PORTLAND - More than 1,100 people crowded into First United Methodist Church in downtown Portland Sunday afternoon, Feb. 13, to show their support for Sunnyside-Centenary United Methodist Church in its battle with the city government over programs serving the needy and a city-imposed cap on attendance at worship and other services.

In January, Elizabeth Normand, a city land-use hearings officer, revoked the church's conditional-use permit for the Wednesday night meals and Friday night coffeehouse and issued the 70-person attendance cap in response to complaints by the Sunnyside Neighborhood Association.

"It felt really helpful and supportive to see all the different faces that came to the meeting," said Pat Schwiebert, director of the Hard Times supper for 15 years. "All the people of different faiths surrounding us and saying yes to a very important issue, but that's not ever to diminish our responsibility for safety."

Sunnyside, at 3520 S.E. Yamhill, voluntarily shut down both programs last winter in response to complaints from the neighborhood association citing incidents in which drunk and disorderly people were disturbing the area. The church made several policy changes, including hiring a security guard; organizing volunteers to patrol the area before, during and after the gatherings; and enforcing new rules of conduct which banned the attendance of a number of people known for exhibiting unacceptable behavior.

Despite these efforts, the complaints continued.

"People have gone to the bathroom in my driveway, stolen stuff from my porch. Accosted my children for food while they're on the porch on a summer night." Allison O'Dell, who lives two houses from the church, told The Oregonian. "If any other organization brought this type of element into the neighborhood, I honestly feel it would have been dealt with more quickly by the authorities."

"Have there been problems? The answer is yes," saidSchwiebert in her remarks to the crowd gathered in support at First United Methodist Church. "Have we addressed the problems? Yes. Will there be problems in the future? Probably. But it won't be because we don't care. It will be because we are imperfect people."

According to evidence cited in Normand's 28-page ruling, records of police calls in the area show a drop in complaints while the programs were suspended. Further testimony indicated the problems returned when the programs resumed.

"That whole piece is so debatable that it's really hard to get a handle on it," Schwiebert told Christian News Northwest. "One, it was winter when we were shut down, so I would suspect that activity would be diminished when it's raining. Secondly, the fact that there were fewer calls doesn't mean there were fewer incidents. "We do know that some of the people that have caused the major problems do live in the neighborhood, and if the program does shut down, they will still live in the neighborhood with their addictions," Schwiebert added. Normand said in her ruling that "the neighborhood cannot be expected to live with a program that seriously reduces the safety and livability of that neighborhood." Schwiebert indicated that church members have spoken directly with some of the people who are known to have caused problems in the past. "They are quite remorseful," she said, "and they do feel terrible that the program might be lost because of some of the not so nice things they have done."

Schwiebert and others at the church also have questioned why the church's programs have been singled out and blamed for the problems. "Doesn't it seem odd," Schwiebert asked the crowd of supporters, "that in a neighborhood with 10 taverns plus 14 other beer and wine retail outlets, that it is a church activity . . . the place that offers hope is the one singled out for blame because of antisocial behavior on the streets of Sunnyside?"

A land use hearing is scheduled for Wednesday, March 1, at 2 p.m. at City Council Chambers at Portland City Hall to address these issues. As for the limit on the number of people who may attend worship at Sunnyside, Senior Deputy City Attorney Kathryn Beaumont issued a memo on Feb. 7 stating that the cap on worship attendance had most likely been made unintentionally in an attempt to regulate the number of people participating in other church programs, such as a nighttime shelter and day care center. In the memo, Beaumont recommended wording that would remove the cap from Sunday and Wednesday worship services, but require the church's other activities to continue operating under any attendance limits already imposed by their conditional-use permits.

At the state level, State Sen. Frank Shields, (D-Portland), and a former pastor of Sunnyside, has announced he is considering drafting a bill to protect religion from government interference. A similar federal law was passed by Congress in 1993, but was later struck down by the Supreme Court. "Have you noticed that your local church has a sanctuary, Sunday School rooms and a fellowship hall?" asked Shields in a column that ran in The Oregonian. "All three facilitate the historic understanding of the ministry of the church, which includes 'the breaking of bread,' whether for a wedding reception or a community dinner.

"If a government can declare a church dinner/worship to be a social service - and if they can close down Sunnyside's dinner today - then tomorrow your church may not be able to have a potluck without putting a sign outside that says 'For Members Only,' " Shields wrote in the newspaper commentary.