Cason United Methodist Church has removed three wooden crosses that were in front of the church for 50 years. Images provided
By Janis Fontaine
Change is afoot at Cason United Methodist Church in Delray Beach.
If you’ve driven by the church at the corner of Swinton Avenue and Lake Ida Road lately, you may have noticed the three wooden crosses that have been standing in front of the church for five decades are gone.
“As recognizable as the crosses were,” Pastor David Schmidt said, “they didn’t really draw people in. And you’d be surprised how many people look at the crosses and think of the KKK burning crosses, which freaks me out. But I’ve had people in my congregation say that it made them uncomfortable.”
There were other reasons church leaders advocated for a change.
“I think the crosses made an important statement, but I think sometimes we focus too much on Jesus’ death on the cross. Why not focus on (Jesus’) 31/2 years of teaching and preaching and loving and showing a good example?” Schmidt said.
“We’re building a 10-foot-tall cross-and-flame sculpture that is the symbol of the Methodist Church, and around it will be a prayer labyrinth with benches. Anybody in the community can come and walk the labyrinth or just sit.”
As seen in this rendering, a labyrinth and sculpture of the cross-and-flame symbol of the denomination will replace the crosses.
Schmidt hopes the new curb appeal will make people think about visiting Cason.
“The crosses really didn’t draw people in the way I hope this will,” he said. “The church is a place where there’s a great deal of belonging and graciousness. The old motto of the United Methodist Church was ‘open hearts, open minds, open doors,’ and I still love that. People find community, they find grace and they find fellowship.”
The cross-and-flame sculpture will be stainless steel, etched with black and red paint. Schmidt expects it will be delivered in time for Christmas. The church is looking for a company to do the labyrinth.
Schmidt believes he got a message of support from a higher authority.
“The center cross literally fell on Easter, which to me is a huge theological statement,” he said.
Another important change came in June when he was officially ordained a minister. More than 25 parishioners along with his wife, Tricia, and two daughters made the 400-mile round trip for the ceremony in Lakeland.
Pastor David Schmidt, ordained as a minister in June, with his wife, Tricia, at the ceremony.
Mearl Evans, 83, of Delray Beach, joined a dozen others on a bus that took them to the special service.
“I love going on these trips,” she said by phone, “but I also wanted to support my pastor. Pastor David is one of us, and he makes you feel so comfortable, knowing that you can go to your pastor at any time, and he listens. He listens.”
Evans, who has been a member of Cason since she moved to Delray Beach in 2019, said she “just felt compelled to go, and I was glad I was able to do so.” She said the words of Bishop LaTrelle M. Easterling renewed her passion and commitment to the church.
“I wrote something down when she was finished that I took from the Bible, what Jesus would have said. ‘Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.’ Her words to the congregation were encouraging, and much needed.”
Schmidt felt blessed that so many people would give their time to support him. “It was very touching for me, because there was a lot of work involved,” he said. “It took seven years.”
Getting ordained isn’t as simple as passing classes and graduating from seminary, which Schmidt did in 2023. You still need to complete two years’ residency and ministry as a provisional elder before you’re finally qualified for ordination.
Schimdt spent hundreds of hours studying scripture, wrote thousands of pages of essays and papers, read more than 150 books and a survived a series of intense interviews in front of six stern theologians asking difficult questions.
Now he works for the diocese, which could move him any time it wants, but he just had his position affirmed for another year. He’s grateful.
On his desk, Schmidt keeps a bowl of little plastic Jesuses — he calls them “Jesi” — which he gives out to everyone who visits as a reminder: Jesus is with you. And he wants you to think.
“What did Jesus do? He modeled the behavior that he wanted his disciples to follow. That’s exactly what we’re supposed to do: Model the behavior Jesus taught us.
“Christianity is not about reciting tomes and scriptures. Christianity is about how we treat one another, how we show grace, how we show mercy, how we live our lives. If we do that enough, people will say there’s something different about those people.
“They will know we are Christians by our love.”
Cason United Methodist Church is at 342 N. Swinton Ave., Delray Beach. Services are at 10 a.m. (casual, contemporary) and 11:30 a.m. (traditional) Sundays. 561-276-5302 or casonumc.org.
Janis Fontaine writes about people of faith, their congregations, causes and community events. Contact her at fontaine423@outlook.com.
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