Bell Dedication Presentation (April 22) - "Echoes of Time, Toil, Fellowship, & Grace"

Reading #1               “Sturdy Settlers, Eager Souls...”  

Guest Reader; Rev. Brooks Heck                                                                                               

         The year was 1799.  A small group of pioneers were gathering within the cabin home of Edward Teal along the banks of the nearby stream, Pleasant Run. 

      Edward Teal had been a Baltimore, Maryland Methodist class leader prior to relocating to what would eventually become the town of New Lancaster… an area still regarded as “The Wild Frontier” by most Easterners, as the region remained a primitive wilderness in those days indeed!

      Still, it was in that rustic setting that one of the first informal Methodist gatherings in this area would take place. This gathering is known to have consisted of Teal and his wife and four other couples. These hearty pioneers had gathered to hear the preaching of one James Quinn… a Methodist traveling clergyman.

      Other Methodist Circuit Riders soon crisscrossed the largely untamed Ohio countryside as well; preaching the Gospel and sharing the teachings of John Wesley to many an eager soul of the early 1800s.

     The geographic boundaries of the Fairfield Circuit were officially established at the Methodist Western Conference held October 1, 1811 in Cincinnati.

     The following spring of 1812, the prominent Circuit Rider James B. Finley organized the very first Methodist class in the fledgling town of New Lancaster.

     That 1812 gathering was the first formal Methodist class in New Lancaster and, most importantly, the first gathering with a defined organization.

    And thus… a brand new Methodist Episcopal congregation had assembled from out of the literal wilderness exactly two-hundred years ago nearly to this very day… A family of faith destined to become The First United Methodist Church of Lancaster.

       …and the story of First Church had just begun to ring on!

Bicentennial bell tolls a single chime

Reading #2              “Disruptive Times” 

Guest Reader; Rev. Robert Kimes            

      1820… A time documented locally as “The Year of Disruption”!

     Many an American Methodist had objected to the authority of Bishops during the early years of the church!

      The subject of the abolition of human slavery also contributed mightily to local tensions during the 1820s! An Ohio Conference had recently condemned Methodist ministers engaged in the slave trade except for humane purposes. To make matters even more contentious, several early New Lancaster residents were recently relocated slave-abiding southerners.

     Any resolution to your slavery debates during these early, pre-Civil War years is not immediately known. The debate over the authority of Bishops, however, is known to have raged on for years within the entire Methodist Episcopal denomination. This squabble finally resulted in the splintering away of numerous Methodists into the newly formed Methodist Protestant Church in 1828. The local Protestant church opened with forty-one members, most of whom rejoined your congregation following the failure of the local Protestant denomination a mere twenty years later.

    Meanwhile, back in the 1820s, a nearby Wyandotte Indian Mission became the first foreign mission of the Methodist Episcopal Church’s Ohio Conference.  The Reverend James B. Finley, one of Lancaster’s earliest traveling preachers, became your very first missionary!

And the story of First Church would continue to ring on through the years….

Bicentennial bell strikes a single ring

Reading #3  “Bricks and Mortar, A Ton of Bronze and a Fire…”                           

Reader; Rev. Cheryl Foulk, Visitation Pastor                                                         

    Your young congregation had grown steadily, and it was time to replace your original South High Street meeting house. Construction commenced on a new brick structure in the spring of 1838 on the same property as your initial building. The first service was conducted in the basement of the new church on Christmas Day, 1838. The basement housed all subsequent services until 1843, as the sanctuary above required nearly five additional years to complete!

      You eventually commissioned a magnificent bronze bell – your recently restored Bicentennial Bell—and installed it within the modest steeple of the new church.

      Your bell was cast at the Menealy Bell Foundry in West Troy, New York in 1849. The same general size and ring-tone as the Liberty Bell, it must have been a glorious Sunday morning indeed when your ancestors were first called to prayer by the glorious ring from the brand new bell!

      The South High street church building was destroyed by fire in 1944, nearly forty years after you had relocated to your present structure and had sold the old building to the Lancaster Masons. The Masons rebuilt following the fire, and it currently remains a near copy of your 1840’s church building.

