Hessel Church

I visited Hessel Church this Sunday (July 24th) with my good friend, Rev. Dave Weidlich. Though Hessel Church is about 10 miles northwest of Petaluma (5060 Hessel Road), I made an exception to my usual practice of visiting only churches in Petaluma, since about 15-20% of it attending members come from Petaluma, and with an attending membership of near 1,000, that means about 150-200 members attend from Petaluma, which is larger than many Petaluma churches. (Most of their members come from nearby Rohnert Park, Sebastopol, and Santa Rosa.)

Though the nearby logo for Hessel Church states Sebastopol, California, it is actually about 5 miles south of Sebastopol in the middle of the country. Once you find Hessel, California, which is not a town or a township (a geographical location - a small community), you suddenlycome upon a complex of about 6 buildings that comprise the church, including a large sanctuary auditorium facility.

My overall impression is that Hessel Church is a thriving evangelical church. Almost everything conveys the impression of being well-run. The members especially impressed me. They spoke about the church as their church, and they were a vital part of it. They were very willing to take time to tell Dave and I all they could about their church, to answer any questions we had, and to do their best to make us feel welcome. Walking about the grounds, I noticed that the Sunday School rooms for children were well marked for age and grade so there would be no confusion, and they had facilities set up for services held in other languages, including Chinese. I very much enjoyed my visit there.

The members proudly told me about how their church began about a hundred years ago when a woman, concerned that there were no nearby churches, began a Sunday School for the nearby children, and the church grew from there. They are still affiliated with American Missionary Fellowship which began this work.

First Baptist Church

I visited First Baptist Church at 706 N. Webster this Sunday (July 17th). Though they have a large sanctuary that seats about 750, they meet in the next door educational facility. This is because they have an average attendance of about 10, and so it costs to much to light and heat the large church building with it's beutiful sloped ceilings. (They have a few more members who are too old or infirm to attend.)

First Baptist Church claims to be the oldest church in Petaluma, forming in 1853. (The Catholic Church created the parish of St. Vincent de Pul in 1857.) I understand First Baptist Church at one time had near 700 attending members, and regularly filled their large sanctuary.

Rev. Don Phipps leads the small congregation, who associate with the General Regular Association of Baptists Churches (GARBC, though they just like to say GARB). GARBC formed in 1932 after withdrawing from the Northern Baptist Convention (now the American Baptists Church in American), by conservative and fundamentalist Baptists who were previously known as General Baptists and Particular Baptists (who later became Regular Baptists) who later joined with Separatist Baptists to become United Baptists, though they still use the term Regular Baptists.

Anyway, this is an aging congregation that could use prayers if they are to continue on. Rev. Don Phipps works a full-time job to support himself in addition to his pastoral duties.

Petaluma United Methodist Church

This Sunday (July 10), I visited United Methodist Church at 410 D Street. About 70 members were in attendance. Most of the talk was about their new pastor, Rev. Amy Beth Durward, who just started the previous Sunday.

The Methodists have a long and proud tradition in America. At one time in the 1800s, about one in three Americans were Methodists. John and Charles Wesley started this movement after their awakening in the Oxford holiness club. They were Anglicans, and remained in the Church of England all their lives. The movement they started in the Anglican Church was derisively called Methodism, and their followers took up the term as a badge of honor. Following the American revolution, it was no longer kosher to be part of the Church of England, so their followers here officially became the Methodist Church, and after the Wesleys died, their movement became the Methodist Church in England as well.

Because they came out of the Church of England (Anglican Church), the Methodists have a liturgy, though it differs from what you would find in the Episcopal/Anglican chuch. They also have a bishop, who decides who the local pastor will be.

The Methodist church in Petaluma has a wonderful facility, and I have gotten to know several members there over the years, and so, I enjoyed my visit there.

Update 1

First Presbyterian Church - Resigning Membership

I attended First Presbyterian Church this Sunday (July 3rd) and enjoyed a wonderful 4th of July picnic where I wound up cooking at the barbeque grill.

However, I made a sad decision to resign my membership. Though I was sad about the dissolution of the relationship with their pastor, Dave Weidlich, my decision had more to do with the decision of the denomination to remove the standards for ordination requiring a faithful marriage or chastity in singleness. Though I am sympathetic with this move, and though I believe love should be shown to all, I believe this move displays an imporant move away from biblical standards. I also understand that the new policy will be applied to individual communities as the local congregation and presbyteries feel appropriate. Still, I cannot go along with it.

I am sad because I have gotten to know and love many members at First Presbyterian well. I will continue to visit them in the future, but no longer as a member of their church.

New Life Christian Fellowhip

I visited New Life Christian Fellowship this Sunday (June 26th), which Ron Hunt pastors. They meet at 1310 Clegg Street (though you approach it from Rand Street). That's because they meet in a tastefully converted wharehouse (which many churches now do in this part of California given current real property prices.)

Interior - New Life

New Life began about 10 years ago as a chuch plant by Petaluma Christian Church for the Eastside of Petaluma. It currently has about 500 members (a large membership for Petaluma) who usually all attend its two services. It associates with what is often called the seeker-church movement (or the seeker-sensitive church). This movement promotes reaching the "unchurched," those who have do not regularly attend any church, by avoiding language and customs only familiar to regular church going christians, and aiming sermons at that audience (the unchurched) by focusing on principles to help with practical living (by Christians or non-Christians). (I do know those at New Life who have not previously associated with a church, or who left a church for enough time, so as to be considered "unchurched."

I find many at these churches who previously attended other churches, but who are disatisfied with most organized churches for one reason or another. I find they seem to serve a very useful function in attracting those who are otherwise unsatisfied by churches they previously atteneded, as well as those who are unsatisfied by the churches they currently attend. Though some criticize them as not going in depth in their sermons as other churches do, they tend to in their small group settings, which New Life tends to emphasize.

Overall, I like New Life Christian Fellowship, and have many dear friends there.

Update 1