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BY MELISSA LAUBER
UMCONNECTION STAFF

The spiritual ancestors of the creation of Methodism in the United States, gathered Sept. 7 to celebrate their history and anticipate their future with hope.

Members of the Baltimore Region filled Towson UMC as they marked their reorganization, from three districts to two, with a time of reflection and worship.

Methodists like Robert Strawbridge began preaching in the Baltimore region in 1760. The Methodist Episcopal Church was founded in 1784 at the Christmas Conference at Lovely Lane Church in Baltimore.

In 1785, the Evangelical United Brethren church, Old Otterbein, which is the oldest church in the city, was built.

In 1830 the Methodist Protestant Church began in Baltimore and in 1864, the all-black Washington Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church was organized at Sharp Street Memorial in Baltimore.

In recent years, the Baltimore region produced six bishops for the United Methodist Church: Bishops Edward Carroll, James K. Mathews, Forrest Stith, Susan Morrison, Marcus Matthews and Peggy Johnson.

Bishop Johnson, who began her episcopal leadership Sept. 1, pastored Christ United Methodist Church of the Deaf in Baltimore. She was applauded by members of the church, one of the nation's premier Deaf communities, known for its radical hospitality and empowerment.

Bishop John Schol taught those gathered how to say "Amen" in American Sign Language. He then taught them how to say an "amen with attitude."

"Today God is doing a new thing in Baltimore," the bishop said. "God is reframing the church and calling us to a new set of questions."

Bishop Schol called upon those present to build on their past, celebrate the present and create questions that challenge people to live meaningful lives. "People are looking for greater challenges," he said. "They want to be a part of something significant."

To do this, the bishop said, churches need to offer "the entire Jesus," - the Christ who embraces the whole Gospel,"who comforts the afflicted and afflicts the comfortable."

During this celebration of "Hope For the Future; Making All Things New," choirs sang and dancers performed; Communion was served; an offering was taken for the Hope for the City, a 10-point initiative to transform the city and the 102 churches of the Baltimore Suburban District and 86 churches of the Baltimore Metropolitan District. The celebration displayed banners and paraments created by the Rev. Ann Adams, and a history was compiled by the Rev. Emora T. Brannan.

The superintendents from the two districts, the Revs. Karin Walker and C. Anthony Hunt, also prayed for the region. They were joined by past superintendents of the Baltimore region.

Among them was the Rev. Fred Crider, who wrote a hymn for the occasion. It began, "The faith that once led Abraham - not knowing where he went, led those who came to Baltimore as if they had been sent."