About Us
Our History
Oakland United Methodist enjoys roots within our community as far back as 1880 with the formation of Oakland Evangelical Church. Despite various changes locally and denominationally throughout the years, God remained constantly on the hearts of the faithful, and Oakland United Methodist Church was formed in September 1973 through the consolidation of Trinity and Lamey United Methodist Churches under the pastoral leadership of Rev. John Walker. A wonderfully active and intergenerational congregation, Oakland moved into its current facility in October 1975. Since then, it has used a dedication to mission and ministry with a strong penchant for local, national, and international missions as the foundation of congregational faithfulness. Please join us for worship to learn more about Oakland United Methodist Church!
Our Pastor
Reverend Bob Klingler is a lifelong United Methodist who was raised in the suburbs of Pittsburgh and confirmed in the Holiday Park UM Church. He graduated from Plum High School and attended college at Gannon University earning a B.A. degree in Theology and Psychology. Bob then attended the Methodist Theological School in Ohio earning a Master of Divinity and a Master of Arts in Liturgical Arts as well as a Certification in Town and Rural Ministries. He was ordained as a Deacon then an Elder in the Western PA Annual Conference.
Bob is blessed to be married to Julie, a retired teacher who worked with children at the Stone Memorial Library in Conneautville. Julie is also an avid gardener. They have three grown daughters, Molly, Bethany and Emma, two sons-in-law, Kevin and Brian and two granddaughters, Harper (age 5) and Sophie (age 3).
Bob is a founding member of the Rural Chaplains Association - a Certified Rural Chaplain and member of the Leadership Team responsible for communication and the design and maintenance of the association website (www.rcahome.org).
Bob is passionate about - rural communities, missions and leading vital, relevant worship. He enjoys quality coffee, music, photography, reading, Disc (frisbee) Golf, woodworking and cooking.
Bob is a Centrist, conservative on some issues and more liberal on others, admires Francis of Assisi and reads Leonard Sweet, Brian McLaren, Frederick Buechner, Adam Hamilton, Andy Stanley, Philip Yancey, Richard Rohr, Anne Lamott, Diana Butler Bass, Tex Sample and others.
He has participated in a mission trip to the Dominican Republic, five mission trips to Guatemala, three mission trips to the Upper Sand Mountain Parish in Alabama, three mission trips to Henderson Settlement in Kentucky and more than 150 ramp builds with Ramps of Hope. Bob now serves on the Board of All God’s Children Ministry, The EM District Superintendency Committee, the Building and Locations Committee, Anti-Racism Team and is one of the district Disaster Response Coordinators.
Bob helped establish the Northwestern Community Youth Center and has served on the Board of Directors for fifteen years. He has served Sugar Grove UMC in Washington Courthouse, Ohio; Sugar Grove and Chandler’s Valley Charge; West Springfield and Cranesville Charge and currently serves as the lead pastor and chief dreamer of the Heartland Crossroads Cooperative ministry (6 churches) in the Conneautville area.
Bob began his ministry at Oakland on July 1st, 2022.
Our Ministries
With multiple Ministry groups, Oakland provides many opportunities to serve your Lord and your community. Ministries include various Bible Study Groups, Fall Festival, Quilters, Compass Group, Youth, Choir, Praise Team, Women & Men’s Group and more!
Our Missions
Oakland United Methodist Church is active in the community! There are several full-time mission opportunities available for serving. Missions include: Food Bank Collection, Vacation Bible Camp, Celebrate Recovery, Sunshine Baskets and Baby Bags, Operation Christmas Child, Ramp Builds and more!
Our Beliefs
Grace
Grace is a free gift of God to open the door for us to again be in meaningful relationship with God.
When God created each of us, He left a divine imprint upon us, regardless of whether we recognize it or not. In our pursuit of happiness, contentment in life, or satisfaction in our relationship, God’s presence, known among United Methodists as “prevenient grace”, nudges us back to God.
Once we realize that any right we have to stand before God comes from the love Jesus showed us by dying on the Cross, and not by our own actions, everything in this world ceases to have power over us. As believers, we know that everything we do is in response to this grand gift by a generous God.
United Methodists call this response sanctification, or more simply put, it is the process of becoming the person God intended one to be at the moment of creation. We believe that this process is a life-long, joy-filled, adventure with God that ultimately allows the believers to attain the seemingly impossible – perfect love in this lifetime and the fullness of God in the life to come.
Baptism
We believe that Baptism is a sacred encounter with God in which God claims us as his children andwashes the sin from our hearts and souls. God then asks for a thankful response born out of love for what God has done, rather than out of a sense of obligation.
Baptism is a Sacrament received and initiated by Christ, as a public announcement that the baptized individual has entered into an agreement with God about how they will love the rest of their life. Believers fulfill their promise by learning and growing into the people God envisions us to be , guided and aided by God’s Holy Spirit. They also receive God’s forgiveness and the power to forgive others.
In the United Methodist tradition, we believe that because it is God’s power and grace at work in baptism, and not ours alone, we are able to accept people of all ages (including infants) for baptism. We trust that the presence and grace of the Holy Spirit will meet people wherever they are in their understanding of God and move them closer to living the life God offers.
United Methodists sprinkle or pour water over one’s head to conduct the actual baptism, although occasionally we will go “down to the riverside” to submerge an individual in a biblical fashion.
Holy Communion
We believe that Holy Communion, also known as the Lord’s Supper, is a miracle of God’s love. It is a reenactment of Jesus’ last meal on earth in which we celebrate with God, the giving and receiving of a great gift. God shares Christ with those who believe Jesus is Lord and Savior, and we share our lives with God.
In the United Methodist tradition, Holy Communion is a meal of bread and grape juice as a Sacrament, which means that it is important to Christians because Jesus called us to remember and receive the power God gives us to change from who we are to who God wants us to be. Such change can only happen with God’s help.
We celebrate an “open table” during Holy Communion, which means that on our side, everyone is welcome to come before God as long as your head is bowed down honestly promising to stop doing the things that disappoint God. On God’s side, we receive God’s promise to forgive us everything we have done wrong and provide us with the help of the Holy Spirit to fulfill our promises and live our lives joyfully in God’s presence.