Decatur First United Methodist Church celebrates 200 years, looks forward in the face of a changing denomination

April 2023 marks Decatur First United Methodist Church's 200th year of ministry and service in Decatur and beyond.  The celebration weekend was a poignant look at how far the church has come. 

On Saturday April 22, the church hosted a benefit concert by the Indigo Girls. The performance was moving, as Amy Ray, who grew up at Decatur First, reflected on her experience learning to sing in the church choir. She also had some words of advice for kids who like to hang out in the church balcony, “You see everything that’s happening from there.”  Decatur First UMC recently voted to become a Reconciling Congregation, a designation that affirms the church’s support for full inclusion of LGBTQ+ people in the church.  The Indigo Girls beautifully wove together messages of LGBTQ+ inclusion, social justice and environmental responsibility throughout the night, leaving the audience both inspired and challenged. Mayor Patti Garrett joked that we had "all been to church" when she made her closing remarks that evening. 

The celebration continued the next morning with worship and lunch.  Pastors who had grown up at Decatur First, or who had served the church in the past as well as former members were invited to a “Homecoming” celebration service. The Bishop of the North Georgia Conference of the United Methodist Church, Bishop Robin Dease, addressed some of the issues of the church in a powerful sermon challenging the church to stay true to its mission:

“I believe we're not really fighting over theological issues. The fight is over homogeneity and, my friends, this is counter to the gospel. The crisis we are now in- it really is not new. I am a benefactor of the Civil Rights Movement … and here we are again over LGBTQIA. Somehow we forgot the church has always been under persecution. Somehow we forgot that the church belongs to Jesus Christ and not us. Somehow we forgot the church is bigger than our buildings, and denominations. Somehow we forgot the church is people… We forget that God's heart is inclusive.”

Decatur First has a rich history of supporting human rights from the Civil Rights movement in the 1960’s to the LGBTQ+ rights movement of today. In 2020, Decatur First UMC established an endowed scholarship in memory of John Lewis through Georgia State University in support of the African American Male Initiative at GSU. Throughout its history, the church has sought to couple its personal holiness with social holiness. Last year, the church gave away over $400,000 to mission, service, and social causes in the Decatur community and beyond.

Bicentennial Ornament

In honor of the Bicentennial Celebration, the DFUMC staff custom ordered this beautiful commemorative ornament from local potter Rachel Hill of Red Barn Pottery Farm.