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To Reach Worshipers During The Coronavirus Pandemic W.Va. Churches Get Creative

West Virginia Governor Jim Justice’s statewide stay-at-home order contains several exceptions, including going to the grocery store, receiving medical attention, and going to and from a place of worship.

Even though residents are allowed to attend religious services in the state, most churches have suspended services for the safety of their congregants. These churches are now turning to alternative forms of sermon delivery.

Some churches are holding drive-in services, where members stay in their cars and listen to the sermon broadcast from the parking lot. Others are live-streaming services on Facebook.

Lonna Asmus goes to Mount Jackson Baptist Church in Athens. She says her church has been broadcasting to Facebook, but it’s not the same as regular church.

“You’re not sitting next to somebody in your pew, waving to them or smiling, talking to them before or after church,” Asmus said. “It’s hard, but we’re glad that we do have that option.”

Online services are not an option for everyone, though. Thousands of West Virginians do not have regular internet access in their homes, leaving many without any contact from their churches.

David Moore is the pastor of Orient Hill Baptist Church in Greenbrier County. He has been holding services on a Facebook page that did not exist until March. He thinks many of his congregants may not have access to technology necessary to hear the sermons.

“We are from a different generation,” Moore said. “We are not texters. They don’t even have internet. So half the congregation don’t even get to see or hear what little we’re doing on Facebook.”

Moore says he likely isn’t reaching everyone in his congregation, specifically the older members who need the in-person connection the church provides.

“Many of their friends and family have already died,” he said. “And so they depend on the social interaction of the church.”

A five-minute drive up the road from Orient Hill puts you in Quinwood, where Chad Rodes preaches at the First Baptist Church. He is seeing similar concerns in his own congregation.

“Many of them also don’t have a lot of outside contact in a regular week,” Rodes said. “It’s important for us to give them a phone call, send them a message for those that are on Messenger or text, and just to check on them to let them know we’re thinking of them and we’re concerned for them.”

Moore says this time of social distancing has given him a greater appreciation for communal worship. He hopes that appreciation spreads.

“You’ll never appreciate something until you’ve lost it,” Moore said. “And not being able to have that social interaction with your church family, you realize how important it is for you to cope with the stresses of daily life.”

Until in-person church services resume, Moore and Rodes suggest calling your elderly friends and family members to check-in and offer some encouragement.

Kayla Starcher is a journalism student at West Virginia University.

August 23, 1970: The First Mormon "Stake" in West Virginia is Organized in Charleston

On August 23, 1970, the first Mormon “stake” in West Virginia was organized in Charleston. It was an important milestone because it demonstrated that the Mormon religion had grown significantly in West Virginia.

The first Mormon missionaries in present West Virginia had entered Cabell County in 1832—just two years after Joseph Smith organized the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. That year, more than 40 individuals were baptized in Cabell County. But, for most of the 1800s, Mormon converts generally traveled to the church’s headquarters in Utah, which left few, if any, Mormons in West Virginia.

A permanent Mormon presence in our state began in 1886 with the creation of the West Virginia Conference, which brought a small, but steady, increase in converts. Unfortunately, this growth often produced distrust and hostility toward Mormons. Missionaries were beaten and shot at; meetings were disturbed by angry mobs; and members were ridiculed and harassedBut the Mormon population in the Mountain State increased steadily during the 20^th century, reaching nearly 2,500 by 1930. Today, there are some 13,000 Latter-day Saints in West Virginia.

Fire Damages Huntington Church; Services Cancelled

A Huntington church cancelled services following a fire that damaged the building.Media outlets report that the fire broke out early Sunday morning at…

A Huntington church cancelled services following a fire that damaged the building.

Media outlets report that the fire broke out early Sunday morning at Johnson Memorial United Methodist Church.

The Rev. Jack Lipphardt says in a statement posted on the church’s website that the sanctuary and fellowship hall sustained extensive smoke and water damage.

Lipphardt says Huntington police saw flames and heard the church’s alarm system while driving by and notified the city fire department.

No injuries were reported.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

The church cancelled all activities for Sunday.

Black Church Vandalized in Montgomery

A historic former black church in Montgomery has become the target of vandalism.The Charleston Gazette-Mail reports that vandals have broken down the…

A historic former black church in Montgomery has become the target of vandalism.

The Charleston Gazette-Mail reports that vandals have broken down the doors and busted the windows of the First Baptist Church, which has been empty since July 2012. They’ve also broken antique cups and plates and scattered hymnals and other church materials on the floor.

Bishop Thomas Murray Jr., the church’s pastor, says police have responded to break-ins there at least 10 times. He says he believes squatters have also been staying there.

