Tending to the complexities of the spiritual soul can be difficult enough for any church.
But the ministry at Simpson United Methodist Church in Arvada must first bridge cultural barriers to succeed in winning lives for God.
Founded by a group of educated Japanese businessmen in 1907, the church has retained its strong cultural identity and still functions as a gathering place for the metro area’s Japanese-
American population. Parishioners eager to nurture both faith and heritage travel to the church near West 60th Avenue and Sheridan Boulevard from as far away as Castle Rock and Boulder.
Simpson helps maintain the link by hosting cultural programs, including arts and crafts show-
cases, an Asian food bazaar and an annual doll festival featuring tea ceremonies, traditional music and dance, and martial arts.
Since his appointment there in July as the new minister, Paul Murphy-Geiss has struggled to merge cultural customs with a spiritual life. One Sunday, he said he was struck by a “blessing of elders” ceremony that was included during a worship service. The ritual honors members who are 80 and older.
“In this particular church, the history that they pass on from one to another is acknowledged,” he says.
Simpson once held all of its sermons in Japanese, offering worship to the asian laborers who at the turn of the century built roads and worked the fields and mines in Colorado.
The congregation is still about 80 percent Japanese, but neighborhood diversity has brought change. Now, a small group of about 15 worship during a Japanese-language service held concurrent with the main worship conducted in English.
They’ve tried to change formats to appease a younger generation that resonates with more contemporary Christian music. They’ve tried to keep the traditionalists engaged with a more structured worship and prayer.
But as the church’s surrounding neighborhood continues to evolve into a Hispanic enclave, efforts must be made to reach a new potential flock, Murphy-Geiss says.
Simpson’s building may have been constructed to resemble a Buddhist temple in Japan. But the mailers and pamphlets the church will start sending out says its doors are open to all.
“People who are not Asian come to this church because they want to be in a diverse church,” says Sachi Boyer, a 70-year-old member whose Japanese-American family has been among the congregation since 1960. “It’s been happening slowly, but I think it’s fine.”
– Sheba R. Wheeler
