Duncan Memorial United Methodist Church
210 E. Main Street, Berryville, VA 22611 Phone: 540.955.1264 www.dmumc.org
Welcome to Duncan Memorial United Methodist Church
Welcome to Duncan Memorial United Methodist Church (DMUMC). We're located in Berryville, Virginia at 210 East Main Street. DMUMC is a certified Safe Sanctuaries facility. If you’re looking for a place to continue your faith, or renew your faith, we welcome you with open hearts and open minds to join us on Sundays for worship. At DMUMC we believe in connecting people to Jesus. That is our mission: to make disciples for Jesus and show our love and care.
Thank you for visiting the Duncan Memorial United Methodist Church website! We are excited to have you join us. We hope you will find a number of programs and activities that will appeal to your faith-based interests. Our mission at DMUMC is to make disciples. We seek to be in covenant. What does that mean? A covenant is a formal agreement between two parties, where each has a sense of obligation. In Exodus 6:7 we find "I will take you as my people and I will be your God." The author of II Chronicles puts it this way: "....if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, pray, seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land." And, in Matthew 26:28, we find Jesus saying "....for this is my blood of the new covenant, which is poured out for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins." As people of faith, we declare that we are God's people and God is our God. We shall seek to serve God and to fulfill his will for our lives. In our desire to be faithful to our relationship with God, we offer seven covenants. We believe that if our congregation were to embrace them, we could make a positive change into being more of a discipleship-making church. We want to uplift the whole person. We hope you will embrace all seven covenants.
Our Vision Statement:
As a congregation we will live out our core values to embrace the community. Our Core Values include: Faith, Love, Worship, Hope, Laughter/Joy, Family/Friends, Missions/Service, Grace.
As we seek to fulfill our MISSION and VISION statements, and live our CORE VALUES, we believe we need to be in a covenant relationship with one another and with our God. A covenant is a binding pact that both uplifts us as children of God and holds us together.
PRAY DAILY: it is important that each of us has a prayer life, a time when we take things to God as we pray for our needs, for others, for our church and community.
WORSHIP WEEKLY: people will try to tell us that they can worship just as well at home, alone or on the golf course on Sundays. This is not true. We need to gather as a church family to share in worship. Worship is an act of praise to God and God is our audience in worship. "We guarantee our product, just come in once a week for servicing."
STUDY REGULARLY: taking time to read the Bible, to study together, to reflect upon sermons, to be in small groups that discuss important issues are yet other ways in which we can deepen our sense of community and spirituality.
LIVING FAITHFULLY: it is also important for each of us to seek to be faithful in our following Jesus each day. We act and speak in love. Yes, we all have challenges and frustrations, but God's love is deep and he surrounds us with his sustaining power and grace. It is helpful when we find God's forgiveness.
SERVING ACTIVELY: it takes more than words, even kind words of cheers, to be out is the world helping others. Our lives get so busy and there are certainly many demands placed upon us, but we need to take time for others.
GIVING GENEROUSLY: sharing our bounty is an important part of being a church member. Giving that 10% fulfills what God asks us to do. We have a need to give and can enjoy the positive feeling we experience when we know we have done what God wants and have helped others.
WITNESS BOLDLY: believe it or not, there are ways we can share our faith that are not scary and won't cost us our friends. We can witness by how we live. We can witness by having a presence. We can witness by the gentle things we say and do. Sometimes, when a friend is having a rough time, we can ask if they have a church home or we can share how our church has helped us get through those difficult moments.
According to our foundational statement of beliefs in The Book of Discipline, we believe the following basic affirmations.
Trinity
We describe God in three persons. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are commonly used to refer to the threefold nature of God. Sometimes we use other terms, such as Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer.
God
We believe in one God, who created the world and all that is in it.
We believe that God is sovereign; that is, God is the ruler of the universe.
We believe that God is loving. We can experience God's love and grace.
Jesus
We believe that Jesus was human. He lived as a man and died when he was crucified.
We believe that Jesus is divine. He is the Son of God.
We believe that God raised Jesus from the dead and that the risen Christ lives today. (Christ and Messiah mean the same thing -- God's anointed.)
