Matches made in heaven
Recent seminary graduates are encountering the challenges and blessings of serving small congregations.
By Emily Enders Odom
For Michaele Wood, small churches are the new frontier.
Making the church more accessible: Michaele Wood, pastoral resident at First Presbyterian Church in Pontotoc, Miss., with a group of church members who made possible the installation of a ramp providing access for people with disabilities. Members say it took Wood’s initiative to finally get the job done. Photos by laura russell.
“If you really think you’ve got guts, have been called by God, and want to find out what you’re made of, the small church is the place you can find out,” she says.
Wood is one of six recent seminary graduates sent out to provide much-needed pastoral leadership to small congregations in 2010—the first year of an innovative program of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) called For Such a Time as This: A Small Church Residency—Growing Leaders, Growing Churches. The program pairs congregations with seminary graduates in a two-year pastoral residency relationship. A unique aspect of the arrangement is that each pastoral resident receives the support and guidance of a network of pastor/mentors that includes presbytery and national church leaders.
The program’s name, For Such a Time as This, from the Old Testament book of Esther, draws a parallel between Esther’s unexpected rise to leadership in her own day and the PC(USA)’s call for leaders to serve in a rapidly changing and challenging 21st-century context. About 4,000 of the denomination’s more than 10,000 congregations average fewer than 50 people in attendance each Sunday.
Another challenge is that most Presbyterian candidates for the ministry come out of larger congregations, while most of the leadership positions are in smaller ones, says Marcia Clark Myers, director of the PC(USA)’s office of Vocation, which oversees For Such a Time as This. “Because most PC(USA) call seekers prefer to serve larger churches in metropolitan areas, the program was intentionally designed to attract call seekers to churches that have few applicants, such as small congregations in rural areas or inner city neighborhoods.” Mentors help pastoral residents bridge the gap between their experiences in large churches and the realities of life in smaller congregations.
Michaele Wood—a go-getter in Mississippi
Revitalizing the congregation: Michaele Wood, left, is greeted by church member and local history expert Julia Anderson Holmes. Photos by laura russell.
Reared in Pennsylvania in the Roman Catholic tradition, Wood—now a mother of three and grandmother of 13—served in the U.S. Army, as a licensed practical nurse and in nonprofit finance. It wasn’t until she joined Capital Presbyterian Church in Harrisburg, Pa., in 2004 that she came to realize that, as she puts it, “God had more in store for me.”
She became an elder, completed training to be a commissioned lay pastor and then entered Lancaster Theological Seminary, receiving her M.Div. in May 2009. On a trip through West Virginia, she observed that the Presbyterian churches all seemed to be closed. This spurred her to apply to serve a small church through For Such a Time as This. In 2010 she was placed at First Presbyterian Church in Pontotoc, Miss.
“This program is something that we need to support or we need to quit complaining about the decline in membership, because this is something we can actually do to change that,” she says. “This is the way the church has to go, because there are so many smaller churches that we can revitalize simply by helping them out.”
Since Wood’s arrival at First Presbyterian a year ago, worship attendance has grown by 16 percent, from an average of 31 to 36 people. Laura Russell, an elder at the church, describes Wood as a go-getter: “Once she sets her mind to something, she gets it done.”
For years, the church had talked about installing a ramp at the fellowship hall to provide access for people with disabilities. Russell says it took Wood’s initiative to get the job done. Installation of the ramp, along with participation by a growing number of children, has energized the congregation.
“Getting even this one project completed will help get our congregation excited about possibilities,” says Sara Bramlett, another of the church’s elders. “Yes, we are alive. Yes, we do have a future. Yes, God is still at work in our church. There is more we can do.”
Lois Aroian—world traveler in South Dakota
In a place where people care: Lois Aroian, pictured with boys from the church she serves in Willow Lake, S.D., says she has been “nurtured by this generous and loving community.” Photo by Crystal Knock.
Members of the first class of pastoral residents report that they and their congregations are already experiencing remarkable growth.
