History of Columbia Baptist Fellowship
Columbia, Maryland


     Diversity is a fundamental word that the Columbia Baptist Fellowship proudly uses to characterize its congregation. Out of the differing backgrounds and gifts of its members and participants, CBF has forged a rich identity that is uniquely its own.

     CBF is a multiracial congregation, about equally composed of African-American and white participants and including a number of Asian and Island people. A significant number of older persons are involved in CBF ministries, and children and youth groups are steadily growing. Many of CBF's members grew up in denominations other than Baptist, with members coming from all areas of the United States and several other countries. The congregation is theologically diverse, encompassing a range of views from conservative to progressive. From the beginning, women, along with men, have held key leadership roles within the church, including the position of Church Moderator. Over the years, CBF has ordained several women as ministers and deacons, and called them to serve as pastors and servants of the congregation.

     Committed to strong lay leadership and volunteer participation, CBF encourages members and participants alike to use their gifts and talents. The moderator, elected for a term of one year, is the Lay Leader of the Fellowship and presides at all Fellowship Development Sessions and meetings of the Leadership Council. Most positions within the church, including the Deacons, are elected from and approved by the membership; many tasks and programs are carried out by task groups which are open to all.

     Affirming the traditional Baptist concept of the "priesthood of the believer," CBF places emphasis on Bible teaching and study with respect for personal interpretation. The individual believer is charged with the responsibility of interpreting and applying the scriptures to practical issues of discipleship.

     CBF welcomes members in a variety of ways, including profession of faith in Christ and baptism by immersion, transfer of church letter, and statement of faith and prior baptism. There is also provision for associate membership for people who wish to participate actively while maintaining their affiliation with other denominations. Of the individuals who do participate in CBF, only about half of them are members.

     The concept of CBF began in April, 1968, when sixteen people met to discuss the possibility of beginning a Southern Baptist church in the new town of Columbia. Representatives of seven Baptist churches from the area formed the Columbia Missions Committee which called James V. Hamblen of the Home Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention to serve as the first Director of Southern Baptist Activities for Columbia. Under his pastoral guidance, a group of six families began in 1970 to conduct services in their homes. They defined themselves as "a people on a journey and a pilgrimage to discover and practice the New Testament experience of 'church' together." They called themselves the Columbia Baptist Fellowship and referred to themselves as a "tent people," an appellation which emphasized the journey motif and which suited a people who as yet had no permanent place of worship.

     From 1970 to 1973 the First Presbyterian Church of Howard County generously provided worship space on Sunday afternoons. During the spring of 1973, in order to have a morning worship time, the growing group worshipped for a brief time in Faulkner Ridge Elementary School. When winter of 1973 brought an energy crisis and restricted heating in the school, Abiding Savior Lutheran Church invited the Fellowship to share its facility. At sunrise on Easter Sunday, 1975, the Columbia Baptist Fellowship moved into its permanent worship space at The Meeting House, the Interfaith Center in Oakland Mills.

     CBF remained a Southern Baptist Mission under the guidance of Jim Hamblen until it was constituted a church in a charter service on March 25, 1973. There were 42 charter members. In June, 1973, the church called John Woodall to be its second pastor and he remained as pastor until 1980. Dr. Roger Bridges served as interim pastor until 1981. Dr. Steve McNeely was called as pastor in 1981 and served CBF faithfully for 20 years, leaving in April 2001. Dr. Homer Carter was called to serve as an Intentional Interim Pastor in 2001 and served through May 2003. At that time CBF called its most recent pastor, Robert L. Jordan.

     Mission, ministry, education, and music are important components of CBF life. The Fellowship sponsors  Resources for Family Growth which reaches out to the community through family and individual counseling as well as educational programs which focus on family issues. Resources for Family Growth employs a part-time director.

     CBF has a women's group called L.O.V.E. (Ladies Organized for Volunteering and Encouragement) and a men's group called Men in Ministry , both of which engage in a variety of activities. CBF is home to three choirs: an adult choir which sings a variety of music, an adult/youth choir which specializes in gospel music, and a children’s choir. Other ministries sponsored by CBF or in conjunction with other congregations in the Interfaith Center include programs for seniors and for singles, a stitchery group, and a food pantry.

     Even after its formal chartering as a church, CBF chose to keep the name Columbia Baptist Fellowship, rather than to call itself "Columbia Baptist Church." The concept of fellowship implies much about the value CBF participants place upon relationship with each other and with God. Caring for one another as family in Christ and sharing with each other in life's joys and concerns have remained essential to CBF's identity.

     Currently, the CBF professional staff includes a Senior Pastor, an Associate Pastor (Counseling) and Director of Resources for Family Growth (RFG), an Associate Pastor (Youth), a secretary, two part-time choir directors, and three part-time accompanists. CBF is affiliated with the Baptist World Alliance; the Southern Baptist Convention; the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship; the American Baptist Churches, USA; the Baptist Convention of Maryland/Delaware; and the Mid-Maryland Baptist Association. In addition, it participates in the Columbia Cooperative Ministry and the Coalition for Compassion, two groups which provide services to people in need throughout the community. For several years CBF sponsored a Chinese language mission which has now become an independent congregation. CBF is currently sponsoring a Spanish-speaking congregation, Iglesia Cristiana de Columbia, and a Haitian congregation. If you are interested in helping or participating in these congregations, please contact the church office.

     From its early days CBF has emphasized uniting the richness of diversity into a common commitment to God through Jesus Christ. Columbia Baptist Fellowship celebrated its twenty-fifth year as a chartered church in 1998 by affirming the rich heritage of its past; by enjoying the active challenges of its present; and by anticipating the dreams, hopes, and promises of its future.

Columbia Baptist Fellowship The Meeting House Robert Oliver Place Columbia, MD 21045 410-730-2026 Contact us for additional information.