A Maryland congregation that voted to leave the United Methodist Church has only a few weeks remaining to raise enough money to pay $4 million to keep their property or they will lose their church building.
Oakdale Church of Olney, a congregation that has existed for over 200 years and has around 250 in-person attendees every week, voted to disaffiliate from the UMC in March.
As part of the disaffiliation process, Oakdale Church has to pay the UMC mission shares for the current year plus one year in advance, any unfunded pension liability, and 50% of the property’s assessed value.
Oakdale Pastor Kevin Baker told The Christian Post that because his church’s tax assessment is around $7.9, his congregation will have to pay approximately $4 million.
(Full article can be found at https://www.christianpost.com/news/maryland-church-that-left-umc-must-raise-4-million-to-keep-property.html)