Happy 200th! Trinity United Methodist Church rooted in the birth of Tallahassee
It may be stretching a simile a little to note that in 1824 — 200 years ago this January — two “toddlers,” not quite sure of themselves, but feisty and proud, began to make their mark on the then new Florida Territory.
Tallahassee, one of the “toddlers,” had then only recently been designated the capital of the Territory, and the other, the Methodist Church, whose circuit-riding preachers traveled the Florida wilds bringing the word of God, were like two neophytes on the brink of creating lasting heritages that endure today.
That Tallahassee and Trinity United Methodist Church celebrate their 200th birthdays in the same year is a testimony to hard work, great faith, and a vision that for each of them has always been aimed toward the future.
Trinity will feature special music throughout the bicentennial year, launching Jan. 9 with Vivaldi’s "The Four Seasons" in the church sanctuary.
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Trinity United Methodist begins its Tallahassee life
It would be impossible to miss the sprawling complex of Trinity United Methodist Church today.
With its colonial-revival spires and pillars, it elegantly overlooks the leafy esplanade at the corner of Park Street and Duval in the very heart of the capital city. This is the third church built on the downtown site, each one springing from the commitment of members who had started out in 1825 with a primitive structure of wood “without ceiling, paint, sash, or blinds” nearby at Bronough and Park.
The nascent city of Tallahassee was an equally unsophisticated entity in 1824. Still almost 20 years from becoming a state, Tallahassee was known for being an “unstable” town. A Leon County Grand Jury of the time cited rampant alcohol use for Tallahassee’s daily “riotous, immoral and disorderly activities.”
Yet Trinity church persisted in its own efforts to bring “order and quiet” to the town. Temperance was one of its tenets. And in 1840, 16 years after its initial humble beginnings, and with the citizenry learning to better live together, the Methodist Church would move into its first real church building, a two-story stucco structure, complete with four portico pillars. An imposing bell tower would be added later thanks to determined church women.
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Just as Tallahassee was growing, so too were its churches.
St. John’s Episcopal had begun services in 1829 and the First Presbyterian Church in 1832, leaving Trinity Methodist to its claim of oldest organized church in the city.
During the early frontier years, as a sentinel of community involvement that continues until today, Trinity hosted the Florida Legislative Council for the official ceremony laying the cornerstone for the Capitol, conducted huge revivals, and though slavery was part of the fabric of the then-South, had a gallery in the 1840 building where enslaved persons worshipped at the same services as its white members.
The Civil War and beyond
The war between the states brought upheaval and strains on all parts of society, including religious denominations. In 1845, just prior to the Civil War, Trinity, which had been part of the Methodist Episcopal Church, like all other Southern and Southwestern Methodist churches separated to join the Methodist Episcopal Church South over the issue of slavery.
Following the War, Trinity would deed two downtown lots to the Board of Trustees of the Colored Methodist Episcopal Church where later a Day School was established to educate formerly enslaved persons. In 1939 Trinity reunited with the Methodist Church. Still, tensions remained through the Jim Crowe era, when one member recalls a pastor in the late 1950s instructing ushers to not block entrance to anyone wishing to worship at Trinity, no matter their race.
Today, Trinity United Methodist Church prides itself on its welcome to all.
Over time, Trinity’s influence on Methodism continued to grow. Acting as a kind of “mother church,” Trinity would be instrumental in helping to establish new churches and missions. Tallahassee Heights, New Life, St. Paul’s, John Wesley, Gray Memorial, Calvary, Killearn, and Killearn Lakes churches, as well as the very recent Open Hearts UMC mission in Monticello were all shepherded by Trinity. And it grew itself.
In 1893 a second church had been built on the same site as today, with the name “Trinity” appearing for the first time. It was followed in 1962 by the third church at Park and Duval. A sprawling 1949 Education Building with a complex of offices, a Sunday School, outdoor play areas, and community activity rooms were already part of the site.
Trinity’s new sanctuary, completed in 1964, remains a massive space of celestial blue with a wall of dramatic stained-glass windows, often described as “opalescent” in their luminosity. The detailed and dramatic story they tell was crafted by a famed Philadelphia glass designer.
Today’s Trinity United Methodist Church
But churches do not serve and thrive only because of magnificent architecture and thrilling windows. Just ask Trinity’s 73rd pastor, Reverend Dr. Matthew Williams, a 43-year-old former Methodist Music Minister whose recollection of his early call to God’s work, even today brings a flush of emotion.
“I believe that what makes Trinity so special is its historic worship and community service to the poor,” he says, joined by the church’s Historian, Dr. Lynn McLarty, and member, Gloria Colvin. He counts some of the ways: since 1989 Trinity has hosted an annual Community Christmas dinner for homeless people.
Volunteers distribute snack packs weekly to that same demographic. Members offer their services with Habitat for Humanity, the Kearney Center, working with Providence and Frenchtown neighborhoods, as well as with the Green Faith Alliance and the International Rescue Committee. A Social Justice ministry and Advocacy Days are only a part of Trinity’s attention to outreaches beyond the church walls.
But a church with close to 2,000 members has other needs which Trinity is eager to try to meet. There is an Historical Society, a Lay Academy program offering adult educational topics; Fitness classes; Quilt and Shawl-making groups; Trivia nights; expansive programs for children from preschool through high school, one of which is a Gold Seal Pre-School for 75 children, infants through 5-year-olds. And certainly, there is music. In the form of choirs and performances, there is always music.
As the Bicentennial of Trinity United Methodist Church is celebrated throughout the year, music will fill the sanctuary.
Already home to renowned Ukrainian organist, Viktor Billa, in 2024 Trinity will host three organists from the Salt Lake City Tabernacle in concert. Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, Faure’s Requiem, along with a performance by the famed St. Olaf Choir will be a part of the celebration.
Enjoying the music as well will be monthly guest clergy and former pastors, and on Sept. 29, as the culmination of the Bicentennial year, the Bishop of the Florida Conference of the United Methodist Church will speak on the radiant trajectory of Trinity.
Trinity United Methodist Church, its clergy, staff, and members invite everyone to share the joy of celebration as the church turns 200 years old. “Open Hand. Open Mind. Open Door,” Trinity’s motto, has never been more heartfelt.
History guide: Gerald Ensley's history columns guide Memorial Bicentennial Project
Below are only a few of the planned events for 2024
Jan. 9: Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons. The concert will be at 7 p.m. in the Sanctuary and features Oleksiy Hamov, Violin; Viktor Billa, Organ; and Yuliia Billa will sing several arias from the "Nine German Arias" by G.F. Handel.
Feb. 2: St. Olaf Choir
March 9: Brian Matthews, organist from Salt Lake Square
March 17: Faure’s Requiem
May 4: Andrew Unsworth, organist from Salt Lake Square
Sept. 21: organist from Salt Lake Square
Sept. 29: Culminating Procession from Bronough to Park to Trinity UMC
Find more information at trinity@tumct.org and 850-222-1120.
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Happy bicentennial: Trinity and Tallahassee have grown up together
