Churches are not immune to disaster. Fires, floods, hurricanes, tornadoes and theft can lead not only to property loss but also to the loss of a church’s entire written past. The Alabama Baptist Historical Commission (ABHC) works to prevent that from happening.
The mission of the ABHC is to help churches preserve their written history so the story of what God has done in the life of the church can live on, said ABHC executive director Lonette Berg.
“As Alabama Baptists we know that we are to be good stewards of our talents, time, financial resources and influence, but sometimes we don’t realize we need to be good stewards of our story and our church history,” Berg said. “At the ABHC we believe the preservation of our church records, our church story and our personal stories is a matter of stewardship because we are telling the story of what God has done in and through us and our families of faith.”
Tracing generations
Church documents help tell that story, sometimes tracing generations of families through baptisms, weddings and funerals. We often take for granted that someone will remember these events, Berg said. While that may be, the written record is still important.
“All through the Bible we are reminded to remember,” Berg said. “We’re also reminded through the Great Commission that it’s our job to go and tell. So it’s important for us to gather and preserve the history of our church and ourselves so that we can go and share it.”
To help churches preserve these documents the ABHC microfilms them.
Microfilm is considered the “gold standard” of archival preservation, Berg said. Experts say microfilm will last hundreds of years and has already outlasted many digital storage systems.
“How many computers have floppy disk drives today? Technology is changing rapidly but as long as you’ve got a light and a magnifying glass you can read microfilm,” Berg said.
Two copies of the microfilm are made. One is archived in the Special Collections department of Samford University’s library in Birmingham and one in a secure off-site storage facility. The service is free to Alabama Baptist churches and funded by their gifts through the Cooperative Program.
If a church cannot deliver their records to Samford, Berg will even pick up the documents and bring them back to the church once microfilming is complete.
“Old records are very fragile and we want them transported safely,” she said.
Microfilming is a time-consuming and meticulous process, and the task of collecting and organizing boxes and boxes of records can be as well. Berg suggests that a church first focus on four basic categories of documents: membership rolls, legal documents, business meeting/conference minutes and minutes from deacons’ meetings. Should a church lose everything, its basic history could be rebuilt using those documents, Berg said.
Once the records are collected they should be organized and prepared for microfilming. For example membership rolls should be alphabetized. Business meetings should be ordered chronologically. Duplicate documents should be removed and documents should be loose (not stapled or inserted into plastic sleeves). Taking these steps can speed up the preservation process.
Though the process can be overwhelming, Berg encourages churches to be intentional in preserving their history and not assume others will steward the materials.
Lost records
“Disasters are not the only cause of loss when it comes to church records,” she said. “A change of leadership in the church or an overzealous cleaner, even lack of storage or a renovation can lead to the loss of membership rolls, business meeting minutes and other records of the church’s past. It’s not intentional, certainly, but once those records are lost they cannot be replaced.
“What’s important about those records is the information they contain and we don’t want to lose that,” Berg said. “Just as family stories are handed down from generation to generation, the stories of God’s faithfulness to and work through our families of faith should be preserved and passed on. Future generations will benefit.”
For more information about the ministry of the Alabama Baptist Historical Commission, visit www.abhconline.com or call 1-800-325-9863.
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