A Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols

Dear friends, 

We are well into the Season of Advent, and Central is a busy place during Advent!  One of the many ways we mark this time of year is with our annual Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols, which is this coming Sunday afternoon at 4:00.   

Our service of Lessons and Carols is modeled on that of King’s College, Cambridge University.   This well-known annual service is the one most associated with the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols. However, this holiday tradition can be traced to Truro, England where the service as we know it was first celebrated in 1880.  Church leaders in Truro were looking for ways to discourage the raucous celebration of the season in pubs and instead invite people to reflect on the true spiritual meaning of Christmas.  As such, they developed a festive service in which Scripture readings recalled the fall of humanity, the prophetic promise of the Messiah, and the birth of Jesus.  The readings are interspersed with Christmas carols, hymns, and choral anthems.  At Central, we continue this tradition as we hear the story of God’s loving interaction with humanity and sing the songs of the season.   

One aspect of the service is that it offers an opportunity to celebrate and support community ministry.  Each year a representative of one of Central’s partner community ministries participates in the service.  We also receive an offering, which goes to support the work of that ministry.  This year our offering will support Lighthouse Ministries and its mission to help our needy neighbors.  Central was instrumental in the founding of Lighthouse Ministries and this is one of the ways we offer ongoing support. 

After the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols, there will be a reception with refreshments in Spears Fellowship Hall.  

All of which is to say, I hope to see you Sunday afternoon! 

Yours in Christ, 

The United Methodist Church - Tidings from Thomas

Dear Friends, 

The United Methodist Church has been much in the news over the last few months and there have been new developments in South Carolina.  I, as well as Meg and Ann, feel it is important for us to be transparent with you and share our understanding of the situation. 

It is helpful to review how we got to this point.  The story starts at General Conference, the world-wide gathering of United Methodists which meets every four years. Only the General Conference can speak for the entire United Methodist Church and only the General Conference can change our Book of Discipline. Think of the Book of Discipline as the UMC’s rule book. In 2019, there was a special session of General Conference to deal with issues related to human sexuality. The 2019 General Conference also created an avenue by which congregations could separate from the UMC. It was assumed that at the next regular General Conference, which would have been held in 2020, that some congregations, who felt they could not remain in the UMC with potential changes to the Book of Discipline, would choose to leave the denomination. Like many things set to take place in 2020, General Conference was rescheduled multiple times. It was decided to suspend meeting until the next regularly scheduled General Conference in 2024. Rather than wait until 2024, those working to form a new expression of Methodism responded by proceeding with the launch of the Global Methodist Church on May 1st, 2022.  In response to pressure related to the launch of the new denomination, the South Carolina Conference Board of Trustees, near the end of 2022, released a process by which local congregations can disaffiliate from the United Methodist Church and seek affiliation with another expression of Methodism.  In other words, congregations have a process by which to join the newly formed denomination or affiliate with another form of Methodism. 

Although a process now exists, we your pastors are certain that now is not the time for Central to consider disaffiliation from the United Methodist Church.  Other congregations have entered the discernment process, but we are not at that point.  From a purely financial standpoint, the process is prohibitively expensive.  From the standpoint of polity, the United Methodist position on human sexuality has not changed.  Congregations who are disaffiliating are doing so based on what they think may happen at General Conference in 2024.  Until we know what changes may or may not come out of General Conference 2024, I firmly believe that any decision for Central to disaffiliate would be premature. In addition to the enormous financial burden disaffiliation would place on Central, we would be making a decision before having all factors known.  

You may hear about United Methodist congregations in South Carolina who have begun the discernment process, but we should only be influenced by what is right for Central.  We cannot allow ourselves to be manipulated by people who do not know our church and are not familiar with our ministry context.  We must do what is right for Central.  Most of all we must focus on the mission and ministry God had given us.  Now is the time for us not to focus on division but to focus on unity and our mission to follow Jesus by loving God and loving our neighbors.  God has given us a mission and ministry and we must not allow ourselves to be distracted from the work God entrusts to us. 

Here is the disaffiliation discernment process in summary: 

• A congregation’s Church Council can vote to initiate a season of discernment lasting a minimum of 30 days.   

• At the end of this discernment period, a Church Conference would be convened at which every professing member of a congregation is eligible to vote.   

• A resolution to disaffiliate must be approved by at least a two thirds majority. 

Additionally, disaffiliating congregations would also have to pay the Conference: 

• 10% of the appraised value of all church property and liquid assets 

• All unpaid apportionment giving for the prior year 

• Apportionment giving for the year of closure up to the date of the Annual Conference vote to close the church 

• An additional 12 months of apportionment giving 

• All unpaid salary and benefits due to clergy appointed to the church 

• A withdrawal liability equal to the church’s proportional share of any unfunded pension obligations 

You can view details the full details of the discernment process here: https://www.umcsc.org/discern/ 

I will make a presentation to our Church Council at its February 28th meeting about this process as it relates to Central.  Rev. Ann Kovan, Rev. Meg Jiunnies, and I will also be holding a video question and answer session.  You can submit your questions through this link https://centralumcflorence.wufoo.com/forms/k1ylhji31rcvm5e/ or by the paper forms located in The Commons and Well greeter tables.  

Back in May of 2022, I shared a quote with you from John Wesley.  “For opinions, or terms, let us not ‘destroy the work of God.’ Dost thou love and serve God? It is enough. I give thee the right hand of fellowship.” Wesley’s antiquated language reminds us that we do not have to agree on everything.  People can disagree on important issues and still love one another.  Let us commit ourselves to love and serve God together and to love one another. God calls us to be one in Jesus Christ, even when we disagree on important issues.   

