MAKING A JOYFUL NOISE … The Kunkle UBC Praise Team leads off with Let it Rise. (PHOTOS BY TIMOTHY KAYS, STAFF)
By: Timothy Kays
On February 5, 1893, congregants of the United Brethren in Christ dedicated a new brick sanctuary building just east of downtown Kunkle. Fifteen months later, May 17, 1894, a powerful thunderstorm lashed the community with wind-driven hailstones described as the size of hens eggs, bringing with it injury and significant property damage. Just moments after the arrival of the storm, an F-4 tornado slammed into the south side of the village with winds estimated at over 200 miles per hour, adding fatalities and devastation to the toll of the storm.
Members of the Kunkle United Brethren in Christ Church were amongst the first to rise in service to their grievously wounded community. 125 years after the dedication of that old brick sanctuary, the congregation continues to serve, and on the morning of January 28, they marked their quasquicentennial. Their sister congregation in Alvordton marked their 130th anniversary last year.
The special guest speaker bringing the message for the day was Bishop Todd Fetters, who delivered a sermon entitled, ‘Let the Wind Blow’. He gave a brief history of the United Brethren in Christ, dating back to the nineteenth century with the early bishops being founders Martin Boehm, a Mennonite preacher, and Philip Otterbein, a pastor of the German Reformed Church. Following them was the ‘Apostle Paul’ of the United Brethren in Christ, Christian Newcomer.
A fourth bishop provided Fetters with the foundational segue for his sermon, Milton Wright, the father of Orville and Wilbur Wright. With that, Bishop Fetters drew from the precepts of aeronautical engineering to compare flight with the Holy Spirit, which is often compared to a wind. Early aviation pioneers noted that success in flight requires an intimacy with the wind.
The parallel in Christian living that was noted by Bishop Fetters was an intimacy with the Holy Spirit brings success in life. Together, he tied them into three fundaments of the United Brethren in Christ – Gospel, Unity and Mission – noting that all are done much better when done together, in the intimacy of the Holy Spirit. After the sermon, fellowshipping continued with a huge potluck meal.
Although small in numbers, the members of the Kunkle United Brethren in Christ are strong in gospel, strong in mission, and as the name would suggest, strong in unity. The neophyte congregation was unshaken when the ‘Great Kunkle Cyclone of 1894’ tested the faith of their community. 125 years later, the congregation is united in faith, and looking forward to what work God has in store for them.
Timothy can be reached at tim@thevillagereporter.com