The congregation moved to an old Episcopal church downtown more than three years ago. The congregation is planning to sell the church and the buyer is still willing to purchase it, but for less money than they had hoped for.

Life Returns to Historic Harpers Ferry Church

It’s been 59 years since the Curtis Freewill Baptist Church in Harpers Ferry has been open with a regular congregation. This historical African-American church was the main building of worship during the days of Storer College, a predominantly black school that first began as a place to teach former slaves and eventually grew into a full-fledged degree-granting institution.

It was open for 88 years until the Supreme Court’s decision over Brown v. Board of Education ended legal segregation in public schools. Storer College lost federal funding and closed its doors in 1955 and the church in 1956. But today, one clergywoman has brought new life into the school’s old church.

Reverend Jackie Dorsey is the pastor of For the Sake of the Soul Christian Church, which is currently using the Curtis Freewill Baptist Church thanks to a special use permit from the National Park Service.

Reverend Jackie Dorsey, pastor of For the Sake of the Soul Christian Church.

“It’s a big deal for me in the aspect, I know that it’s to some people’s hearing, it’s just a church building, and the main thing is the presence of God is here. That’s the main thing. But I believe in holding onto history, we can’t live in the past, but people should never forget the past,” Dorsey said.

After Storer College closed, the National Park Service turned the grounds and its buildings into a Harpers Ferry National Monument in 1960, restoring many of the buildings and holding a special day each year to honor alums of the college.

Dorsey says she has been pastoring for almost thirty years, but she was always holding services in faraway locations – sometimes traveling two to three hours every Sunday.

Dorsey wanted to pastor closer to home, and she says God led her to the Curtis Freewill Baptist Church.

“I wanted the history of this church to, and this area, to remain in the people’s thoughts, and for people that don’t know about this church and Storer College to come into some knowledge of Harpers Ferry.”

The Beginning of Storer College

When the Civil War ended on April 9, 1865, there were over 30,000 newly freed slaves in the Shenandoah Valley. It was clear education was needed. With the help from the New England Freewill Baptists and a philanthropist from Maine named John Storer, Storer College officially opened its doors on October 2, 1867.

“Storer was really a very prominent school,” said Guinevere Roper, a park ranger for the Harpers Ferry National Historical Park, “It was one of the first schools in the United States to teach newly freed slaves, and it was one of the very first schools in the state of West Virginia to teach newly freed slaves there. So it was like a little haven to the students that were there at Storer College.”

Eventually Storer would become a teacher’s college, and by 1938, it became a degree-granting college offering a variety of courses in higher education and industrial training.

Storer College was significant in the history of Civil Rights. It was the site of the first American meeting of the Niagara Movement, which was a precursor to the NAACP.

But Roper says at first the school wasn’t well-liked by the community, and some people would throw stones at the students and faculty as they walked to the post office.

“Storer College had a strong academic curriculum that prepared its graduates for the struggle that they would face in this segregated society,” Roper said.

The Legacy

Russell Roper, Storer College Alum, 1950

Since Storer College began, many alumni have passed away, but there are some who are still around and are sharing their stories from their Storer College days.

Guinevere Roper’s cousin, Russell Roper, is one of those alums.

Russell Roper was born in 1925 and spent time in the Navy during World War II.

“I used to go down to the college before I started the college,” Roper explained, “see I got back here in January of 46’ and I’d go down to the college with the other guys, see football games, stuff like that, and basketball games.”

Roper went on to play football for Storer himself, and he graduated in 1950. He says the church played a prominent role for the students at Storer, because, after all, the college was a religious school.

“When you passed by, I mean passed through Storer College, if you only stayed there one year or six months, you passed through the church. You was a part of the church, and the church, not you part of the church, the church was a part of you.”

Roper says he was happy to hear the church is holding regular services again. And many people in the Harpers Ferry community feel the same way.

Back at the Curtis Freewill Baptist Church, a woman named Mary Greene sits with her two grandchildren as the congregation sings a hymn.

Greene grew up in Harpers Ferry and so did many in her family. She used to attend this church as a little girl when it was still open. She also had family who attended Storer College.

“It looks the same, it feels the same, you know,” Greene said, “It’s wonderful to know that something so long ago used to be so vibrant, and now it’s reopening.”

Greene says she hopes her grandchildren will learn to appreciate the history of Storer College, the church, and their family history in the area.

For those interested in attending Reverend Dorsey’s services at the Curtis Freewill Baptist Church, services are held on the first, third, and sometimes fifth Sundays of the month if there is one.