ALBION — As Rev. Ian McMullen wound down the final service in the 170-year history of the First Presbyterian Church in Albion on Sunday morning, he offered words of hope to the crowd of worshippers likely experiencing a wide range of emotions on such a bittersweet occasion.
“In the midst of our church closing and our sadness, God loves you more,” he said.
The church was the only active congregation remaining within the Albion city limits, and the remaining members had their memberships transferred to the Presbytery of North Central Iowa until they find a new congregation — likely in either Conrad or Marshalltown. After a final communion, Ruling Elder Donna Carhill of the Presbytery of North Central Iowa delivered the official liturgy of dissolution, and the congregation joined together to sing perhaps the most well-known hymn in all of the Christian faith, “Amazing Grace,” one last time with the accompaniment of Karen Oaks on piano.
“As we gather for this final worship, let us acknowledge, with solemn joy, God’s gift of this place, remembering all who worshipped here, the baptism of faith here at this spot, the gospel proclaimed from this pulpit and the communion received at this table. Let us also reaffirm our faith in our ever-present God as we release this building to other uses with Thanksgiving to God,” Carhill said.
While at least 40 people attended the service on Sunday, McMullen, the Pastor to the Presbytery of North Central Iowa who has preached on an interim basis while the church operated without a full-time pastor, told the T-R the average attendance had dwindled to about 11 per week, and some longtime members admitted feeling that it was “only a matter of time” until it closed for good. The news was first announced on April 19.
“As the community goes, so goes the church — you know, the ups and downs, the boom years, the lean years, the years when we lose a school or we lose a business. Those affect, of course, every organization in the town, and the church has maintained its place in this community even despite the fact that most churches are relegated to marginal status,” McMullen said. “This is the only church left in this community, and a lot of people in the community just look to it as their church even though their church has already closed. So this is one of those bellwether moments that signals the end of an era of Christian representation in this community. So it is a sad day, but the legacy that will live on is their sense of community and their love for each other.”
The pastor commended the remaining members who had put in “hours and hours” of “backbreaking” work to clear the building at 207 N. Main St., say goodbye to each other and prepare it to be sold.
“To each of you that I’ve worked with, may God’s blessing carry you forward into the unknown, but know that you are a child of God. And just like the Prodigal Son, the depth of love that is shared with you is beyond measure, so go in peace to love and serve the Lord,” he said.
To mark the occasion, the congregants then gathered in the basement for a meal of pulled pork sandwiches, baked beans, potato salad, pasta salad and fruit salad — because, in McMullen’s words, Presbyterians say “No meetin’ without eatin’” — and reminisced on the legacy of the church that began all the way back in 1856.
In his final sermon, titled “Peace Be With You,” McMullen stressed that despite the church’s closure, God still loves everyone who worshiped there and will continue to love them through a difficult period in their lives. The overarching message he heard from those who attended Sunday — some of whom had moved elsewhere and were no longer members — was what a pivotal role the First Presbyterian Church played in their lives, from baptisms to weddings and more.
“Not a single person came back and said ‘I didn’t enjoy myself in this place.’ The memories were all good,” he said.
Four longtime members — Oaks, Karen Betts, Brenda Whaley and Kathie Shore — spoke about their experiences in the church during the lunch. Oaks, who played piano there for over 50 years, recalled the strong history of the choir and its Christmas Cantatas, and Betts taught Sunday School as a teenager before later being married at First Presbyterian and then having the honor of watching her son get married in the same building.
Betts added that attendance had sharply dropped in recent years as more longtime members moved to nursing homes and passed away, but the closure still came sooner than some of them would’ve liked to see.
“Nobody came. Nobody came from town. There was just our family. There just weren’t that many people that go to church anymore,” Shore said.
All four are looking forward to becoming members of new congregations going forward, but they’re also hoping for “a bit of a rest” after pouring so much of their time and talents into what will forever be their home church.
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Contact Robert Maharry at 641-753-6611 ext. 255 or rmaharry@timesrepublican.com.