wfn.org | Marietta, Ga., pastor resigns; to lead break-away congregation

[NewsDesk <NewsDesk@UMCOM.UMC.ORG>]

April 30, 1999	News media contact: Thomas S.
McAnally*(615)742-5470*Nashville, Tenn.    10-21-71B{240}

By Alice Smith*

ATLANTA  (UMNS) -- Strained relations between the North Georgia Conference
of the United Methodist Church and long-time pastor,  the Rev. Charles
Sineath,  reached a breaking point April 27.

The senior pastor of First United Methodist Church in Marietta, Ga.,
resigned and announced  he will serve as pastor of a break-away congregation
of  First Church members.

"We asked him to consider resigning his current appointment immediately, and
he has done so voluntarily," Bishop Lindsey Davis said.  The Rev. Sam
Storey, who has served as the church's associate pastor since 1993, has been
appointed interim senior pastor until June when the Rev. Joe Peabody,
currently pastor of the 3600-member Norcross First United Methodist Church,
will become the new senior minister.

The 5200-member Marietta First congregation is the fourth largest church in
the North Georgia Conference and has among its members business, civic and
political leaders, including Georgia Gov. Roy Barnes and U.S. Rep. Bob Barr.

The cabinet asked for Sineath's resignation after he announced he will
become the pastor of Wesley Fellowship, an independent church that held its
first service April 27 at Mt. Paran Church of God North.  The new church
will initially hold services on Tuesday nights at Midway
Presbyterian Church, about 10 miles west of Marietta.

"Since the new church is being formed primarily by persons who are members
of Marietta First, I and the cabinet feel there is a severe conflict of
interest which will result in Rev. Sineath's divided loyalty," Davis said.

The resignation from Marietta First, Davis said, will allow Sineath to
"fully devote his energies to his future ministry and will allow Marietta
First United Methodist Church to move forward in the transition of pastoral
leadership."

Sineath, 60, had previously announced that he would retire from the United
Methodist ministry in June after being told he would not be reappointed to
Marietta First after 22 years.

"It would be my expectation," Davis said, "that following his retirement he
will voluntarily surrender his credentials as a United Methodist minister.
You can't be a United Methodist minister and serve a congregation that
splits off from a United Methodist Church."

Until his retirement in June, Sineath's official status is "leave of
absence."  His salary and other benefits will continue through June, and his
pension fund is unaffected.

"I'm sorry it's evolved in this manner," Davis said, "but I'm confident
about the future of Marietta First Church and thankful for the leadership of
Dr. Sam Storey and the soon-to-be leadership of Dr. Joe Peabody."

Sineath said he was not leaving with a sense of victimization or bitterness
and that he would always be a "lover of the Methodist Church.  I . . . was
called to preach in a Methodist church, educated by the Methodist Church,
and given a free pulpit in the Methodist Church.  I'm greatly
indebted to the Methodist church."

He said he and others will leave Marietta First peacefully, although he
acknowledged the situation will be "awkward for years. ... There are many
people at First Methodist that I love, and they're real good friends, and
(although they're not leaving) they've told me if this is what
it takes to have peace, 'God bless you.'"

Likewise, Davis wished Sineath well in his new ministry, and noted there are
numerous people in populous Cobb County north of Atlanta in need of the
gospel message.  "Charles has served this annual conference for 38 years,
and that service has been highly significant," Davis said.
"I have nothing for the best wishes for him."

The relationship between Sineath and North Georgia Conference officials has
been tense for more than a year when Marietta First's board of stewards
began discussing and then later voted to withhold apportionments, or funds
asked of every congregation to support the work of the church on the
conference and denominational levels.

At first the board of stewards' decision was to "redirect" certain funds
earmarked for the denomination to ministries Marietta First deemed worthy of
support.   After Davis announced Sineath would not be reappointed to the
church in June, the broad of stewards voted to withhold all apportionments,
conference and national, and place them in escrow.

Sineath and some members of the congregation have stated the move to
withhold apportionments is motivated by scriptural and theological concerns.
A report prepared last year by several members of the congregation lists a
series of statements by seminary professors, bishops
and general agency executives that, Sineath charged, "strike at the heart of
our faith."

In the foreword to the report, he writes:  "Persons in strategic places and
positions in our denomination have challenged the basic tenets of our
Christian faith."  He named specifically the incarnation, the atoning death
of Jesus and his bodily resurrection, and the authority of
Scripture.

Other concerns named in the report are the advocacy by some of "radical
feminist theology" and the full acceptance of homosexuals within the life of
the church.

Although not explored in the report, some members of the board of stewards
were outraged at the decision by United Methodist-related Emory University
to allow same-sex ceremonies in its chapels, although the circumstances
under which such a ceremony can take place are so restricted Emory officials
believe one probably will never occur.

During discussions in board meetings, the Emory issue always surfaced as a
reason not to pay apportionments, although the university as an entity does
not receive apportionment money.  Only Candler School of Theology; the
Wesley Fellowship, the United Methodist ministry to students on the Emory
campus; and Oxford College, a division of Emory University, receive some
monies from the conference or denomination.

Although the votes to withhold apportionments have not been close
numerically, a significant segment of the church has vocally opposed the
action.

The church's new senior minister is a recognized evangelical leader in the
North Georgia Conference.

In the appointment of Peabody, 56, the cabinet is sending a message that the
"conference values the congregation," said the Rev. Jamie Jenkins,
Atlanta-Marietta District superintendent.  "The feeling is the caliber of
Joe Peabody, the kind of leader he is, the ministry he's had, and his
conservative evangelical Wesleyan roots will communicate to the congregation
that we understand their needs and are sending a person that can help them
for the future."

Jack Miller, chair of the staff-parish relations committee at Marietta
First, believes the majority of church members will rally around Peabody.
"We may experience some loss of members and some financial impact in the
short-term, but over time the church will come back as strong as it
ever was.  ... I fully expect the larger segment of the church's population
will rally around the new minister." He said plans are underway to begin
introducing Peabody to groups with the congregation.

Peabody said his initial time at Marietta First will be spent in "listening
to the folks, because I honestly don't understand all that's going on . . .
I don't have an agenda, and I don't have a campaign platform . . . I'm not
planning on doing anything but being a Methodist preacher."
# # #
*Smith is executive director of the Georgia United Methodist Communications
Council.

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