"A Bicentenniel Celebration"

      In his book entitled, Calendar, Christ's Time For the Church, Laurence Hull Stookey writes: ".....it can be said that Christians are called to assume a cruciform posture. Standing upright with feet firmly planted in the present, we stretch out one arm to grasp our heritage and the other arm to lay hold of our hope. Standing thus, we assume the shape of our central symbol of faith, the cross."

      The feet which we have planted in the present are certainly busy ones. There is much to do as we have been blessed with steady growth and a wealth of opportunities to do God's work, serving not only our community but God's people around the world. The present is filled with challenges and the future holds the shining promises of hope. But, that arm which stretches out to grasp our heritage takes hold of an amazing story, one which has spanned over two centuries to bring us to the place we are today. In fact, the development of our church can be traced back to the visions which inspired the development of the Methodist Church in this country. I'll just whet your appetite with a small slice of the beginning of that history.

      Actually, the history of the present day Middletown United Methodist Church is rooted in the development of two denominations. The congregations of both the Methodist Episcopal and the United Brethren in Christ worked together and conducted joint worship during much of our historical development. The first Methodist preacher came to the city of Frederick in 1770, and worship was conducted in private homes until a church was erected in 1792. In 1800, Rev. Philip Otterbein, a name well known in the history of both of these denominations, organized the United Brethren in Christ, also near the city of Frederick. Middletown's Rev. Jacob Baulus, already a member of the fellowship of Rev. Otterbein, was given the task of erecting a chapel in Middletown to be used by both the United Brethren and Methodist congregations. This became known as the Baulus Chapel and is the first known site to host the worship of these congregations. This was only the beginning of a 200 year journey which continues today with the present congregation of Middletown United Methodist Church.

      On Sunday, September 23, 2001, beginning at noon, we will celebrate these past 200 years, reaching out to grasp hold of that heritage and remember the path walked by so many of God's faithful who have come before us. In addition to a great time of food and fellowship, which Methodists are famous for, we will be able to experience this heritage through remembrances, pictures, and even a book of the history of our congregation.

      It will truly be a time when we can reach out to grasp that heritage which brought us to this place, and which propels us into a bright and shining future. I encourage one and all to attend this very special celebration in the life of Middletown United Methodist Church.