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BY LINDA WORTHINGTON
UMCONNECTION STAFF

Hope for the City of Baltimore grew recently when four new communities of Shalom began their ministries, bringing the number of Shalom community empowerment zones in the Baltimore region to 11. There is also one in the Frederick region.

Teams from the congregations were commissioned Jan. 16 at Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial UMC. The churches include Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial UMC, Better Life Fellowship (a faith community that meets at Martin Luther King UMC), St. Matthews UMC and New Life UMC.

The teams had monthly training sessions over the past six months. Training included classes in determining the assets in the community; strengthening multi-cultural communities; systemic change; defining their Shalom vision, mission and strategy; grant writing and fund raising and communications.

The Rev. Bruce Haskins, the conference Shalom Zone coordinator, asked each attendee to share what they had learned.

"You need to know your community and work with it," said one person. "Recognize its assets, and places where the church needs to reach out."

Bishop John Schol, who is chairman of the national Communities of Shalom Program, brought words of encouragement to the newest communities.

"We see the soul of our communities being lost, slipping away," the bishop said. Contributing to the decline are economics, aging churches, businesses leaving, "all are sapping our communities of their spirit."

Jeremiah (29:4-7) has part of the answer, the bishop said, "renew and rebuild."

"If you want renewal, make it happen right where you are," the bishop said. "That's what we're committed to do."

During the commissioning, each team presented one of their strategies in detail. Karen Kemp and Ron Edwards from New Life presented a plan to "establish a Saturday morning breakfast and seminar group for men that discusses health issues and promotes spiritual awareness through education."

St. Matthews will "celebrate the diverse culture" of their community at a "Multi-Cultural Expo" this summer.

The Martin Luther King/Better Life partnership is working with the local school to develop the library, where they plan to hold after-school programs and mentor students. By September they plan to have a media center set up to help increase students' reading skills. Partnering with them in the endeavor will be the Optimists and the United Methodist Women, both providing volunteers as needed.

"It will be challenging," Bishop Schol said. "What you're embarking on won't happen overnight, but we'll work it and work it until we have a powerful work in ministry - the work of God in your community."