|
Church bell rings for final service |
|
|
|
|
Thursday, 03 January 2008 |
|
Photo by Michelle Zlomke
The Rev. Nancy Keller, right, and lay leader Cathy Johnson, left, assist worshippers with the final communion at Comstock United Methodist Church Sunday. People from both the Sargent and Comstock Parishes attended the service.
By MICHELLE ZLOMKE
Chief features editor
COMSTOCK -- A passage from Ecclesiastes provided the final Sunday morning message at the Comstock United Methodist Church.
“For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven.”
Worshippers from both the Sargent and Comstock parishes gathered Sunday to observe the closing of the small community church.
“There is nothing perpetual in this world,” the Rev. Nancy Keller said as she offered the message. “Just like it is for a human being it is for a church. In the grand scheme of things, the time between birth and death is very small.”
The Comstock parish was incorporated as a Methodist Church in 1926. Prior to that, the church had been a First Congregational Church.
The First Congregational Church had met in homes from about 1894 to 1904, when the congregation purchased property in Comstock. Either at that time, or a short time later, an old schoolhouse was moved to the lot to serve as the church building.
A new building was constructed on the site some time between 1918 and 1922, and remained in use as the Methodist Church through this week’s final service.
“I’m sure then the people started this church, they envisioned it going on forever,” Keller said.
Keller, who has served the Sargent and Comstock churches for about six months, said the decision to close the Comstock church was difficult for the congregation.
“It was pretty tough,” she said. “They had been looking at the financial situation and they just couldn’t continue to financially support the parish.”
She said just a handful of families were regularly active in the church and the decline in parishioners meant a decline in monetary support.
In working with the congregation as they made their decision, Keller said she was impressed by their dedication and their love for their church.
She told Sunday’s worshippers that, while the building may close, the congregation’s character will live on.
“As this church closes, the spirit is not lost because the spirit is in its people, and the spirit lives in you no matter where you go,” she said.
During the service Sunday, the attendees shared their memories. Some recalled the moments that had remained with them as life-long members. Many took opportunity to publicly thank others who had worked hard in supporting the church and its programs throughout the years.
A few people wiped away tears, or spoke in carefully controlled voices as they told of the role the church had played in their lives. They laughed as they remembered humorous incidents or bits of amusing conversations.
“God provides a time to weep and a time to mourn, and God also provides a time to celebrate and a time to laugh,” Keller had told them.
Keller prayed for the worshippers who would now find new church homes. She told the Chief that some plan to attend the Sargent United Methodist Church. The two congregations had already shared in church projects and study groups.
The service ended with a Declaration of Deconsecrating, signifying the official end of the parish.
“This day we come together to say goodbye to this entity,” Keller told the worshippers. “The life of this church is a journey. The church does not end, but journeys on in the lives of the people.”
Keller told the Chief that the building’s furnishings will be sold or given away. Cash assets may be used to establish a scholarship fund for local students.
The building itself, she said, is actually owned by the Nebraska Conference. Typically, former church buildings are made available for sale to the community, she said. |
|
Last Updated ( Thursday, 10 January 2008 )
|
Huskers.com