In the summer of 1973, two small Methodist congregations were struggling for survival. Its building was condemned, St. James was searching for a new home. Across the city, Gregory Boulevard was suffering from urban flight to the suburbs and membership was declining drastically. Through a special charge conference action, a merger of the two congregations was created. On August 12, 1974, the first worship celebration of St. James-Gregory United Methodist Church was held. That first Sunday was not all successful, as a few White congregants walked out. Nonetheless, it was a new beginning.
Attendance at St. James-Gregory continued to grow beyond capacity. With the shifting demographics, a larger church, Paseo United Methodist, located at the corner of 56th & Paseo was experiencing a shrinking membership. Bishop W.T. Handy, Jr. orchestrated a merger of the two churches with Reverend Cleaver as the Senior Pastor of the newly renamed St. James-Paseo United Methodist. With the help of a dynamic music ministry, soul-stirring preaching, and a large Blue Hills Neighborhood, the congregation continued to grow.
In the ensuing years, Rev. Cleaver was first elected to the Kansas City, Missouri City Council, then as the first African American Mayor of Kansas City, all while continuing to serve as Senior Pastor. A merger with Swope Park United Methodist Church was created in 1994 and rescinded in 1995. Removing Paseo from its name, the church was once again St. James United Methodist. Several ministries were launched including a food pantry, the development of St. James Place, an apartment complex for Seniors, and the purchase of the 40 Acres and a Mule Campus, which hosted Gospel Under the Stars and a Kansas City Freedom School site.
St. James continued its growth, and once again outgrew a sanctuary’s capacity for worship. After much prayer and planning the course was made clear, a new sanctuary was needed. On November 3, 2001, the St. James congregation moved into a new sanctuary expansion which allowed us a worship setting for over 1,000 persons. Elected to the U.S. House of Representatives representing Missouri’s Fifth Congressional District in 2005. Rev. Cleaver announced his intention to retire in June 2008. In July 2008, Rev. Emanuel Cleaver III was appointed co-pastor.