And the history of First Church would continue to ring on through the years…

Bicentennial bell strikes a single ring

Reading #4     “Brethren at war… peal after peal of the bells”

Guest Reader;  Rev. Sam Halverson

       Human slavery in America had pitted the Lancaster Methodists in considerable debate since our earliest days.  And, even though Abraham Lincoln and his anti-slavery platform had badly lost Fairfield County during his presidential election victory in 1860, Lancaster’s fathers and sons dutifully marched off in defense of the Union when the U.S. Civil War commenced the following spring.

       After four long years of bitter bloodshed, and according to one local historian – “When news of the Civil War’s end arrived on April 9, 1865 …peal after peal of bells emanated from the churches of Lancaster!”  

     Our bell contributed mightily to that joyous symphony of chimes from its steeple high atop the old Methodist Episcopal Church building down on South High Street!

    But, sadly, our bell would soon sound a mournful toll as, once again, all the Lancaster church bells rang simultaneously, reportedly without a single pause between 10:00 AM and noon on April 18, 1865, a mere nine days after Lee’s surrender to Grant. Now our bell chimed to mark the funeral of the assassinated President Lincoln.

    And the history of First Church would continue to ring on through the years…

    As your historic old bell rings once more between readings, let us remember all our brethren -- on both sides -- who suffered and died during the Civil War.… including President Abraham Lincoln.

Bicentennial bell strikes a single ring

Reading #5     “Friends Across Town and Familiar Settings”                          

Guest Reader; Rev. Jerry Dickey                                                                        

        The Methodists west of the Hocking River desired a congregation of their own at the turn of the twentieth century, and the Sixth Avenue Methodist Episcopal Church was thus established.

      The old High Street church was deemed inadequate for your future needs at about that same time as well. The Stutson residence at the corner of High and Wheeling Streets was available, and it was here you chose to locate your new church.

      Construction began and a cornerstone was ceremoniously placed in 1905. A grand dedication service officially opened this splendid building on Sunday, September 15, 1907.

      Not until the spectacular and much needed Crossroads Center opened a full century later would you again relocate in any way.

      Before vacating the old High Street church, the grand old bell was relocated to the belfry of your new six-story tower!  Seventeen years later, a bank of electric Deagan chimes arrived as a memorial gift and your 1849 bell was lowered to a dusty landing midway down the tower where it went silent, cold and largely forgotten.

      The bell was ultimately rediscovered eighty-six years later, restored and has once again taken its place as a significant feature of the life of your church, serving now as a permanent marker of this congregation’s bicentennial!  

     The 1924 Deagan chimes were replaced in 2009 with ten glorious Carillon Bells which were -- along with the Bicentennial Bell Monument project -- separate and magnificent gifts to your congregation from several of her contemporary families!

And the story of First Church would continue to ring on….

Bicentennial bell strikes a single toll

Reading #6      “For Grandmother and Grandpa, Mother and Daddy…”

Guest Reader; Rev. Ralph Hudson                                                                

        It is now 1912… Your Centennial anniversary!

       The mile-posts of the next three decades will include The Methodist Episcopal Church Board of Temperance, Prohibition, and Public Morals – a massive national lobby supporting Prohibition’s successful passage in 1920!

     Local summertime camp meetings still draw large, exuberant crowds. Nationally known orators include the great William Jennings Bryan!

     World War I has cast a pall across your congregation and the Great Depression will again darken the mood a single, roaring decade from now.

    The word “Episcopal” disappears following the unification of the three American Methodist denominations in 1939. For the next twenty-nine years you will simply attend “The Methodist Church”.

      World War II erupts!

     Still… your city and your congregation are truly thriving, thanks largely to the enormous success of The Anchor Hocking Corporation!

    Lancaster is now a grand place to live and work indeed… and “The Church on the hill” is one of her leading houses of worship!

      Your sanctuary is enhanced with an artfully-carved oak Chancel area in 1944! The original, 1907 organ remains, however, as your spectacular Schantz pipe organ won’t arrive until 1971.

     But… Let us end this chapter back in 1945…

     World War II is ending.

     An era of prosperity unprecedented in human history is at hand. Your country, your city and your church will soon come under the stewardship of a new, depression-weary and war-hardened generation. History will eventually honor this group of young adults as “The Greatest Generation”!

      And the history of First Church will decidedly continue to ring on!

