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Merger builds bridge between two cultures

Written: 5/26/2006

A new bilingual congregation in Oklahoma City will hold its first worship service on the first Sunday in June.

On April 30, a church conference was conducted at OKC-Hillcrest UMC by District Superintendent Jim Gragg, and the members voted to invite Fuente de Vida and Hispanic pastor Tino Espinoza to join with them as one congregation.

"The plan is for the new church to determine its name, and the members of the Fuente de Vida Fellowship will become members of the new church when it is officially named," said Rev. Gragg.

Several urban United Methodist churches recently have been seeking new ways to make disciples and make a difference in their communities, to best utilize their resources. Leadership has been provided by Gragg and B. Craig Stinson, executive director of Conference Program Ministries/Congregational Development.

For Hillcrest and Fuente de Vida, the process of merger began with meetings of the two Pastor-Parish Relations Committees.

"Many of the Hillcrest members have expressed their belief that the future of their church will be best realized with a vital ministry to the burgeoning Hispanic/Latino population in the area," Gragg said.

He reported both congregations were enthusiastic about the possibility of merger and unanimously voted to present the proposal to their church councils.

Gragg said, "A meeting of the combined committees provided a time of sharing the hopes and dreams of the new church. Following that meeting, the host committee at Hillcrest showed the members of the Fuente de Vida committee through the church to see the space they will share."

Rev. Espinoza will be pastor of the merged congregation. He attended Oklahoma City University and is a graduate of Perkins Seminary.

"We have the spirit of celebration," Espinoza said. "We are depending completely on prayer and Bible study, and we believe the Spirit is moving.

"It feels like they are our hope and we are their hope."

Espinoza is working with the appropriate committees, with representatives from both congregations, to be certain all is ready for that first Sunday. He said two worship services, one in English and one in Spanish, initially are planned for Sunday mornings, with fellowship time between them.

The English-language service will be more traditional, and the one in Spanish will have a contemporary feel, he said. For example, the latter will feature music using electric guitar, keyboard, and drums.

The Hispanic fellowship has been meeting in the family center at OKC-Capitol Hill UMC. The move to a sanctuary meeting space is exciting, Espinoza said.

"There is something powerful about worshipping in a sanctuary," he explained.

Gragg acknowledged much of the credit for the merger of Hillcrest/Fuente de Vida goes to Robert Metcalfe, current Hillcrest pastor. "His leadership at Hillcrest opened the way for consideration of this possibility," the superintendent said. Rev. Metcalfe will be appointed to Cogar/Union City.