“I have grown in faith, nurtured by this generous and loving community,” says Lois Aroian, a retired foreign service officer of the U.S. Department of State who is now serving United Presbyterian Church in Willow Lake, S.D.
A lifelong Presbyterian, Aroian grew up in Los Angeles and spent 24 years abroad. She says she wanted to serve a small church in a rural area and was delighted to go to Willow Lake.
“Our village is three blocks by four,” she says. “Almost everyone is related, and people care deeply about one another. When a fire destroyed a third of our tiny downtown in July, the community rallied to help. I’ve also learned quite a bit about pheasant hunting, beef and crops during my year here.”
The Willow Lake church, which united congregations of the Reformed Church in America and the PC(USA), had not been served by a Presbyterian pastor for at least 26 years. Elder Carolyn Edleman, for one, is glad that after traveling the world Aroian chose to call rural South Dakota home. “We have come to the realization that we can have a full-time pastor for our congregation,” she says. “Our hope is that For Such a Time as This continues so that other congregations can experience the revival that this program is capable of producing.”
Jason Ku—an answer to prayer in Missouri
Sharing his gifts: Besides adjusting to U.S. culture, Jason Ku, pictured with his wife, Dongsook “Deborah” Ku, had to make the switch from urban Sacramento to rural Holden, Mo. Photo Courtesy of Jason Ku.
Jason Ku was called last October to serve 26-member First Presbyterian Church of Holden, Mo., which had been without a full-time resident pastor for more than a decade. Worship attendance has grown significantly since Ku’s arrival.
“Jason, to me, is an answer to a prayer,” says elder Ted Martin. “We started with one kid and about 12 people [in worship]. Since Jason’s been here, we almost reached 50 people and about 13, 14 kids now, and we’re still growing. He is … a major asset to not only our church but the whole community.”
Ku immigrated to California from Korea at the age of 25. Charles Spencer, executive presbyter of Heartland Presbytery—of which the Holden church is a member—says the congregation quickly embraced his Korean heritage and his many gifts.
Besides adjusting to U.S. culture, Ku has also had to make the switch from urban Sacramento to rural Holden.
“I know it’s been quite a culture shock for Jason, coming from California and everything, but I think we’ve made him feel welcome, so it’s a blessing,” says Donna Chaney, another elder in the congregation. “I continue to be amazed at his knowledge of the Scriptures and his spirituality. He has definitely revitalized us.”
Trudy Dumont—finding warmth in North Dakota
Another California transplant, Trudy Dumont, left Los Angeles for a new home in North Dakota just 12 miles from the Canadian border. Dumont serves as pastor of the Presbyterian Church of Rolla and St. John. In spite of record snowfall during her first year there, Dumont is glad she took a leap of faith and ventured out to an unfamiliar place.
“North Dakotans are the friendliest and most magnanimous people I have met,” Dumont says. “When I drive around the area, people actually wave at you in their cars, and they look to see if they know you, because they probably do.
“I imagine the first-century church probably was like this: small enough to care for each other, small enough to bear one another’s burdens, big enough to reach out and embrace others into Christ’s kingdom.”
Mark Terayama—crossing cultures in South Dakota
Like Dumont, Mark Terayama—a Japanese American married to a Chinese American—has found that being in a new context has broadened his horizons. He moved his wife and three children from Seattle to serve First Presbyterian Church of Sisseton and the neighboring Presbyterian Church of Veblen, S.D.
“I’m learning about myself as I am forced to think about what I value and why I do things when I learn about what’s important to my new community,” says Terayama. “As I’m learning about myself, I see what biases I might have and what perspective I bring to ministry in this community. I am also learning how to adapt to a new environment both in life and in ministry.”
Terayama says he and his congregations have grown through their exposure to different cultures. He sometimes uses references to Asian cultures in his sermons to illustrate concepts from Scripture. He also is aware that as a young urbanite, he has much to learn about rural life.
“As the congregations and I learn about each other, we cannot help but add to the diversity and widening of our perspectives,” he says.
