Slideshow image

Beloved in Christ,
 
Last Sunday, I attended the last public worship service at Magnolia United Methodist Church that serves the Magnolia and Interbay neighborhoods of Seattle. The church has a long history, having been founded in 1903 as the Bethel Methodist Church, which served primarily railroad workers who lived in the area. It moved several times and was combined at one point as a single charge with a missionary outpost to the Ballard area, which was deemed to need a missionary movement because saloons outnumbered churches there 10 to 1! Bethel Methodist outgrew their original building and moved into a tent for a few years, until they could build a new chapel. The economic depression in the 1930s hit the congregation hard and attendance declined because the congregation members could not support the church financially and the pastor was not able to be retained full time. In 1964, the church moved again into a YMCA and then in 1966 into their final building. Their mortgage was paid off by 1989. In 2003, the church reached 100 years old and had had 41 pastors, many part time, retired, or students.
 
Throughout the final service, stories were told of the ways that this church made a difference in people’s lives and the life of the community, the many baptisms, confirmations, weddings, and funerals that have been held there and that have been part of the work of God in the city of Seattle. While it is sad to have any faith community reach this type of ending, it is also important to recognize that God’s work in the people and through the neighborhood doesn’t end with the closing of their local church. The congregation members that remain will find new communities with whom to worship. The ways that their witness has changed their community aren’t going to be erased. The outreach ministries that they have begun with a nearby tiny home village and open mic nights with local musicians are being adopted by other parts of the Magnolia community. God is still at work there.
 
The building will remain part of the holdings of the Trustees of the Pacific Northwest conference of the UMC. There is a preschool that rents the bottom floor who will remain in residence there. The parsonage next door will also be retained. It’s not yet known what the next chapters will be for those buildings or for the remaining members of the church. Yet, it is known that there will be next chapters. God is not done with them yet.
 
I share this with you because I think their story is a story of faith that is worth telling. I think that the story of Magnolia UMC is a story of a people who may have dreamed that things could turn out different than they did but who have been faithful in listening for where God is calling them next and taking the steps that will lead them to a future that bears fruit.
 
I hope you will join me in praying this Prayer of Thanksgiving and Commendation that was part of the service, and lifting the transitions of the members of Magnolia UMC into God’s care.
 
God of every generation, with gratitude we remember the life and ministry of this church community and all the people who have passed through its doors through the years. We give thanks for moments of worship and friendship, for service offered in times of need, for lives shaped by kindness, compassion, and faith, and for the many ways this congregation has served the Magnolia and Interbay communities. For seasons of joy and seasons of struggle, for hope that endured and love that continued, we give you thanks. Now we commend this chapter of ministry into your hands. Go with each of us into the communities and relationships where life will lead us next. Help us carry forward this spirit of love, welcome, and service. And may your grace, peace, and Spirit remain with us always. Amen.
 
Blessings on your endings and beginnings in this season, Pastor Laura