” he said.
According to Ianther Mills, regional team leader for Annapolis Southern Region of the UMC and dean of the bishop’s cabinet, congregations are discontinued only by the vote of churchmembers or by a district committee. Even then, congregations only close due to lack offunds, lack of members or unfit buildings.
UMC officials also denied allegations that Be the Change, a new Baltimore-Washington conference organization established to fight homelessness in Baltimore and Washington, D.C., has been closing churches to use the properties as shelters.
“The sole purpose and intention is to work with abandoned or vacant properties, orproperty we might get in other ways, and repurpose those properties for the good of the community,” he said. “And also to start new congregations.”
Projects for supportive housing to help the homeless get back on their feet have begun at a former churchin the 1400 block of Columbia Road, NW in Washington, D.C. Members of Calvary UMC, whose membership is mostly White, decided on their own to close, officials said.
Two older churches in the Baltimore area, Govan’s Boundary and New Hope UMC of Edgewood, have also been repurposed for new congregations, housing for the homeless and comprehensive services offered by Be the Change.
“There is no intent or strategy to sell churches, or close them, to support this ministry,” said Anthony Hunt, former district superintendent for Baltimore.
Like White Rock, Warren Community Church, formerly known as Warren CommunityChurch Love Chapel, long ago decided to leave the conference. Warren Community officially disaffiliated with the UMC in 2007 and recently received a final directive to vacate the property.
Rev. Ernest Thomas, pastor of Warren Community, wanted to buy back his church for $5,000, even though he says Baltimore-Washington UMC officials “never gave a dime towards that building in any form.”
His offer was denied.
“Of course they didn’t accept that, but we were trying to hold on…any way that we could because we understood exactly what that law means,” said Thomas. “You go to court to try fighting for control of your church, the courts are going to look at this law.”
Thomas appeared in court recently regarding the church property and an eviction notice given to the congregation.
Since that day, the small congregation has been officially put out of their meeting house. The locks have been changed. The property is listed for sale at $75,000.
“I’ve been a member of Warren Church for more than 50 years,” said 72-year-old Thomas. “My father-in-law is on the deed for the church and his wife played piano for the church until she passed away. Their daughter, my wife, played the piano in that church until she couldn’t anymore, and she passed away in 2002.”
Rev. Kenneth Mitchell of Sunnyside New Life Community Church, formerly Sunnyside Methodist Episcopal Church, has also fought to keep the assets of his Frederick, Md., church.
“The deed is dated 1899,” said Mitchell. “The property of Sunnyside was acquired and purchased by the deceased family members and they left the property in charge of the trustee.”
The property came into question in 2008 when lead pastor, Erma Dyson, told the congregation the building was deemed unsuitable for worship. Dyson was the pastor of four churches at the time and according to Mitchell, wanted to merge the smaller congregations with her main facility when the Sunnyside congregation cried foul.
“The congregation decided that we no longer wanted to be a part of the United Methodist Church,” said Mitchell. “We wanted to move on and worship God as a independent church.”
Sunnyside was eventually able to re-buy their own property for $50,000, but not before spending almost $40,000 in legal fees.
