Annual Meetings Through The Years
Alwyn York, Conference Historian
As we are celebrating the 75th anniversary of the CCCC this year, I have been writing about the history of the Conference. This year’s Annual Gathering was just held in July. I thought it would be good to look at the history of these times when our whole Conference family gets together. Rod Wetzig wrote a detailed account of the meetings from the 1940’s to the 1990’s for the original Modern Day Pilgrims book, which I have relied upon for the article. This material is included in the revised version, Modern Day Pilgrims: A Proud Heritage, which was released during the AG in St. Cloud. (The Lord called his faithful servant Rod home on July 7, just before the release of the revised version of the book to which Rod contributed so much.)
The Constitution of the CCCC says simply, “There shall be an Annual Meeting of the Conference at such time and place as determined by the Executive Committee.” This simple statement does not express the importance this meeting has come to have. Rod Wetzig wrote, “Annual meetings are the most visible aspect of the Conservative Congregational Christian Conference.” (The Annual Meeting has come to be popularly known as the “Annual Gathering.”) He pointed out how the meetings are an important time of fellowship for members of the Conference to remedy the sense of isolation that our autonomous and independent churches may have. They are also times of worship and instruction in the word of God. Most of our churches are small. To gather with several hundred like-minded believers to worship can be a powerful emotional experience. They have been a time to hear outstanding speakers both from within the Conference and from the wider Evangelical community. The meetings are a time to be equipped for ministry, as seminars on various practical subjects within the life of the churches are offered. They are also a time for celebration. The time when new churches are welcomed into the Conference is always inspiring and encouraging, especially when leaders of the new churches tell of the journey that led them to join the CCCC.
The Annual Meetings have changed over the years, reflecting the growth of the Conference. The early meetings were very small and were held in local churches. The first six meetings, from 1948 to 1954, were held in the Chicago area. Starting in 1955 the meetings were held in various locations, still at a local church. The small size of these early meetings was reflected in a comment by Rev. Lynn Scovil, who was pastor of the Congregational church in West Williamsfield, OH, which was the site of the 1957 meeting. He remembered that there were more people in attendance from the host church than all the rest put together.
With the growth of the Conference the attendance at the meetings grew too large for a local church to accommodate them, and a period of meeting at colleges began. The first meeting at a college was in 1971 when it was held at Wheaton College. Gordon College, Calvin College, Ripon College and Point Loma College in San Diego were some other colleges that hosted meetings. A memorable meeting of this period was in 1976 when it was held at Cape May Bible College in New Jersey. The meeting went on despite the onslaught of a hurricane! The 1980 meeting was also unique. It was the only meeting ever held outside the United States, at the University of Waterloo in Waterloo, Ontario. At this time a number of Conservative Congregational churches in Canada considering joining the Conference. (They later formed their own denomination.)
The growth of the Conference would require another change in meeting locations. The 1993 meeting was held at the Kahler Motel in Rochester, Minnesota. This was the first meeting held at this type of venue. Since then the meetings have usually been held at a motel or conference center. The 2011 meeting required a last minute change of location. A failure in the HVAC at the planned location in downtown Cleveland forced a move to a community center in the suburbs.
The COVID-19 pandemic forced a very unwelcome change. In 2020 and 2021 only a virtual business meeting on Zoom could be held. All rejoiced last year to meet face to face in Providence, RI and finally have the commemoration of the 400th anniversary of the landing of the Mayflower that had been planned for 2020.
A personal note: As I gave my Conference Historian report on July 13, I asked for prayer for our daughter Emily, who had just been hospitalized with a severe case of pneumonia. I want to thank all who prayed for her. After a long hospitalization, Emily was discharged on August 22. It looks like she will have no lasting effects from her illness. Praise the Lord!