      As your Bicentennial bell rings yet again, let us each quietly honor our own parents and grandparents… regardless their respective denominations.      

(Bell strikes a single ring)

Reading #7            “A truly historic preacher…”                                   

Reader; Jack Burnside, A Long-Time Church Member                                             

     A new pastor arrived here in 1946….

     Dr. Herd’s historic work began immediately with his educational program for children preparing for membership. Hundreds would benefit greatly from  participating in this excellent program!

     Our Church facilities developed steadily during Reverend Herd’s pastorate as well.

     Several projects included a significant building addition in 1950, the acquisition of the Stanberry-Rising House, and the establishment of the north parking area.

        We observed our 150^th anniversary with numerous celebrations in 1962… coincidentally the precise half-way point of Reverend Herd’s remarkable thirty year tenure here.

    Six years following our Sesquicentennial, we became known officially as “The First United Methodist Church” with the merging of the Methodist and United Brethren Churches in 1968.    

        Of the six First Church senior pastors since Reverend Herd’s retirement in 1976, Dr. Heck and Reverend Larry Brown combined to cover twenty-two of those intervening years. We have been blessed with many much-beloved associate pastors over the years as well!

     We are grateful to the former pastors who were able to return to First Church to celebrate with us this morning!

      Inspiring and dedicated clergy continue to pastor First Church to this day.         

     But, quite likely never again will any pastor shepherd the sheer number of souls here as did Dr. George W. Herd; A truly historic clergyman and senior pastor to at least five generations of Lancaster Methodists!

…and the story of First Church would continue to ring on!

Bicentennial bell strikes a single tone

Reading# 8                                     “10,614 plus 10”                         

Reader; Rev. Robert McDowell, Sr. Pastor                                    

     Two centuries of worship together… What an amazing, humbling testament to an unbroken family of faith!

     This morning we’ve heard about bricks and wood and bells, pioneers, preachers and even a U.S. president!  

    But, it still seems this occasion is about a bit more than all of that. But what more? Hmmmmm…  What more indeed?

     How about Youth choirs and Adult Bible Studies? Alter Guild, Global and Local Missions, Second Saturdays and The U.M.W.. The Cokesbury Book Table, Wednesday Night and Shrove Tuesday Dinners, Youth Fellowship and Confirmation Classes. Sunday Schools and a myriad of adult choirs!

       Consider Christmas Eve and Easter Sunrise Services. Sunday Morning Greeters, Sound Board and Radio Ministries, Monday Night Callers, Vacation Bible Schools, Trustees and Church Council. First Community Kitchen, The Carols of Christmas, Van Ministry and The Sundae Shop. Men’s Breakfast, Worship Arts and magnificent organ and piano music!

      Think of the Puppets, Clowns and Magic Ministries.  Bell Choirs, Bore’s Head, The Last Supper and Home Study. Staff-Parish Relations, Church Orchestra, Caring Ministry, Boy Scouts and Men’s Fellowship. Softball, Golf, Bowling, our beloved Ushers and even several spectacular Haunted Houses!

      We recall the Visitation Ministry, the Finance Committee and the Blood Pressure Clinic. The A.I.D.s task force, and the Sewing, Painting, Woodworking and Flower Arranging Ministries. Holy Week, Amazing Praise and Unbinding Your Heart. The Messenger, The Circuit Rider, The Friendship Class and The Celebration Committees from 1843, 1912, 1962, 1984 and 2012!

    And, how could we possibly forget all those countless, professional church staff people down through the years!

       All of that and much more merely begins to recall the vibrant life of this congregation since 1812!    

       Imagine the sheer numbers of weddings, baptisms, burials and roughly 10,400 Sunday mornings lead in worship by nearly eighty individual preachers! 

      Existing records confirm enough active members to fill this sanctuary seventeen times over! That’s 10,614 souls… Plus the ten newest members just joined last month!     

      All the facts, figures and stories you’ve just heard not only echo the remarkable history of your congregation, but also anticipate with glorious certainty that the story of First Church will continue to ring on for years and years to come!

                                     (Two rings of the bicentennial bell)

    Happy Bicentennial First United Methodist Church!

[These eight readings were written by Brian Bingham, church member in loving memory of his mother-in-law, Viola Baus, an earnest student of local history and a life-long First Church member.]