We believe that Jesus is our Savior. In Christ we receive abundant life and forgiveness of sins.
We believe that Jesus is our Lord and that we are called to pattern our lives after his.
The Holy Spirit
We believe that the Holy Spirit is God with us.
We believe that the Holy Spirit conforms us when we are in need and convicts us when we stray from God.
We believe that the Holy Spirit awakens us to God's will and empowers us to live obediently.
Human Beings
We believe that God created human beings in God's image.
We believe that humans can choose to accept or reject a relationship with God.
We believe that all humans need to be in relationship with God in order to be fully human.
The Church
We believe that the church is the body of Christ, an extension of Christ's life and ministry in the world today.
We believe that the mission of the church is to make disciples of Jesus Christ.
We believe that the church is "the communion of saints," a community made up of all past, present and future disciples of Christ.
We believe that the church is called to worship God and to support those who participate in its life as they grow in faith.
The Bible
We believe that the Bible is God's Word.
We believe that the Bible is the primary authority for our faith and practice.
We believe that Christians need to know and study the Old Testament and the New Testament (the Hebrew Scriptures and the Christian Scriptures).
The Reign of God
We believe that the kingdom or reign of God is both a present reality and future hope.
We believe that wherever God's will is done, the kingdom or reign of God is present. It was present in Jesus' ministry, and it is also present in our world whenever persons and communities experience reconciliation, restoration, and healing.
We believe that although the fulfillment of God's kingdom--the complete restoration of creation--is still to come.
We believe that the church is called to be both witness to the vision of what God's kingdom will be like and a participant in helping to bring it to completion.
We believe that the reign of God is both personal and social. Personally, we display the kingdom of God as our hearts and minds are transformed and we become more Christ-like. Socially, God's vision for the kingdom includes the restoration and transformation of all of creation.
Sacraments
We recognize the two sacraments in which Christ himself participated: Baptism and the Lord's Supper.
Baptism
Through baptism we are joined with the church and with Christians everywhere.
Baptism is a symbol of new life and a sign of God's love and forgiveness of our sins.
Persons of any age can be baptized.
We baptize by sprinkling, immersion or pouring.
A person receives the sacrament of baptism only once in his or her life, but may reaffirm his or her baptism vows.
The Lord's Supper (Communion, Eucharist)
The Lord's Supper is a holy meal of bread and wine that symbolizes the body and blood of Christ. The Lord's Supper recalls the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus and celebrates the unity of all the members of God's family.
By sharing this meal, we give thanks for Christ's sacrifice and are nourished and empowered to go into the world in mission and ministry.
We practice open Communion", welcoming all who love Christ, repent of their sin, and seek to live in peace with one another.
Through baptism we are joined with the church and with Christians everywhere.
Blessings upon you!
History of Duncan Memorial United Methodist Church
DMUMC was founded in 1838 when a small group of dedicated Clarke County Methodists decided to form a Methodist church in or near the town of Berryville. For $200 dollars they purchased half an acre of land on the north side of East Main Street, which at the time had a small structure on it. The building was used until the congregation outgrew it. By 1871 a new structure was built, and within another 10 years, the church was expanded to include a more permanent house of worship and provide more Sunday School space. This red brick church, later painted white, served the growing congregation for almost 100 years during which time two additions were built to accommodate the continuing growth of the church. The late 1950's and 1060's saw a growing concern of the safety of the structure, and plans were made for building a new sanctuary. Property to the west of the church was purchased in 1967. The new sanctuary was built in 1979. In 1985 the church received a substantial donation from the family of Phillip J. Affleck, the superintendent of Duncan Memorial Sunday School from 1871 to 1904, and built seven new classrooms, a new nursery, a parlor, a choir room and a beautiful new chapel. The Affleck Fund was used to pay for these additions. Many clergy and laity have contributed to the development of Duncan Memorial United Methodist Church, named for William Wallace Duncan, Methodis Bishop of the Baltimore Conference of whch Berryville was then a part. Their talents of preaching, teaching, leading, together with their spiritual example, led Duncan Memorial UMC forward as an instrument of God's work here in Berryville.
