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Wisdom for Preserving Things
Maybe it’s natural as we get older be more interested in preserving things. When I was younger, I don’t recall being interested in preserving history in the way that I am now. Especially since becoming pastor of a church with a 200 year time-line, I’ve become very aware of the value of the story that is told by the collection of anecdotes, pictures, records, and objects that are collected over the years. For example, this year as a part of our 200th anniversary celebration at Copper Hill church, we read from the Bible that was printed in 1839, the same year that the church sanctuary was built. I illustrated one sermon with anecdotes of revivals taken from the records of the church and a town history.
This last Wednesday, (August 10, 2016), our 200th anniversary committee sponsored a presentation by Beth Patkus, archivist of the New York Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church. As a part of our celebration, we have discovered numerous old records, pictures, etc. And we are creating more historical material as the celebration proceeds. We have also become very aware of how fragile the material is, and how prone it is to being lost during times between big anniversaries when it might be considered “in the way.”
Ms. Patkus’ presentation was very interesting and I came away with a number of immediate takeaways. I’ll call them “Wisdom for Preserving Things. Here are five.
- Label your pictures. Even the next generation will not know who many of the people are. I have a picture of the congregation of my childhood church from my grandparent’s generation. I would only know one or two people, except for the fact that the picture is accompanied with a labeling chart. But I discovered a picture of a large baptismal class I had at Kirkville that is not labeled and already I am unable to recall names for some of the faces.
- Digital preservation does not necessarily replace physical preservation. This was a new thought for me. As a computer buff, I have come to think digital. But I am also aware that websites get completely redone, computers crash, and Beth informed us that even CDs and DVDs do not last as well as techies originally thought they would. The cloud may help but it is still too new to see how well it will work for long-range storage.
- Use acid-free, lignin free and PH buffered storage folders and boxes. For photo albums with plastic, avoid PVC’s. I had heard of acid-free, but the rest of this information was new to me. I am going to invest in some proper storage materials.
- Choose a good storage spot. This was just common sense, but I know I have lost things because they were not in a good spot. Especially avoid light exposure, high humidity, and potential for water damage. In addition, high temperature is detrimental. When possible, display a copy rather than the original to avoid the long-term light exposure incurred by display.
- Don’t try to fix a torn or damaged artifact yourself. You’re more likely to cause irreversible damage. If the object is truly valuable, a conservator may be able to repair it properly (for a price). We were glad we had followed this advice on a church-related but badly-torn poster one family found that may be 140 years old.
George Barna is an experienced researcher who has studied churches for many years. Here is an article that seek to flag possible issues that may be leading to the decline that mainline churches have been experiencing. It is helpful as it reminds pastors like myself of pitfalls to avoid and emphases to maintain.
Here are some take-homes that I noticed for our own UM church in Copper Hill.
- I pray that I am allowed to stay at Copper Hill many more years. I was shocked to read that the average tenure of pastors in mainline churches is only 4 years which is one-half what it is in non-mainline churches. Annual conference just passed, and looking at the NYAC report of our UM area, I could tell that we are not doing well in that department. This week I begin year four at Copper Hill UMC. I am just beginning in the work that I believe God has called me here to accomplish. I believe it is unfair to the church for a pastor to stay at a church less than six years unless there are extenuating circumstances.
- Unfortunately, I note in the article that Copper Hill is typical of many mainline churches in that we have been adding members but only fast enough to stay about even in attendance. We need to seek ways to increase our outreach.
- Fortunately, we are well ahead of the curve in demographics. We are blessed to have young adults with children attending, visiting, and participating in the government of our church. This is awesome.
- I note that Barna calls attention to the need for commitment. Apparently, mainline churches are falling victim to their own pluralism. If the pastor does not give a clear gospel message that calls for salvation through Jesus, the raison d’etre of the church is compromised. The people in the pew catch the lack of purpose. Over time, attendance falters; giving declines and extremely few from the younger generation feel called into ministry. But if the gospel is front and center, the message of the cross has its own drawing power. The church, properly presented, is part of the greatest cause on earth. Churches with that attitude will have an excellent record of raising up both younger and middle-aged people for ministry.