In its first 50 years of ministry, Gethsemane Church in Minneapolis established 29 mission congregations and the first hospital in the city. The church was downgraded to mission status last year, but it received a vote of confidence from the diocese recently when the diocesan council overwhelmingly approved a resolution to invest up to $600,000 over the next six years.

“We need to do this new work at Gethsemane for the sake of the vast and growing mission field that downtown Minneapolis has become,” Bishop James L. Jelinek told council members. “We need to do it for the sake of those many persons who will walk through Gethsemane’s doors for the first time seeking something they have never known. We [also] need to do this for the sake of our diocese, as well.”

In his column for the summer issue of the diocesan newspaper, Soundings, Bishop Jelinek said it has been a long time since the Diocese of Minnesota undertook something “new and bold” together.

“Over the past 40 years only four or five new churches have been started and about 17 have been closed,” Bishop Jelinek said. “There has been a fear of doing mission together on many levels for many reasons. Saying ‘yes to mission’ as we have done with the Gethsemane Plan is going to help us change that.”

The population of downtown Minneapolis has grown by 10,000 since 2000 and the population surge is expected to continue for the next 12-15 years. Gethsemane, with its existing multi-million-dollar facility and strategic location, provides the best chance for capitalizing on this influx of unchurched people in the shortest amount of time, Bishop Jelinek told the council.

An integral part of the Gethsemane Plan will be to have a full-time vicar as the mission developer. Bishop Jelinek has appointed the Rev. Aron Kramer, currently in his fifth year as associate rector at St. Paul’s, Duluth. Gethsemane is in need of a new roof and government agencies are mandating changes to the antiquated sewer system. Funding for previously-approved repairs to the Gethsemane physical plant is available from the sale of two former church properties. The Diocese of Minnesota has also received $200,000 in a non-refundable deposit from the purchaser of the building formerly used as the diocesan headquarters.

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