Simultaneous reflection on Bethel Presbyterian Church’s 200 years and Roane County’s current school debate spurred today’s thoughts.

Fifteen years ago, Bethel’s Session initiated a visioning process that brought attention to a host of long-neglected problems with the church’s physical plant.

This unwelcome news coincided with a sense that church finances were strained and evoked sharply different responses from Bethel’s normally cohesive members.