The Outcome of the Vote

Yesterday the congregational meetings were held for the proposed merger of the Lewiston and Utica churches. It followed the worship service in which we celebrated the end of the Sunday School year. We have great kids and great teachers and so had much to celebrate. Although it was not planned this way (at least not by us) the lectionary Gospel reading was John 17.20-26 where Jesus prays that all his followers would be one. The message was that we should not let minor things become more important than the purpose of the church and we should remember that what we share is more important than the divisions we make. We are part of a smaller group and larger group at the same time. And we have a responsibility toward each other even when we differ. A symbol of that type of unity is our nation, many states forming one country.
I was glad for the way the meetings were conducted. People seemed to express what was on their minds openly and fairly. What we voted on was the “Plan for Union” that the two Sessions had developed and sent to the members. The two churches had separate votes. If either or both of the churches voted “no”, the merger would not proceed. We did not announce the results of the individual church votes, just the outcome. We chose that approach to try to minimize the emphasis on personalities. Now we move forward from the decision that was made.
We trust that a sound decision was made. It is hard to believe that you could go into a merger without energy, hope, or joy and think it would be successful (think marriage). If I might speak for some, however, there was some disappointment with the decision. The Sessions presented the Plan with a vision that the two churches could combine their energies and assets together to form one stronger church, and it is better to do that sooner than later. We do not know why people voted as they did, but if the vote was to try to keep both churches open to be their “special” places, that is looking inward, rather than looking outward. That usually leads to becoming smaller and smaller. If the vote was with the hope that resources would come from the outside to keep the churches open, that is a church on life-support and we know where that usually leads. If the vote was because of fear of change, change will happen whether we try to avoid it or not. And if the vote was to avoid having to take greater involvement in the new church, that, too, only leads to greater inactivity.
When Jesus prayed for his followers to be one, I think he still had their individuality in mind. We respect that. We have work ahead of us. We still have much to be thankful for and our churches still have a purpose—care for its members, being the place to hear God’s word and seek God in prayer, and a commitment to serving our communities and world.