wfn.org | New book features two urban United Methodist churches

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

March 4, 1999 News media contact: Thomas S. McAnally* (615)742-5470*
Nashville, Tenn. {118}
NOTE: For interested readers, details on ordering this book follow the
story.
By United Methodist News Service
Two predominantly African-American United Methodist congregations in Houston
-- Windsor Village and St. John's -- are among 28 inner-city churches
featured in a new book.
Urban Churches, Vital Signs tells the stories of churches in major U.S.
cities that are helping transform inner-city communities. The book's
subtitle is "Beyond Charity, Toward Justice." It was issued this month by
Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. of Grand Rapids, Mich.
Author Nile Harper and six pastors tell stories of innovative, constructive
ways churches are working in urban areas through ministries of worship,
social justice, housing, employment, education and health care. Harper is
director of Urban Church Research in Ann Arbor, Mich., and an adjunct
faculty member at the Ecumenical Theological Seminary in Detroit. 
The churches, including 16 African-American congregations, are in 15 major
cities: Atlanta; Baltimore; Chicago; Cincinnati; Cleveland; Denver; Detroit;
Houston; Kansas City, Mo.; Los Angeles; New York; Portland, Ore.; San
Francisco; Savannah, Ga.; and Washington.
The central vision of transformation that guides Windsor Village comes from
Isaiah 61:4, according to the book: "They shall repair the ruined cities and
restore what has long been desolate."
When the Rev. Kirbyjon Caldwell was appointed to Windsor Village in 1982,
the congregation had 25 members. By 1998, membership had surpassed 10,000.
The key to the transformation, according to Caldwell, is understanding the
Kingdom of God as a comprehensive vision that includes all aspects of human
life. True spirituality is inclusive of one's everyday social, physical,
material, and religious well-being, he said.
"God is just as concerned about the salvation of the whole community as
about the salvation of the individual," Caldwell is quoted as saying.
"Anyone who seeks to separate the two has failed to understand the ethos of
the Old Testament and the teaching of Jesus Christ as seen in the New
Testament."
With the support of the bishop and cabinet, husband-and-wife team Rudy and
Juanita Rasmus were recruited by Caldwell in 1992 to serve the dying St.
John's church in downtown Houston. Only nine members remained, worshipping
in a dilapidated sanctuary that once seated 800. Today, the church has grown
back to more than 2,500 members. 
Houston has more than 10,000 homeless and unemployed people. Many are on the
streets around St. John's. The book's author notes that these people might
seem the least likely to renew a dying church, and yet they are precisely
the group that has become the largest body of new members at St. John's
during the past five years.
How has this happened? "The short answer is, by the work of God's spirit
through the unconventional, but highly skilled and dedicated leadership of
the pastoral team," Harper wrote. Juanita and Rudy Rasmus are local Houston
people. She was a professional financial planner; he was a self-employed
commercial real estate professional. Neither has the traditional theological
seminary preparation for ministry.
Worship is cited as a key ingredient in the transformation of both
congregations. Windsor Village has four Sunday services and one Saturday
service; St. John's has three Sunday services. They also address issues
related to education, economics, health, housing and social services. 
The authors close each chapter with a list of "What we can learn." One
lesson following the chapter on St. John's was: "Big things can emerge from
very small beginnings in a short time." It was also noted that "the right
leadership is the key to congregational redevelopment."
# # # 
Urban Churches, Vital Signs may be ordered from Eerdmans Publishing Co.,
(800) 253-7521. 

______________
United Methodist News Service
http://www.umc.org/umns/
newsdesk@umcom.umc.org
(615)742-5472