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SERVING THE COMMUNITY: On Youth Night at the Pennington United Methodist Church (PUMC), children make greeting cards to send to shut-ins. The PUMC is hosting a worship and celebration service this Sunday, January 28, along with six other major events later this year, to celebrate 250 years of Methodism in Pennington. (Photo courtesy of Pennington United Methodist Church)
By Donald Gilpin
The Pennington United Methodist Church (PUMC) will be hosting a series of seven different events this year to celebrate 250 years of Methodism in Pennington. The opening worship and celebration service will take place this Sunday, January 28 at 3 p.m. in the PUMC Sanctuary at 60 South Main Street in Pennington.
Sunday’s gathering will include a performance by the Princeton Symphonic Brass Quintet, along with PUMC organist Kathleen Connolly; lots of singing, “something the Methodists love to do,” according to PUMC member Julie Aberger; and a talk by Methodist Bishop John R. Schol, followed by a reception.
“Our motto is open hearts, open minds, open doors to all who may want to join in on the festivities,” said PUMC Pastor Joe Jueng. “What better way to start our celebration of 250 years than a commemorative worship service?”
Jueng pointed out the Methodist legacy of “cultivating faithfulness of individual lives coming together” as well as a “mission component of going out and serving the community at large both near and far.” He went on to emphasize the Methodist mission of “transformation of the world, being out in the community, making a difference.”
The PUMC yearlong celebration reflects those beliefs. In particular, a Missions’ Celebration and Barbecue on July 28 will honor the Church’s partners throughout the state, including the Rescue Mission of Trenton, the Neighborhood Center of Camden, Turning Point UMC in Trenton, Mercer Street Friends, the Hopewell Valley Mobile Food Pantry, Urban Grace of Trenton, and SURJ-NJ (Showing Up for Racial Justice ) in Trenton.
“We’re inviting all the mission partners that we’re connected to,” said Jueng, citing PUMC’s support of the Camden Neighborhood Center’s affordable after-school child care and its summer camp, and the food pantries that are in high demand. “That’s what this church has been about, doing good work with the people in the community, honoring their work.”
Aberger noted the many initiatives recently undertaken by Pennington Methodists, including cooking casseroles for the elderly in Camden; collecting food, blankets, and books for the Rescue Mission of Trenton; distributing fresh produce at summer farm markets in Trenton; sending greeting cards to shut-ins and care packages to college students at exam times; buying diapers for Maker’s Place in Trenton; giving annual scholarships to two young people in the Urban Promise Trenton program; financially supporting a local sister church’s food bank; and sending donations to suffering people all over the world.
A major part of PUMC’s financial commitment has been focused on addressing food insecurity in Trenton, in particular at a monthly engagement at the Turning Point Church, where a cohort of about 18 volunteers from PUMC serves a substantial breakfast to more than 150 food-insecure local residents, as well as providing about 100 personal hygiene kits.
Another one of the major events hosted by the PUMC this year will be an April 21 Hymn Festival featuring the Central NJ Chapter of The American Guild of Organists. This acclaimed group of organists will play variations on themes of old and new Methodist hymns.
“Singing is like praying twice,” said Jueng, in a quote attributed to St. Augustine. Jueng highlighted the importance of music in the Methodist church, noting the thousands of hymns, many of which appear in hymn books of many different denominations, written by the early English Methodist leader Charles Wesley.
Other events on the calendar for the 250th anniversary celebrations include a historic cemetery tour of the Old Methodist Cemetery on Pennington-Titusville Road in Hopewell Township on June 1; a September 14 benefit concert featuring renowned opera singer Emily Newton; a concert by the Trenton Children’s Choir in November; and a holiday walk and PUMC open house with Christmas caroling, hot chocolate, cookies, and Christmas crafts for the children on December 6.
Methodism in Pennington began in 1774 when Jonathan Bunn, a former Presbyterian, started holding classes in his cottage on the outskirts of the village, according to a short history provided by Aberger. Bunn had left a Methodist Society Meeting in Trenton, where the first Methodist societies in the area met, in order to bring his new religion to Pennington. Methodism, a Protestant Christian revival movement within the Anglican Church, had originated in England earlier in the 18th century.
The small, emerging faith community in Pennington read Scripture and sang hymns without an actual church and only a room in a small farmhouse with benches for seating. Pennington Methodists have had three churches over the years, building their present church in the 1840s and expanding it in 1876.
Jueng commented on the enduring significance and purpose of the Methodist Church. “Especially in a time when we are seeing this epidemic of loneliness, people leading isolated lives for various reasons, the faith community offers a place where people can feel belonging, and discover their meaning and purpose,” he said.
He continued, emphasizing a “fullness of life that always involves a sharing of life with the people around you,” a tradition of service, and a “celebration where everyone has a seat at the table.”
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