We headed
east this morning toward Hopewell, UMC, south of Greensville, SC, in the community of Simpsonville. Pastor Jim is away for a couple of days but
we may get to meet him because this church has a CHILI COOKOFF this coming
Saturday night and we LOVE to try a lot of different kinds of chili (memories
of all the Hope Church youth group cookoffs over the years).
It was a
BEAUTIFUL drive east through the Georgia Appalachian foothills and the
Highlands of northwest South Carolina.
But there are NO pictures.
You see, all
70 miles of the road we took was two lane, bordered on either side with lush
vegetation, dark hollows and flowing streams; but no pulloffs 50’ of Frog and
Toad could use. 10 mile an hour switchbacks and tight corners. Not too tight,
or I wouldn’t be typing right now, but tight nonetheless.
As we neared
Clemson and Greenville the road became wider and more easily navigated but the
reasons to stop and pull out the cameras diminished; at least until we are in
TOAD instead of FROG.
In mid
afternoon we arrived at Hopewell United Methodist Church in Simpsonville, SC.
We were greeted at the coach door by Libby, the Trustee Team Leader. Libby has been a Trustee for 8 years and
comes off the team this December but says she’ll still watch out that things
are done promptly by the Trustees.
You see,
this small church of about 40 in worship attendance has big dreams, and some of
them are being lived out now. They have
a child care center which requires a huge amount of volunteer time, and the
reports, etc. that must be filled out by the church for state, county, and
local government for childcare facilities anywhere in the Free World is
astronomical. And repairs of any kind
must be done yesterday, not ‘;when we get time’. But this program is slowly
growing their church, and bringing kids to Christ.
Only forty or so
in worship, but Hopewell has a vibrant and attractive worship center ready for
new things to happen in. Yes, some older
members are uncomfortable with change, but younger age does not make for easier
change when things you’ve become used to are disappearing. For example, less hymns and more praise
songs. 
It is
marvelous to see the hope of Hopewell’s Trustee Leader for this congregation, founded in 1799. This was the second Methodist
church in Greenville County, after the 1790 Pisgah Methodist to the west, when
Cherokee were the predominant neighbors and tiny pioneer farms were the only
industry.
The church
was noted by Francis Asbury himself, one of the two bishops of the UMC John
Wesley appointed over the new American ‘Methodist Episcopal Church’ after the Revolutionary
War. His journal records, ‘ We rode… to Berry’s Ford; thence to Thomas Terry’s,
near there, sixteen miles southeast of Greenville, Hopewell Church was formed
at an early date.”
That first building of rough hewn logs on this
site is long gone. But local histories tell of large camp meetings being held
at this site in the early 1800’s and tents by the dozens holding vendors of
food and purveyors of whatever could be gotten around the grounds filled with
hundreds of campers.
The white frame
building built in 1859 to replace the small log structure was put up by the
slaves of a neighbor and church member, Philemon Huff, whose family joined him
in the cemetery here years later and still so long ago.
Until the
end of the Civil War the ground behind the white frame church was the slave
selling auction ground for the local community. This church building is where
good Confederates attended this now ‘Southern Methodist Church’. Until a new
church was built in 1924. the Southern and Methodist Episcopal Church rejoined
in the 1930’s.
That building became infested with termites in the
1980’s and the fire department had to be called on to burn it in place. It was then that the present open space
worship center was built by some very vision minded members of this
congregation.
Today all
that remains to see of the old church buildings is the stone wall along Neely
Ferry Road, and the cemetery, which holds the dust of the first members of this
congregation. Like Gideon Tetomason, who died in 1867.  |
| Hannah was a CONSORT of Mr. Thomas. have no fear. In those days this was the title for WIFE. |
And in a
corner off to the northeast of the member’s yard, rough stones still stand
which represent the graves of slaves of some of the members. Slaves allowed ground in the churchyard where
their masters attended, but only rocks hand chiseled with initials or names which
are now long eroded away.
And one
other grave under slabs of stone which tradition tells today’s members, is the
grave of a friendly Indian Chief, perhaps of the 1700’s. Unknown but to God.
We are looking forward to exploring the Greenville area while we are here, and hopefully getting to know a few more of the Hopewell Faithful as well.
-Ken
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