Day 319: Epworth United Methodist Church, Portland, Oregon
📌APIA Every Day (319) - The Epworth United Methodist Church, originally founded as a mission in the late-19th century, is the only Japanese Methodist church in the state of Oregon. Since its inception, the church has served as a significant religious center for Japanese Americans in Portland. Particularly in its early days, it represented a haven where Japanese Christians could freely practice their religion without facing discrimination.
In the 1890s, as Portland’s Japanese immigrant population grew, missionaries from the Japanese Methodist Episcopal Church in San Francisco were tasked with spreading evangelism to Oregon. Reverend Teikichi Kawabe headed these efforts and made multiple visits to Portland before opening the Japanese Methodist Mission in 1893 in a rented house in what is now Old Town. The mission quickly gained popularity among Portland’s Japanese residents and the congregation gained over 100 members by 1894. Eventually, the community purchased a building in 1897 to establish a ladies’ society and Sunday School. By 1903, the mission had purchased a house east of Japantown to serve as its church, and in 1919, it expanded by acquiring an adjacent dance hall.
In 1942, following E.O. 9066, Japanese residents in Portland were forced to report to the Portland Assembly Center and were transported to incarceration camps.During this time, the church closed due to the loss of its congregation. However, when Japanese community members returned to Portland in 1945, the church building was repurposed to provide housing for displaced families. At this time, under Reverend Francis Hayashi’s leadership, the Japanese Methodist Church was renamed the Epworth Methodist Church. In 1952, the congregation moved to its current location, the former site of the Grace German Methodist Church. In the 1970s, Reverend Chester Earls oversaw significant renovations and expansions to the building, adding an educational wing, dining hall, and sanctuary.
Today, the Epworth United Methodist Church continues to hold worship services and offer various community programs. In partnership with the Japanese Ancestral Society of Portland, the congregation runs initiatives like Ikoi no Kai, a lunch program providing meals to seniors, and an annual Graduation Banquet that celebrates local Japanese American high school graduates.
Written by Avneet Dhaliwal
LEARN MORE:
Oregon Encyclopedia: Epworth United Methodist Church (Portland)
Oregon Encyclopedia: Japanese Ancestral Society
エプワース教会 - About Us
#apiaeveryday #japanese #japaneseamerican #epworthunitedmethodistchurch #portland #oregon #japanesemethodistepiscipalchurch #reverendteikichikawabe #wwii #incarcerationcamps #japaneseancestralsocietyofportland
