A drive-in church. It seemed to be a good idea at the time, and it turned out to be just that.
Seven churches led by three pastors, two White and one Black, had an attendance problem during the pandemic: there was none. The congregations, all part of the United Methodist Church, all located on Deal Island Peninsula on Maryland’s lower Eastern Shore, had been separate and distinct until necessity brought them together.
Pooling their resources and their parishioners, the three pastors—Deangelo Antonius “Tony” Johnson, of the Macedonia United Methodist Church and the St. Charles Church; Charles “Chuck” Jacobson of St. Peters and the Somerset Church; and David Webster of Rock Creek, St. John’s and St. Paul’s churches—are as different as their congregations. Johnson, energetic, running and high-stepping during his services; Jacobson, at 76 and retired, somewhat more restrained; and Webster, a firefighter, and unabashedly political, by uniting their styles, messages and audiences have demonstrated that diversity is most certainly a strength.
What is now called Church by the Bay started as a solution to the problem of how to offer Communion to their people during the pandemic. For three months, services were held virtually. Then the pastors decided on a joint Communion at the beach for 30 minutes. The 30 minutes turned to two hours as they provided the sacrament to hundreds of the faithful.
With the blessing of the beach’s owners, a seafood company, the pastors began to hold services at the beach every week. For a year and a half—fair weather or foul—cars pulled up bearing casually dressed worshipers. The pastors ask who wants to accept Jesus Christ as their savior and instead of “Hallelujahs,” the sea air thunders with the sound of honking horns, and the faithful are invited to send an affirmation of belief via Facebook. The pastors have reached even more parishioners since Webster began streaming the service on his Facebook page.
The pandemic ended but the services continued by popular demand. Now held on the first Sunday of each month, the service is described by Cathy Sikos, a retired Walmart worker, as “a true depiction of what a church should be. No fancy building. Just pure worship. It’s God’s place. I wouldn’t want to go anywhere else.”
Few would disagree. Many come with their Bibles and hymnals, paper Communion cups at the ready and radios tuned to 91.1 FM and park wherever they can get the best view of the stage, the band and the pastors. Overhead the seagulls lend a picturesque and sometimes vocal addition to the proceedings.
The pandemic—which threatened to push the community apart—proved a resource to bring it together. “For years we were separate, but when 2020 came around, we found there was a better way,” Pastor Johnson said.
Added Pastor Webster: “We didn’t pay attention to what the news told us we were. We paid attention to what God called us to be.”
The Maryland community was one of the last in the country to desegregate, and many residents remember a time when schools and churches were segregated. What brought Black and White citizens together was work. Tom Shore, a retired police officer who along with his pet Labrador, Sadie, regularly attends the service, commented, “We went to separate schools and separate churches, but we would pick strawberries together.”
Now that separation is dissolving, thanks to a crisis that brought them together. And there’s no sign that they will stop or give up meeting together. As Scripture says: And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another. Hebrews 10:24-25
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