Most of all, let us pray.  Please pray for Central and her leaders and please pray that God keep us faithful to the mission God has entrusted to us. 

Yours in Christ, 

 Thomas Smith, Senior Pastor

God's Church During a Worldwide Pandemic

Dear Friends, 

It seems we find ourselves in the midst of yet another spike in Covid-19 cases.  We at Central are working to identify the best way to move forward in mission and ministry until the tide turns.  Nevertheless, our mission remains the same and there is much work to be done.  It is incumbent upon us to continue following Jesus by loving God and loving our neighbors.  For now, all our ministries will continue as planned.  Most of our gatherings will remain mask optional, but I encourage you to consider wearing a facemask indoors.  I also encourage you to be vaccinated against Covid-19 if it is medically safe for you to do so.  Most importantly, please follow the advice of your healthcare provider regarding which precautions to take. 

While the news may seem discouraging, let us remember God has placed us in this place at this time.  Our job as individual Christians and as a church is to faithfully follow Jesus in here and now.  In thinking about this idea, I am reminded of something I heard a World War II veteran say.  Toward the end of his life, I was blessed to sit with this man as he reflected on some of his experiences as a pilot in the Pacific.  I thanked him for his service and for sharing his stories with me.  He responded by saying, “I didn’t do anything a million other men wouldn’t have done.”  When I encouraged him not to downplay his service, he said, “I was the one who was there when something needed doing, so I did it.”  That idea has stuck with me.  God has made us God’s church during a worldwide pandemic.  We are the ones who are here and the mission remains.  Let us continue to faithfully follow Jesus by loving God and loving our neighbors. 

Yours in Christ,  

Thomas

Further Updates for Worship - Tidings from Thomas

Dear friends,

One of the biggest issues in our church’s worshiping life over the last few months has been determining when it is safe to resume congregational singing.  I am pleased to announce that we now have plans to return congregational singing to our worship services!  Beginning June 13th, we will resume congregational singing in all three Sunday morning worship services.  This exciting change prompts three questions I’ve heard from many of you:

Why haven’t we been singing?  Medical and public health professionals advised that large numbers of people singing in confined spaces is unsafe, even when masked.  Also, guidelines from our bishop have asked us not to sing.  By God’s grace, the COVID situation seems to be improving daily and the guidelines for singing have changed.

Why is it safe to sing now?  With more people vaccinated, we don’t have to worry about sharing the same air as other people.  Studies have shown the effectiveness of vaccines in protecting people from infection.  The same science tells us that for those who are vaccinated, it is safer to return to normal activities, including singing.

Why wait until June 13th?  Vaccinations are now open to people aged 12 years and up.  Waiting a couple of weeks gives time for those who are recently vaccinated to build up antibodies in their systems.

Central’s mission is to follow Jesus by loving God and loving our neighbors.  Part of loving our neighbors has been to do things like wearing masks and refraining from singing.  Now, with just a couple of Sundays to go, we can sing about loving God and our neighbors and still make our worshiping environment safe.  Thank you for your continued patience as we work together to determine the best path forward. 

Yours in Christ,

Thomas

Anticipation of Easter

With Easter only days away, I am experiencing the great anticipation that always precedes the annual celebration of Jesus’ resurrection. Last Easter, we were a couple of weeks into a time of fear and anxiety. Much of our everyday lives had been put on hold, including the ability to gather in-person as a church. The pandemic is not over. We are still mindful of loved ones who have lost their lives. We are still having to do things in new ways so that people are protected. But so much has changed in a year! We will gather in-person on Easter to celebrate the good news that Christ has risen. And because Christ has risen, we know that death does not have the final word and God’s love conquers all.

There are some differences you will notice on Sunday from recent weeks. One of the biggest things you will notice is the absence of ropes blocking off certain pews, allowing for a greater number of people in worship. Even though the ropes will be gone, please continue to exercise social distancing. We will also resume passing offering plates to gather tithes and offerings. These changes are based in new guidelines from the South Carolina Conference of the UMC. In keeping with medical advice, we will continue to ask people to wear face masks. Our continuing to wear masks allows us to expand the number of people in worship spaces.

We will also celebrate the Sacrament of Holy Communion on Easter indoors for both The Sanctuary and The Well. When you arrive for worship, you will receive one of the single use Communion cups we have been using in recent months. When the time comes to receive the bread and juice, you will take the Communion elements in your seats. I really look forward to celebrating Communion indoors!

Following Conference guidelines, we will not yet have congregational singing. We have been blessed to have excellent music since resuming in-person worship, but we all look forward to being able to sing hymns again. Even with everyone in masks, we would need to be more spread out to safely sing as a congregation. For example, Florence School District One is spacing singers twelve feet apart. This kind of spacing would drastically reduce the number of people we could safely have in worship spaces. Rest assured – as soon as we can have congregational singing, we will.

On a related note, our mid-week prayer and Communion service will be resuming in-person worship on April 14th. Please note this service is moving from Thursdays to Wednesdays. I am excited to resume this weekly worship service!

COVID-19 is still with us, but I feel like we are seeing light at the end of the proverbial tunnel. Easter reminds us that Jesus’ victory over the grave means that the power of death and sin has been broken. In the face of pandemics and whatever awfulness the world brings, Jesus offers hope. Christian hope is not the wishing of an optimists, the but the assurance that Jesus promises to bring us through hard times. Jesus promises to ultimately bring us to a resurrection like his. We need to hear that word of hope. Whether you worship in-person or by livestream, let us gather on Easter Sunday morning to hear the good news that Christ is risen! These words from 1 Peter 1:3 come to mind.

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! By his great mercy he has given us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.”

Yours in Christ,

Thomas