What's in a name?
What if the only people in the world who could remember your name
were your parents? What if sometimes they even got confused? What if,
every time you were introduced your name was mispronounced, or forgotten,
or the introducers just made up something they felt was close? What if
you were constantly being confused with someone else? Would you have an
identity crisis?
Such has been the plight of the United Methodist Renewal Services Fellowship, Inc. Alias Manna Ministries, which is often confused with groups whose mission is to feed the poor, provide counseling services, or with gay groups that have adopted the same name. Sometimes, we are also known as UMRSF (which is not a good acrostic or easy to remember), the Renewal Fellowship, or Aldersgate.
Consultants tell me that it is impossible to promote a ministry that has an identity crisis...that is, one that is not easily recognizable and easy to remember.
After years of discussion, the UMRSF Board of Directors voted earlier this year to change our "working" name to something that identifies us more clearly and is easier to remember. The name that was chosen: Aldersgate Renewal Ministries. Aldersgate is who we are! Renewal is what we are about! Ministries are what we do!
Aldersgate is who we are!
It's what we call our national gathering, it's our family and community.
Aldersgate is Wesleyan, Methodist, evangelical, charismatic, and ecumenical.
Aldersgate implies new birth, new power, gifts, grace, sanctification,
holiness, and servanthood. Years ago at Aldersgate street, a fire was
lit in the heart of John Wesley that ignited flames in the hearts of multitudes.
People still have "heart warming" experiences at Aldersgate.
Renewal is what we are about!
We are praying and working to help renew the UMC to a New Testament,
apostolic, church in the power of the Holy Spirit. We are an instrument
of Godthat is "bringing the life of the Holy Spirit into the life
of the Church."
Ministries are what we do!
A national conference on the Holy Spirit, Life in the Spirit Seminars,
Regional Fellowships, Prayer Events, Leadership Training, etc. We are
loving, caring, sharing, serving, healing, praying, praising, preaching,
teaching, evangelizing vessels of God! We will continue to use our legal
name (United Methodist Renewal Services Fellowship, Inc.) on all published
materials but our "Nickname" will be:
Aldersgate Renewal Ministries
Aldersgate Renewal Ministries is the "working name" of the
United Methodist Renewal Services Fellowship, Inc. (UMRSF). The UMRSF
is a network of United Methodists who are praying and working together
for the spiritual renewal of the United Methodist Church, by the power
of the Holy Spirit.
The UMRSF is a non-profit religious corporation and is supported entirely by the freewill gifts of those who have caught the vision and share the burden of renewing the church, the body of Christ, by the power of the Holy Spirit. The UMRSF receives no financial support from the General Church.
The UMRSF is a movement that is committed to "Bringing the life of the Holy Spirit into the life of the Church." Our purpose is to glorify Jesus and to provide witness and teaching regarding the person and work of the Holy Spirit in the renewal of the church and in personal spiritual growth.
Since 1974, the UMRSF has sponsored Aldersgate, an annual, national conference on the Holy Spirit, which is highlighted by lively praise and worship, and focuses on the equipping of believers for the work of the ministry.
In addition, Life in the Spirit Seminars, week-end renewal events that teach about and testify to the person and work of the Holy Spirit are available for local congregations. We have also encouraged the formation of Regional Affiliate Renewal Fellowships. These regional communities provide opportunities for fellowship, worship, learning and networking at the Annual Conference (regional) level.
We encourage dialogue within the UMC, attempting to interpret the movements of the Holy Spirit and the work of renewal across the church. We also try to help the church understand the richness of our Wesleyan heritage and history. In our opinion, John Wesley's theology of grace is in fact a theology of the Holy Spirit,
Since it's beginning, the UMRSF has worked with and within the UMC as a nonadversarial group that is more concerned about "lighting candles than cursing the darkness." UMRSF is an affiliate of the General Board of Discipleship through the Upper Room Program Section. The staff of the UMRSF meets regularly with the staff of the Upper Room Program Section for prayer and planning.
The UMRSF came out of the urgent request of nearly one thousand United Methodists present in Kansas City at the July, 1977 Conference on Charismatic Renewal in the Christian Churches, by a sovereign act of God.
Those who in succeeding years have held positions of leadership in the fellowship opposed formation of an organization for several reasons:
• They did not want to form a group which might be perceived as an instrument for division in the UMC
• They felt it unnecessary because of the 1976 "Guidelines"
• There is a tendency of many special interest groups to become empire rather than kingdom building
• Many organized renewal groups (throughout the history of the church) ritualize experiences and become closed to any new thing God is doing
Prayer for guidance was urged upon the leaders to see if God's Spirit would confirm the desire of the people to form an official association and if so what the nature of the group was to be. A meeting was held at Chapel Hill, NC with Tommy Tyson acting as host. Robert Stamps, Robert Tuttle, Ross Whetstone and William Wilson joined with him in seeking God's will.
This group was led by God to form a Fellowship which would:
• Be under authority within the UMC
• Provide for broad representation in the making of policy
• Undergird all decision making procedures with prayer until an inspired consensus could be reached
In particular, the leadership felt it imperative that the focus of the group was to provide encouragement and education and that it was not in any way to take an adversarial stance.
Original Vision
• Identify a constituency of persons committed to ministries
which bring renewal of the church by the power of the Holy Spirit
• Publish a periodical to provide information about renewal activities both within the UMC and in the ecumenical community
• Hold an annual national meeting for inspiration, fellowship and the coordination of ministry among members of the fellowship
• To provide ministry to other ministries within the UMC which are being used by the Holy Spirit to bring renewal
Back to Aldersgate Index.
Back to History of Renewal.