Congregations leave United Methodist Church over defiance of LGBTQ bans
A blue and white banner hangs behind the altar table at The Fount Church in Fountain Valley, Calif.
"Come thou fount of every blessing," reads Glen Haworth as he gestures toward the front of the sanctuary. "That's where we get our name."
He wants to make clear what the banner means.
"The fount is Jesus of course. Not us," he says. "So when we say we're the church, we're referring to our Lord and not ourselves."
The United Methodist congregation was founded in 1964, during boom times in Southern California.
Haworth, a lifelong United Methodist who's been a pastor his entire professional life, came to The Fount nine years ago. He says that when he arrived, the 50 member congregation was already unhappy with the direction of the denomination.
More recently, the congregation voted unanimously because of what Haworth describes as a drift from traditional biblical teachings on morality.