Susan Fellows—opening doors in Mississippi
Participants agree that For Such a Time as This has literally opened doors.
“Before our pastor came to us through this program, we had people sometimes inquire if we were closed, if we even opened the doors anymore,” says Shirley Whaley, an elder at First Presbyterian Church in Grenada, Miss., which is served by pastoral resident Susan Fellows. “Susan has really made us visible in the community.”
Whaley says that Fellows has helped members learn to welcome visitors and to be “a loving church.” She reached out to a visitor who survived double bypass surgery and then was diagnosed with metastatic lung cancer.
“Susan would take him to Memphis to the doctor,” Whaley explains. “After his surgery, she organized people to take food to him. We just took him under our wing at her initiative.”
An auspicious beginning
In its first year, For Such a Time as This has demonstrated some of the key ingredients needed for healthy, growing congregations. The pastoral residents have learned that to thrive in a small church context, they need support from their congregations and interaction with other pastors. The participating congregations have experienced the benefits of pastoral leadership.
“Without this program it would be impossible for some small churches to have a pastor,” says Whaley. “Without a pastor, we can go on having church every Sunday, but a pastor is a leader. It just brings the church together to have a pastor.”
In August, 10 more seminary graduates were commissioned to serve congregations in seven states (see “Class of 2011,” right). Among them is Noe Juarez, a native of Peru, sent to serve Sunset Presbyterian Church in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., which has both an English-speaking and a Spanish-speaking congregation.
“The first time that he visited the church, he picked up a guitar and played a song for the Spanish congregation,” says Amalie Ash, administrator of the Presbytery of Tropical Florida, adding that she feels confident now that the church will grow. Ash was present at Sunset Church when Juarez preached his first sermon.
“As I sat in the pews, I could not stop smiling,” she says. “Noe is a gift to this church.”
Emily Enders Odom is an associate for mission communications for the General Assembly Mission Council of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.).
For Such a Time as This, Class of 2011
Ce Ce Armstrong, Johnson C. Smith Seminary, 2010—Grace Presbyterian Church, Lantana, Fla. (Tropical Florida Presbytery)
Elizabeth Campbell, San Francisco Theological Seminary, 2011—Williamstown/Waverly-Bethel Presbyterian Churches, Williamstown, W.Va. (West Virginia Presbytery)
Jason Clapper, Pittsburgh Theological Seminary, 2011—Lavonia (Ga.) Presbyterian Church (Northeast Georgia Presbytery/Charleston Atlantic Presbytery)
Nancy Didway, Fuller Theological Seminary, 2009—Highlawn Presbyterian Church, St. Albans, W.Va. (West Virginia Presbytery)
Esta Jarrett, Union Presbyterian Seminary, 2008—Canton (N.C.) Presbyterian Church (Western North Carolina Presbytery)
Mari Lyn Jones, Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary, 2011—First Presbyterian Church, Paola, Kan. (Heartland Presbytery)
Noe Juarez, Union Presbyterian Seminary, 2010—Sunset Presbyterian Church, Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. (Tropical Florida Presbytery)
Sarah Ross, McCormick Theological Seminary, 2011—First Presbyterian Church, Pleasant Hill, Mo. (Heartland Presbytery)
Cassie Todd, Columbia Theological Seminary, 2011—Williston (S.C.) Presbyterian Church (Northeast Georgia Presbytery/Charleston Atlantic Presbytery)
Melissa Upchurch, Perkins School of Theology, 2010—Marshall (N.C.) Presbyterian Church (Western North Carolina Presbytery)
HERE’S HELP for new pastors, small churches
For Such a Time as This: A Small Church Residency—Growing Leaders, Growing Churches: www.pcusa.org/residency
The Company of New Pastors, vocational nurture for ministry candidates and pastors beginning their first call: www.pcusa.org/newpastors
The PC(USA) Board of Pensions and the General Assembly Mission Council’s office of Financial Aid for Studies both offer debt assistance programs for seminary graduates who agree to serve small churches. For more information: www.pensions.org and www.pcusa.org/financialaid