DARE YOU CHANGE THE CHURCH'S NAME?
C. David Gable
October 1, 1987
"I move that we table the whole thing and stay with Full Gospel Tabernacle." The fourth ballot of our vote to change the church's name was being counted. Little change in the totals had occurred in the first three ballots. The votes were split among the three choices: the current name-Full Gospel Tabernacle-and two others that represented nearly a year of committee and congregational effort. A minority still much preferred Full Gospel Tabernacle. Three votes with no resolution was enough for them to conclude that our congregation, which usually finds agreement quickly, simply wasn't ready to change names. The name had served us sixty years, and it would serve us for many more. Others saw this meeting as the strongest expression of growing dissatisfaction with our name. As I umpired the debate, my heart sank. If we tabled the motion, it would likely be years before we would bring it up again. All the careful effort to find a new name would be canceled. The debate grew more heated. I tried to think of alternatives. If only the tellers would come out with a vote that showed some movement, I thought. But the discussion ended with no teller in sight, and now we had to face the motion to table. What's in a name?
Why go through all this? What's in a name, that church leaders would risk harmony to change it? Some names signify simply place and denomination, such as Lake Avenue Congregational Church or Thomas Road Baptist. Some, such as Community Bible Church, open broader doors. Some hold out a spiritual ideal-Church of the Open Door or The Lighthouse. Some offer combinations: Our Savior's Lutheran. And some contain nearly an entire system of theology: Pillar of Fire Mount Zion Holiness Fundamental Church. Names, of course, are only what ...
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