What About Our Church...?

What about our church is unique? Besides the fact that less than a decade ago we were 3 separate churches, New Covenant may be unusual in how well we work together and welcome newcomers -- call it the "Pauline effect." Pauline Kidwell was a one-person welcome wagon who, as chief greeter, embraced everyone, longtime friend or newcomer, with a hearty hug each Sunday. At a 2004 visioning retreat, we identified New Covenant's strengths as our lay and clergy leadership and our concern for people. One prime example is the "People Caring for People" group organized by Parish Nurse Janet Elliott, which reaches out to involve shut-in members in the life of the church.  Currently, with the sale of property remaining from pre-merger days, we are embarking on redevelopment. While we do not yet know just where God will lead us in this new phase of our adventure, we are sure that New Covenant will continue to experience strong leadership, including that of our new pastor, as well as concern for people. While Pauline and many others who helped bring New Covenant into being are with us now only in spirit, we move forward as the same welcoming community we have been, willing to take risks as we seek to follow where God leads.

Church History: From 3, One

New Covenant United Methodist Church came into being on July 1, 2000 with the "coming together" of three Cumberland UM churches, Kingsley, Grace, and First.  Each of the predecessor churches had a history of serving the South and East Cumberland neighborhoods for more than a century, but following changes in the local economy all found it productive to join together and work as one congregation. In spite of the pain of having to sell two of the three church buildings, the desire to work together proved stronger. The spirit of this merger -- or marriage -- is best summed up in the words of Lay Leader Norma Schade in the spring of 2000: "As some of you know, for almost a month my family has been in crisis. During this time, no church building visited us in the hospital... but our pastor did. No church building called, saying, "Tell me what I can do to help"... but you did. I received no "Thinking of You" cards from any church building, but I received them from you. No church building is praying for me and my family.... but you are. So, where you are is where I want to be -- in whatever building will best fit and serve us in our  ministries.  Let us come together, let us worship together on Sunday, let us be strong in our faith, let us be better able to minister to one another and to our community. Let us stop being the people of Kingsley, the people of Grace, and the people of First. Let us be who we really are: the People of God." We no longer think of ourselves (if we ever did) as "from Kingsley" or "from Grace" or "from First," nor do newcomers seem "new" for long. Part of the reason we moved smoothly from three congregations to one within a four-year period is that we could see God at work, perfectly timing each step along the way. The prime example occurred on Sunday, April 9, 2000, the day before the joint meeting to vote on whether or not to move forward to form one new church to be called New Covenant. Then-pastor Rev. Richard Jewell read the day's lectionary reading from Jeremiah 31: "I will make with you a new covenant."  In addition, the gospel lesson for the day included the verse (John 12:24)  that had been used throughout the process to refer to the need for the sacrifice of some buildings and memories in order to develop new ones. Since 2000 New Covenant has welcomed many new members and formed new ministries as, in the words of our Mission Statement, "we reach out in the Wesleyan tradition of spiritual growth and social action to share Christ's new covenant."  The stained glass window shown on our homepage, installed in 2003, features three pairs of hands, reminding us of our heritage but emphasizing our unity in Christ. As we begin our seventh year and a period of redevelopment, we anticipate discerning, with the leadership of Pastor Chris, where God is now calling New Covenant. We hope that you, whether a longtime member or a prospective visitor, will join actively in our adventure!