Churches find temporary home at Arkansas State University

Posted on November 15, 2023 by Avery Jones

Congregations in need of a place to worship meet on campus

Delta Digital News Service

Wednesday, November 15, 2023

JONESBORO, Ark. – Two churches have recently begun meeting on the Arkansas State University campus for their weekly services. First Methodist Church and Word Baptist Church have had to move out of their original buildings, but for different reasons.

First Methodist Church, formerly a part of the First United Methodist Church, now meets at the Fowler Center every Sunday morning. The children’s Sunday school service is held in the Cooper Alumni Center. Their regular Wednesday night service is resumed on September 13th in the Cooper Alumni Center.

Lead Pastor Jamar Andrews of Word Baptist Church preaches. The church meets on the campus of Arkansas State University.

Additionally, their Wednesday night youth group meetings are now held in the Wildflower Event Venue in town. Breaking Bonds Ministry also meets in town at the Southwest Church of Christ on Tuesday nights.

They were forced to leave their original building as a result of the current nationwide schism in the United Methodist Church. The Church is split over the theological issue of the legitimacy of LGBTQ+ marriage and ordination.

The United Methodist Church is officially in favor of allowing LGBTQ+ marriages and ordinations within the church; some members are in favor while others are in disagreement. Many churches have either disaffiliated or split as a result; over 6,900 churches have left the Conference according to data provided by United Methodist news.

In July 2022, 900 members of FUMC Jonesboro voted to leave the Arkansas Conference of the United Methodist Church, almost 70% of the church. However, the conference denied their disaffiliation request.

As a result, the conference took control of the original building on 801 S. Main, and the group who wanted to disaffiliate filed a lawsuit against them. However, the Craighead County Circuit Court determined that the loyalists should get the building while the disaffiliates need to leave.

The members in favor of disaffiliation were told to leave by August 1. They’re currently still in legal dispute over the building and will continue to use the Fowler Center until further notice. Pastor John Miles has anticipated that the dispute could potentially go on for years.

“I was seventeen years at the church,” Miles said. “When that judge threw us out weeks ago, I thought we were done for. It’s just worked out so great.”

Miles had his ordination removed by the Conference and is officially no longer a part of it, even though he’s still leading the church at the Fowler Center. Even before they left, they had teams of people calling around and searching for a new temporary home. They were very happy when A-State agreed to let them use their building.

They’re currently paying $3,000 per week to rent it. However, for a large church such as theirs that receives a lot of donations, that’s much cheaper than maintaining an entire city block like the building on 801 S. Main St.

“Riceland Hall has worked out really well for us…we’re having a good time there,” Miles said. “We’re not in any hurry to rebuild. We can hold out to see what the courts decide.”

“Riceland Hall has worked out really well for us…we’re having a good time there,” Miles said. “We’re not in any hurry to rebuild. We can hold out to see what the courts decide.”
– Pastor John Miles,

Word Baptist had to move into the Student Union because they’re outgrowing their original building at 416 Calion St. They have been in that building since 2013, but felt that they needed a bigger building to continue growing.

They needed a space that was close to their original home and was big enough to house everybody, with the right facilities for children as well. They already had an established relationship with the university, too.

“We felt like in order to continue to grow in a healthy way that the Union would be a good place to help us with that,” Jamar Andrews, the pastor, stated. “And then also we just felt like not only the space would be great, it would also give us an opportunity to make connections, be in proximity for students to be able to walk over…”

They’re currently building a new church near their former one. During the construction, they’re planning to remain at the Union until they’re finished. However, if things continue to go well, they might continue meeting on the campus in some capacity.

They’re also planning to keep their original building. During construction, they’re using the building for their food pantry, children’s space, women’s worship night, counseling center, and tutoring for which they partner with Jonesboro public schools.

They also want to help start a Spanish and English bilingual church in the original building. When the construction on their new building is over, they hope to keep the original building and continue to use it.

“We want to use this facility to be a help to the community,” Andrews said. “We would love to see this become a place where students can come and be together. We’d love to use it to help train up the next generation of missionaries.”

“We want to use this facility to be a help to the community.” “We would love to see this become a place where students can come and be together. We’d love to use it to help train up the next generation of missionaries.”
– Lead Pastor Jamar Andrews, Word Baptist Church

According to Andrews, the move has been relatively smooth. They hold two services in order to fit everyone. They’ve been able to get a storage unit in the garage to hold all of the things they need for the children.

They have to get there usually around 6:30 in the morning in order to set up. The worship, media, and sound team need to set up the instruments and speakers. Additionally, unlike the Methodist church, it costs more for them to rent that space than it does to maintain their current building.

However, as Andrews said, it’s not uncommon for churches to meet in unconventional places. The space is needed and has been working out great for them. They’re not eager to move out anytime soon.

“We’ve already had an opportunity to see just the impact of being on campus. We have students and individuals from South America, North America, Asia, Africa, and Europe,” Andrews. “Out of the seven continents, five of them in one room…was really special. That’s a big part of why we decided to be there.”

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Avery Jones is a sophomore in the Department of English and Philosophy at Arkansas State University in Jonesboro. She can be reached at: avery.jones@smail.astate.edu

Note: Feature photo shows members of of First Methodist Church worshipping on the campus of Arkansas State University.