“Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as ever you can.” The words of John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist denomination, would be proud; proud that the Wayne United Methodist Church is doing all the good that it can.
A small church in the heart of Wayne, the Wayne United Methodist Church holds to the ideals that Wesley presented over 200 years ago. These ideals include structured and ordered worship, filled with hymns and a very traditional service. The weekly sermon is biblically based, the passages are well taught and the scripture is used to branch into a much broader discussion.
Senior Pastor Joseph F. DiPaolo is very proud of the priorities of the church.
“I believe that the best aspects of the church are the Sunday morning worship and the preaching,” DiPaolo said.
Located on a block from the South Wayne Ave and Rt. 30 intersection, the church is roughly a 20 minute walk from campus. The building itself is plain on the outside, adorned with a coliseum-like entrance. Once inside the building, the sanctuary appears on the right, which is filled with a beautiful mosaic of stained glass pictures on the back wall.
The community of the church consists of an older demographic age, with most members of the congregation over 50 years old. There are many older couples with young children, as well.
“It is a much older crowd than college and young people,” Ryan Matteucci said. Sunday traditional dress is popular as well; skirts for the ladies and suits for the men.
A traditional service at the church consists of hymns sung by the choir, the initial prayer, story time for the children in front of the congregation and the message from the senior pastor.
The youth ministry at the church also seems to be prosperous, evident in the children’s choir, which performed in the beginning of the service. According to DiPaolo, the youth group is “picking up.” The group recently went on a ski trip and held a night of ice skating.
Although the style of the traditional service may not appeal to the young adult age, an Eastern student recently voiced his pleasure with the church.
“After a week at Eastern with a contemporary style [chapel, Sunday night praise], it’s nice to change things up with the traditional service,” Matteucci said.
The community at the church is also very friendly and accepting.
“The people here care for one another and everyone is very generous. We are very focused on missions as well as outreach programs,” DiPaolo said.
Both biblically and spiritually, the Wayne United Methodist church is remaining faithful to Wesley’s original call, as they are trying to do good to all people, at all times, as long as they can.