MT. COMFORT — One church has a long history and a large building. The other has more young families and the accompanying energy.
Both have a rich history of missions and outreach.
Come summer, the two congregations — Mt. Comfort United Methodist Church and The Movie Theater Church — will come together as one. Two churches each having a service at the same time will become one church with two service times, a traditional service in the sanctuary and a contemporary service in the gym.
They will keep one church’s name and the other church’s pastor.
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Since the Indiana Conference of the United Methodist Church notified both churches in February of the upcoming merger and of the reappointment of the Rev. Alex Stone, leaders of both churches have been working together to make the transition a smooth one.
“It’s just very exciting that we’re able to work together to do this,” said Jo Sullivan, a 30-year Mt. Comfort member and a leader of family ministry at the church. She’s been part of a team, made up of people from both churches, that’s been meeting since The Movie Theater Church left its mall location and began having services in the Mt. Comfort gym.
She was also part of a Mt. Comfort prayer team seeking direction for the church. When The Movie Theater Church came in December 2017, it seemed like an answer to prayer, she said.
The two churches have their own different styles of services in different parts of the building at 3179 N. County Road 600W, but they began working together on community events such as fall festivals and Easter egg hunts.
“It just seemed like we kept growing together,” Sullivan said.
In coming months, the two churches will forge a single staff, budget and leadership structure. Sullivan said there’s been compromise on both sides. But she and fellow team members are hopeful.
“First of all, you’re going to have more people on a common cause,” said John Bundy, lay leader for The Movie Theater Church and another member of the joint team. “Other than logistics, there’s really not a downside … I think it’s a great opportunity, first of all, to try to build something bright for the future between the two and continue to grow.”
Mt. Comfort United Methodist Church began in 1888 and welcomes 65-75 people on the average Sunday morning. The Movie Theater Church began in 2008 and welcomes 135-150 most Sundays.
“Meshing those together brings together this beautiful people of history and legacy and heart,” said the Rev. Ethan Maple, current pastor of The Movie Theater Church and incoming pastor of the combined congregation.
Maple and Mt. Comfort’s current pastor, the Rev. Alex Stone, had been appointed co-pastors of both churches in late 2018. Though many United Methodist pastors are assigned to new churches every three years, Stone admits learning in February of his upcoming reassignment was a surprise.
Stone was given a church name then as his next assignment, but he’s since heard that plan has changed and expects to learn more about his next appointment next week in a meeting with denominational leaders.
Amid that uncertainty, he recalls that being sent to the Mt. Comfort church was also a surprise. Yet as he stepped forward with that move, beginning his duties in July 2017, a routine blood test for his new doctor here pointed to severe problems with his liver. Stone underwent a liver transplant in August 2018 and returned to the pulpit in January.
“Had I not been here, I would be dead by now,” Stone said. As he faces the present uncertainty, “I’m still going back to when I came here and was in flux … I think what I’ve learned is, even when I don’t understand, God does.”
Stone and Maple have preached at each other’s churches and are preaching on the same Easter sermon series topic during Lent. When Stone learned a liver was available for him, his rush to the hospital included stopping by the church building, knowing Maple would be there early and could hear his news.
Maple admits there’s “a very real sense of grief” in the building as all the changes come. MTC bids goodbye to a name and identity and as he listens to “so many amazing stories” Mt. Comfort members can tell him from their church’s past.
He said he’s sought to reassure longtime Mt. Comfort members that those stories will always be part of their history. Meanwhile he’s reminded MTC people that those three letters are easy to see in “Mt. Comfort” and that their identity is more about mission and vision than a name.
“It’s our collective story moving forward. The Mt. Comfort story will live out into the future in a very healthy way,” he said.
Though he acknowledges the emotions that accompany the changes, he said there’s also excitement about what the church can be moving forward, with the strengths of both previous congregations complementing each other as they embrace united work.
“Mission — what God is asking us to do and be as a church — trumps everything,” he said.
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-A "service swap" on April 28 invites people of each congregation to attend the other’s service.
-An after-worship celebration May 5 will include the welcoming of Movie Theater Church people who are choosing to become official members of Mt. Comfort United Methodist Church and a meeting to approve the cooperative team’s report outlining single-board governance, election of leaders and new budget. A Cinco De Mayo feast is also planned.
-Service times will change May 26, with a traditional service in the sanctuary at 9:30 a.m. and a contemporary service in the gym at 10:45 a.m.
The Rev. Alex Stone’s last Sunday is June 16. The Rev. Ethan Maple will begin preaching at both services June 23.
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1836: Worshipers begin meeting in the homes of Thomas Craig, Obediah Eastes and Daniel Skinner.
1840: Worshipers meet at Sycamore Chapel. It is later destroyed in an 1863 fire.
1870: A new building, Hopewell Methodist Episcopal Church, is built on the chapel site. (Hopewell later becomes a forerunner of both the Mt. Comfort and Amity churches.)
1888: Church trustees hire local farmer James Murphy to build a one-room rectangular frame church. The building is dedicated in November 1888 by the Rev. C.W. Wade to a total membership of 72 people.
1927: Services move to Mt. Comfort School during a major renovation of Mt. Comfort Methodist Episcopal Church. The church building is raised four feet and expanded on the south side. The project includes a new steeple, sanctuary renovation and the digging of a full basement with kitchen.
1958: A new sanctuary is consecrated at Mt. Comfort Methodist Church, completing another expansion to provide more room. Also, the church stops sharing a minister with McCordsville Methodist Church, as both have grown and each need a full-time minister.
1973: After a 1972 tornado shifts the building off its foundation, the church breaks ground on a new building. The first service takes place in 1974.
1985: Another addition houses a new sanctuary and a narthex, parlor, restrooms and office space.
1994: The church begins conducting two morning services each Sunday through the year.
2002: The church’s Family Life Center — a multi-purpose facility with a large auditorium, basketball court and other features — is dedicated.
2017: The Movie Theater Church begins having services in the gym.
2019: The Mt. Comfort and Movie Theater churches form a combined Mt. Comfort United Methodist Church.
Source: mcmethodist.org, which contains a timeline and credits Sharon Kingen’s 1888 church history
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The Movie Theater Church started in 2008 as an outreach of Old Bethel United Methodist Church. MTC has met in several venues through the years. It has continued to serve popcorn and plans to keep doing so after it joins Mt. Comfort United Methodist Church.
2008-2010: Movies 8 on East Washington Street
2010-2012: Community Life Center
2012-2017: Washington Square Mall
2017-2019: Mt. Comfort United Methodist Church gym
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