Thursday, August 11, 2005
St. Andrew's Church Expansion - A Pasture Too Small
Like many residents of this area, I've been following the
whole St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church expansion issue closely.
I've tried to keep an open mind while digesting the views
presented by both sides. I do not attend that church, but have
friends who do. I don't live in the immediate area, but have
friends and relatives who do. My daily travels take me in close
proximity to the church location, so I'm familiar with the
neighborhoods in question.
It's hard for me to imagine a more emotional issue. On the one hand you have a highly respected community church, going about it's business of "doing good" and providing religious guidance to it's congregation. On the other hand you have the neighbors surrounding this church who, while not in disagreement with the mission of the church, are impacted daily by it's current size and are staggered by the proposal for it's expansion, which will be considered by the Newport City Council tonight. After years of negotiation, there certainly seems to be no common ground to be found.
The arguments have escalated from reasoned discourse to accusations of, at least, faulty memories on both sides - maybe more than that. The demonstration by residents last weekend certainly illustrated the passion some in the neighborhood have for this issue. The local newspaper of record, the Daily Pilot, today published an extremely well-written editorial in favor of the proposed expansion. On the same page they published a commentary from a resident that described the demonstration Sunday in very negative terms, comparing it to the raucous and sometimes violent desegregation demonstrations in the deep South in the 1960s - an unfair and inaccurate comparison, but one sure to inflame opinions on both sides. In it's defense, the Daily Pilot has seemed to try to present arguments from both sides of this issue over many, many months.
So, into the arena of opinion I toss mine. This actually seems to be a pretty simple problem. It's a question of size. St. Andrew's - formerly a nice, comfortable neighborhood church - began to morph two decades ago when it first expanded. No longer is the congregation made up primarily of neighbors who could walk to services. Now, according the recent reports, the vast majority drive significant distances to receive spiritual guidance from a very dynamic pastor, Dr. John Huffman.
It appears to me that this good shepherd has allowed his flock to grow too large for his pasture. It has certainly over-grazed the good will of the neighborhood. The only good solution to this problem is for Dr. Huffman to do what any good shepherd would do - find a new pasture, gather his flock and move on to a location where it can flourish. The proposed church is just too big for it's present site.
11:02 am pdt
It's hard for me to imagine a more emotional issue. On the one hand you have a highly respected community church, going about it's business of "doing good" and providing religious guidance to it's congregation. On the other hand you have the neighbors surrounding this church who, while not in disagreement with the mission of the church, are impacted daily by it's current size and are staggered by the proposal for it's expansion, which will be considered by the Newport City Council tonight. After years of negotiation, there certainly seems to be no common ground to be found.
The arguments have escalated from reasoned discourse to accusations of, at least, faulty memories on both sides - maybe more than that. The demonstration by residents last weekend certainly illustrated the passion some in the neighborhood have for this issue. The local newspaper of record, the Daily Pilot, today published an extremely well-written editorial in favor of the proposed expansion. On the same page they published a commentary from a resident that described the demonstration Sunday in very negative terms, comparing it to the raucous and sometimes violent desegregation demonstrations in the deep South in the 1960s - an unfair and inaccurate comparison, but one sure to inflame opinions on both sides. In it's defense, the Daily Pilot has seemed to try to present arguments from both sides of this issue over many, many months.
So, into the arena of opinion I toss mine. This actually seems to be a pretty simple problem. It's a question of size. St. Andrew's - formerly a nice, comfortable neighborhood church - began to morph two decades ago when it first expanded. No longer is the congregation made up primarily of neighbors who could walk to services. Now, according the recent reports, the vast majority drive significant distances to receive spiritual guidance from a very dynamic pastor, Dr. John Huffman.
It appears to me that this good shepherd has allowed his flock to grow too large for his pasture. It has certainly over-grazed the good will of the neighborhood. The only good solution to this problem is for Dr. Huffman to do what any good shepherd would do - find a new pasture, gather his flock and move on to a location where it can flourish. The proposed church is just too big for it's present site.
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