Seguin
Central Park in Seguin, Texas. (City of Seguin Photo/UM Insight Screenshot)
July 27, 2023
Special to United Methodist Insight
Headlines shout: “Thousands of United Methodist churches break away over LGBTQ+ disagreements.” Across the country, United Methodist churches are disaffiliating, but there is another story. The remnants who want to stay in the denomination are working together.
After First UMC in Seguin, Texas, about 65 miles east of San Antonio, voted to disaffiliate over inclusion of LGBTQ+ people, displaced United Methodists regrouped. The remnant started with a dozen members during Ash Wednesday in a private home. Out of the ashes came a vibrant, growing, worshiping community called Stay UMC. Pastor Ron Welborn is one of the leaders of Stay UMC Seguin.
Stay UMC is joining with La Trinidad UMC and Wesley Harper UMC at 10:30 a.m. on Aug. 6 in La Trinidad's sanctuary to celebrate communion together and be a witness to the denomination’s slogan, “Open Hearts, Open Minds, Open Doors.” Retired Bishop Joel Martinez, native son of La Trinidad UMC in Seguin, and Bishop Robert Schnase, presiding bishop of the churches' regional unit, the Rio Texas Annual Conference, are both invited to preside at communion for the historic worship service.
The three United Methodist churches in Seguin are historically Black, White, and Hispanic. These three UMC churches and other churches in the area are sharing their resources.
Wesley Harper UMC, a historically Black congregation, provided hymnals while La Trinidad UMC is sharing its buildings, and Stay UMC Seguin is expanding its ministries. Donations from United Methodists in the region include a piano from First UMC in San Marcos about 40 miles north of Seguin and more hymnals from Gruene UMC about 35 miles northwest of Seguin.
Members of La Trinidad never wavered from being United Methodist, according to their pastor. La Trinidad was established in 1907 in the face of racial and religious discrimination. As Rev. Dr. David Maldonado wrote, “in essence, to join La Trinidad Iglesia Metodista Unida was to become a Protestant within a Mexican-American Catholic community and a Mexican within the Anglo Protestant Community.”
“We all still face challenges,” said Rev. Nohemí Ramírez, La Trinidad's senior pastor, “but we are United Methodists who value being connected to other United Methodists, in Seguin and around the world, through our ministries of justice, love of neighbor, and devotion to God.”
A group of about a dozen leaders from La Trinidad and Stay UMC Seguin convened in July to share their thoughts about the pain of losing their home church and how both congregations could share their resources. La Trinidad has opened its doors to Stay UMC Seguin who, in turn, will be sharing its ministry with La Trinidad.
“The degree of cooperation between the congregations is inspiring,” said Pastor Welborn, “When a member of Stay UMC mentioned, ‘we used to have a blanket ministry to comfort infants and seniors,’ a member of la Trinidad replied, ‘We are cleaning out a room and putting down new floor so you can continue your ministry.’ The Stay UMC member was moved, ‘this is humbling, we are not used to being on the receiving end of mission, and it is awesome!’”
Recent reports indicate that about 20% of the 30,000 UMC churches in the USA have disaffiliated. But that means that 80% of the UMC congregations are staying. Many displaced members across the country who want to remain United Methodist are forming congregations under the banners of Stay UMC, Lighthouse UMC, and #BeUMC.
All displaced United Methodists can go to their annual conference websites to find congregations that are staying in the denomination or to find a way in which they can stay connected individually to the United Methodist Church. Seguin and the surrounding region are part of the Rio Texas Annual Conference.
La Trinidad UMC, Wesley Harper UMC, Stay UMC Seguin, and United Methodists in the region are uniting their ministries to better serve the Seguin community.
This article was prepared by Rev. Nohemí Ramírez and Pastor Ron Welborn and edited by United Methodist Insight.