By Jason Scheer
"The first reason being that [the Baldwin Community Church] was using a public school for this service and that's completely hypocritical. Our children aren't even allowed to mention Jesus or God and they can't mention Christmas or any religious holiday."
Dowd describes herself as a "very religious person" and said she put her child in Catholic School because of the lack of religion in public school. However, she sees the plight of the BCC as a "slap in the face" to those who want more religion in school but have been turned down.
"If it goes to the highest bidder then it's okay," she said of the BCC's need to pay a fee for the use of the school facilities.
Baldwin School Board President James Scannell said that the school district is required, by law, to allow responsible institutions and organizations to use district property.
"There is well-established case law that we're aware of and that our attorneys have explained to us stating that once you open up your schools to any organization, like the boy scouts or the girl scouts, you have to make [the facilities] open to any organization," he said.
There are exceptions but Scannell said that, in this particular case, the church paid a fee to be operating on school property outside the normal schedule of operations.
"To be precise, it depends on whether the organization is using the [building] when it is normally open or not," he said.
Jeff Inniss is the Pastor of the Baldwin Community Church. He did not acknowledge that a fee was paid, saying only "It was all God's work. It was all God's hand."
Inniss, though not an ordained minister, said his church would provide a valuable service to the community of Baldwin.
"Every person that knows the lord Jesus Christ is a minister of his word," he said. "...My part is to go out into the community and reach out to people who are hurting and don't know where to turn. They just need a listening ear and I will be a listening ear. My door is always open."
As for where that door will be in the future, Inniss said that finding a central location is something he is looking into. However, he said the actual building is not as important as building a foundation of parishioners.
"The church is the body of people, not necessarily the building," he said. Dowd questioned the need for another church in Baldwin.
"Baldwin has enough churches and it's going to become the Mecca of churches and our town is going to go downhill," she said.
More than 50 people attended the Easter Service at the high school. Many in attendance were seeking something different than traditional religious services.
Jessica Lowry attended the service with her mother and one-year old son. She said she wanted a change.
"I'm interested in finding a church where we fit in," she said. "And a flier came in the mail on Thursday, which addressed my concerns with [traditional] church and made it seem like this is a place I would feel comfortable."
Lowry acknowledged that the use of the public school facilities for religious purposes was a concern of hers before attending the service. However, she said that having the service in the high school auditorium was a positive.
"Actually, the fact that [the service] was taking place in the auditorium made me think that it wasn't going to have a very old feel [but rather] a laid back one," she said. "Other churches that I belonged to for a while didn't make me feel welcome. I felt like I got dirty looks if I wasn't dressed a certain way or I didn't contribute a certain amount to collection and things of that nature."
Baldwin resident Wendy Thomas agreed with Lowry. She said there was a disconnection between traditional churches and residents in the community.
"I wanted to be a part of a church that I could relate
to," Thomas said. "I'm a member of a Catholic church and I wanted to hear something different."
Inniss insists that the Baldwin Community Church is not a fly-by-night organization.
"We will be here for a long time, a very long time," he said.
Comments or questions about this story? JScheer@liherald.com or 569-4000 ext. 282.
