In October 2003, six persons gathered in a home for worship and conversation about the possibility of starting a new church in Oak Ridge. Sharing the conviction that more than a church with rigid answers, people need a safe place to ask questions, the six spoke in terms of a church prepared to confront the issues and concerns of the day and committed to interpreting the Christian life as a journey of faith. At a second meeting on November 12, the group decided to go forward with gathering a church and chose the name Ekklesia, the New Testament Greek word for church, signifying the gathered people or more literally, those called out.
Following the resignation of Larry Dipboye after fifteen years as pastor of the First Baptist Church of Oak Ridge, the group extended an invitation to Larry and Carolyn Dipboye to join the venture; and on Sunday afternoon, January 4, 2004, the Dipboyes and Rodney Parrish conducted the congregation's first public worship service in the sanctuary of the First Christian Church. About forty people attended the service. The Dipboyes shared the preaching, pastoral care, and education ministry. Rodney Parrish focused on worship music.
The church developed under the guidance of a Steering Committee that included the original six, plus the Dipboyes. The congregation met weekly at 4 PM on Sundays for worship services at First Christian Church and gathered periodically in homes on Sunday evenings for fellowship and conversation about the possibility of forming an ongoing congregation. As commitment grew, the Steering Committee developed a Covenant statement and a Constitution and Bylaws, searched for a building in which to center ministry, discussed a permanent church name, and examined the options for mission and affiliation. Following an Ash Wednesday service at the home of the Dipboyes, the church began to meet regularly in homes on Wednesday evenings for meals, prayer and continued conversation.
After meeting weekly for several months, the Steering Committee arrived at several landmark decisions. It located a suitable building, and the first Sunday morning worship service was conducted on August 15 at 100-C Adams Lane. After extensive congregational involvement, the founding documents--the Covenant and the Constitution and Bylaws--were approved. The name Grace Covenant Church of Oak Ridge was approved by the congregation and registered with the State of Tennessee. The original vision of a socially inclusive church with an open, inquiring faith was articulated in the founding documents; and, in keeping with that vision, the congregation chose an interdenominational affiliation with the International Council of Community Churches and the Alliance of Baptists.
The rental property at 100-C Adams Lane contains two large rooms connected by a kitchen and small office area. A quiet, attractive space, far enough removed from the busy traffic of the Oak Ridge Turnpike to offer a peaceful setting, the space has been ideal for housing the church's worship ministry on one side and its fellowship and educational ministries on the other. Speaking of ourselves from the beginning as being temporarily tabernacled in each of the locations in which we have met, the congregation of Grace Covenant is committed to maintaining an identity that resides not in a physical location but in the deep bonds of friendship and common service that unite us in Christ.
Perhaps it is because we are still so young as a congregation that Grace Covenant Church steps into the future very much aware that it is still a work in progress. Whether, however, our fellowship is 4 years of age or 104 years of age, we anticipate that our character as "an unfinished people of faith" will remain intact. We are, in the words of our Covenant, "striving to live out the calling of Christ, 'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.' This is the greatest and first commandment. And the second is like it: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'" We anticipate the journey of a lifetime and welcome you to join us.
