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Church gets some help Donors pledge $14,000 to assist in battle over building plan By Melissa Martin of the Mail Tribune JACKSONVILLE -- People of faith pulled out their pocketbooks and their picket signs Friday in response to the Jacksonville City Council vote that denied First Presbyterian Church its new building. A Christian radio station spontaneously raised $14,000 from 98 callers in 55 minutes, an unusually high amount in a short time period for a fund drive, said KDOV president Perry Atkinson. "People from just about every denomination responded, Nazarene, Baptist, Assembly of God, Foursquare, Jewish and Catholic," Atkinson said. Callers were upset about the City Council reversing its earlier approval of First Presbyterian's plans for a 400-seat sanctuary and education building on Middle Street in Jacksonville. The council's vote came as a surprise to an audience expecting council members to lift the ban on weddings and funerals at the new church, not deny the new building completely. "We've all watched First Presbyterian Church battle this thing and when it got jabbed last night, it wasn't a shot against the bow, it was a torpedo to the side," Atkinson said. "The next move could be any church in the valley that wants to expand its parking lot or put in a new piece of playground equipment. We could all be in jeopardy if we don't get involved at this level." When First Presbyterian Pastor Larry Jung learned about the creation of the legal fund, he was overwhelmed. The church has already spent $60,000 in legal fees. "When I heard how much they raised I sat on the couch and wept," Jung said. While many made financial contributions, Jacksonville resident Jim Burke showed his support by exercising his freedom of speech. He picketed the busy intersection of South Fifth and California Friday with a sign that read, "Lions 1, (Christians) 0," referring to the Romans feeding Christians to the lions in 70 A.D. "The Jacksonville City Council is taking the Christians out of this town," Burke said. "Nothing but good would come from that church." Drivers waved or honked and pedestrians stopped to chat. "I can remember when Westminster Presbyterian built a church in the middle of a Medford neighborhood," Burke said. "They've never had any problems there; so why would they think there would be a problem here?" In Jacksonville, city codes require churches to have permits in all zones, including in the five-acre rural residential zone, which First Presbyterian's 10-acre parcel on Middle Street is labeled. Jacksonville has four churches -- St. Andrew's Anglican, St. Joseph Catholic, First Presbyterian and Calvary Assembly of God -- three of them more than a century old and none of them with a conditional use permit. First Presbyterian, started in 1857 -- three years before Jacksonville's incorporation as Oregon's fifth city -- would have been the first. "Churches and religious institutions are such an important part of the fabric of the community," said Rabbi David Zaslow of Havurah Shir Haddash in Ashland. He called First Presbyterian in Jacksonville on Friday to express his concern about the council's decision. "Our city councils need to do everything possible to make sure religious institutions are a valued part of the community," Zaslow said. "The kind of work that churches or synagogues do with young people and with families is immeasurable." As the Jacksonville church's story spread in newspapers and on radio and television stations across the country, it struck a chord in American hearts. Jacksonville City Hall received e-mails from a former Medford resident who read about the case in the Chattanooga (Tenn.) Times-Free Press and from a Southern Californian who saw it in the San Diego Union. Both were disturbed by the city's restrictions on the church. And last week, the church's pastor was interviewed by the British Broadcasting Company. "This case is important to everyone who goes to church or anyone who philosophically believes in the separation of church and state," said John Hassen, First Presbyterian Church's attorney. "Not only does it affect this church, but it affects all churches going through a similar process. It affects anyone who believes in freedom of expression." Jung will be interviewed live at 8 a.m. Monday on KDOV Radio 91.7 FM. Today's Edition : News | Sports | Business | Weather | Tempo | Classifieds Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 2000, Medford, Oregon USA