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One year ago this month, Dr. Mark Cummins arrived in Ocala as the new pastor at one of the community's largest churches. Setting up shop at the First Baptist Church of Ocala after relocating from South Florida, Cummins took to his new role as spiritual and administrative head of his flock with the intensity, discipline and can-do attitude of a former U.S. Marine, which he was some 20 years ago. Cummins had been recommended by a church search committee as the replacement to the Rev. Ed Johnson, who had retired after shepherding First Baptist for more than two decades. The committee spent nearly a year scouring the country for a new pastor, and discovered Cummins by accident - or perhaps divine intervention - when they heard him preach while scouting another minister. Cummins offered the youth and vigor the committee wanted in a successor to Johnson, who was somewhat of a living legend in Ocala's faith community.
And it seemed to work. One leading elder said attendance had started to bloom, and more importantly, the collection plate remained full, even in the sour economy.
But some top lieutenants at the church have taken exception not only to Cummins' leadership style, which one church member likened to a dictatorship at one of Ocala's most prominent Protestant houses of worship, but to the substance as well.
A brewing behind-the-scenes controversy at First Baptist quickly came to a public boil on Sunday, spilling over into the pews and, according to several church members, leaving its large congregation divided over their pastor and anxious about the church's future - even though many of the rank and file remain in the dark about how it all came to be.
Sunday's eruption, tagged a "crisis" by one source, was rooted in the recent firing of a half-dozen long-time and beloved associate pastors, who were described by some at First Baptist as Johnson loyalists. The details of what inspired their mutiny, as some see it, are sketchy. The six assistants on Monday either could not be reached for comment or declined to speak about the matter.
Barbara Carbaugh, the church's communications director, labeled the event a "church family matter," declining to comment further. Other First Baptist members interviewed for this article also called the issue an internal matter and offered to speak only on the condition of anonymity.
Cummins was unavailable for comment, Carbaugh said.
What is known is that on Halloween, the six men - the Revs. Don DePew, Clarence Duncan, Jerry Easley, Phillip Hanes, Monty Grant and Kevin Kite - sent an e-mail to church elders that assailed Cummins as "manipulative," dishonest" and "untrustworthy." The specifics behind the allegations, however, were not spelled out.
On Nov. 2, in response to the charges, the assistants sought a meeting with First Baptist's deacons, according to some church elders. At one point during the session, which dragged on for nearly nine hours into the wee hours of Monday morning, the assistants were directed by the church's legal advisers to refer the complaint to First Baptist's Personnel Committee, of which Cummins is a member but doesn't hold a leadership role.
The committee took up the complaint at that marathon meeting and cleared Cummins of any wrongdoing. In an attempt to reconcile the dispute and the allegations, the panel scheduled individual meetings for last Tuesday with the six unhappy subordinate pastors. When none of them showed up to defend their assertions, the Personnel Committee unanimously agreed to immediately fire them, according to a letter dated Nov. 4.
In that letter to the nearly 4,000-member congregation, Cummins, joined by Terry Upton, president of the church's trustees, and Jeff Ruttenber, the chairman of the deacon team, wrote that the decision was based on the committee's "loss of confidence in these men to continue serving as ministers" at First Baptist.
"We wish to minimize any unnecessary discussion among our church's members," the letter continued. "Please rest assured that these men were terminated for a number of highly valid reasons including insubordination, violation of God's Word and refusal to work with First Baptist Church Ocala's Senior Pastor. Termination is never an easy option, but the Personnel Committee has a legal and moral obligation to act in the best interests of the church as that is what you have elected us to do."
Yet the decision to keep a lid on the controversy has kept several details from the majority of the congregation. More than one source described the congregation as nervous and frustrated at the lack of information, emotions that were intensified by the especially vague wording of the letter announcing the firings. When Cummins and other church leaders attempted to explain their position at First Baptist's 10:30 a.m. Sunday service, chaos ensued.
According to a witness' account, a lady was handing out tissues at the information desk. She told one person who was entering, "There's not going to be a dry eye in the house today."
Cummins welcomed the crowd, telling them "It's been a difficult week," and promised them a "very unique" service. After his sermon, he then waded into the six pastors' complaints that accused him of "victimizing" the church, although, he said, how that occurred was not shared with him.
At this point 100 people or so stood, while another 100 or more crowded toward the altar, with a simple demand: "We want the truth!" they chanted. "Speak truth!"
The situation grew more tense, the witness said, as the crowd refused to be dissuaded by attempts to calm them using hymns and prayers. With all attempts to reach out blunted, including one person's shout about Cummins' "ungodly double standard," Cummins swiftly ended the service with a prayer - drawing some applause from those seated in the massive sanctuary and one response of "We love you, Mark." He exited the altar amid tears and prayers from the congregation.
It's unclear what will happen next. But some interviewed for this article are concerned that First Baptist might split or lose members - that is, unless they get more answers than they have received so far.
Source: Ocala Star-Banner
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This is almost a mirror image of Mark Cummins ministry at the (then) First Baptist Church of West Hollywood, which became The Centerpointe under his leadership. Every pastor on staff when he arrived were eventually dismissed under difficult and questionable circumstances, and most of the people he hired were then quickly dismissed. He was described with the same type of words, "thingsmanipulative, dishonest, and untrustworthy." One of the best discriptions was that he showed traits of narcissism. When he resigned to go to Ocala, several church members and former staff members, out of concern for his new church, sent e-mail communications to the leadership of the church regarding his destructive behaviour.
The best discription I've heard regarding Mark is that he is a narcisist.
if mark cummins is not hiding anything, then why doesnt he make some sort of statement,,, 6 assoc. pastors who have been at this church for a very long time , and mark who has been here for one year, it kind of makes you wonder, i attended for four months this church and went into the pastors blogs all the time, how could a pastor go on and on about his great life and his great family vacations when so many of us are hit hard by this economic crisis. i listened in church to his empty words to fill the pews with homeless people, did he ever really reach out to the homeless by bringing them into our church, i think not. and to continuously post pictures of his young daughters and friends in bathing suits on his blog leaves a lot to wonder about the pastor mark cummins my heart and prayers are with the 6 who were let go and told to stay off the grounds. and we are godly people,??? i think not. mark cummins owes this church a lot of explaining
Pastor Mark...if you read this, just know that there are people who love you and are thankful for the work you do for the Lord. God bless you and your family at this difficult time!
Be encouraged!!!
There is nothing about this situation that has "Anything" to do with "The Lord". My heart cries out to the lost that have read the ongoings. We are in such times where people are in need of hope and they look at the "church" and see this. God has nothing to do with this situation, flesh did. If Mark Cummins' staff could not work under his leadership, they should have resigned and found a place where God could use them, not split a church. If Mark Cummins claims to be leading his flock to the "Promise Land", then he should have started a church, not split one. There is no security in starting a church except that God called you to do it. There is security in splitting one, except a paycheck! For those that read this that might have not put their faith in Jesus Christ, God loves you! He IS good, ALL the time! Don't miss His calling because of this! This is not Him! He does not need First Baptist, Mark Cummins, or anyone else to do His work!! He is able! But He does allow His people to experience the unmeasurable blessings of being a vessel of His work. God changed my life radically and my bones are crying out to testify that God will provide. He is good, all the time! There are places in the community that God will call you to worship Him! Just seek Him! He Loves You!