Westminster Presbyterian Church
  • Home
    • Current News >
      • Calendar
  • About
    • Who We Are - Our Present
    • Who We've Been - Our Past >
      • Timeline of Presbyterian History in Auburn NY
    • Staff and Leadership
    • Small Groups and Ministry Opportunities
    • Tour
    • Weddings, Funerals, & Other Building Use
  • Worship
    • 2023 Sermons
    • Music
    • Children's Worship
  • Education
    • Adults
    • Children and Youth
  • Mission
  • Blog
  • Give

remembering thomas, the patron saint of skeptics

4/16/2023

2 Comments

 
by Jill Fandrich
​For churches that follow the Common Lectionary (a 3-year cycle of readings from the Bible), the Sunday after Easter (today!)  presents the same story every year. It tells of the disciple Thomas who refused to believe that Jesus was risen without physical proof. The other disciples told Thomas that Jesus had returned from the dead, but Thomas was a skeptic. It is from this story that we have the term “Doubting Thomas.”

The story of Thomas is found in John 20, and goes like this: After his crucifixion and resurrection, Jesus appeared to some of his disciples and friends. The other disciples told Thomas they had seen Jesus. He replied, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.” Eight days later, Thomas was in a closed room with the other disciples when Jesus appeared and greeted them with “Peace be with you.” Jesus invited Thomas to touch his wounds, and Thomas immediately declared, “My Lord and my God!” (the first to call Jesus this). The passage ends with Jesus saying to Thomas, “You have seen me and so you believe, but blessed are they that have not seen and yet have believed.”

I can relate to Thomas, and I find it reassuring that this story is told every year the week after Easter. Easter is a wonderful holiday, celebrating the central belief of Christian faith that Christ’s resurrection means resurrection for all of us. It’s great to see our churches filled with spring flowers and with people celebrating new life, wearing their best clothes and singing “Hallelujah!” hymns. But Easter doesn’t stand alone. There’s a very dark story that leads up to it, and in the weeks that follow, it’s not very glorious either. Jesus’ closest friends are afraid and skeptical and wonder what all this means. In a short time, Jesus will leave again. Then what will his followers do? How can they go on without him?

Thomas’ incredulity is probably more common than most Christians admit. I was raised in a church that didn’t allow much room for questions or doubt. By high school, my personal doubts made me feel guilty, like I didn’t have enough faith to believe the way I thought I should. In college, I was exposed to a wonderful variety of other traditions through the freshman requirement of two semesters of Philosophy and Religion. I loved it! P&R 101/102 opened my mind to many ways people have tried to answer the Big Questions—Is there a God? Why are we here? What is beyond this life?

By the time I returned to church as a young adult, I sought one which would welcome questions, acknowledge the inconsistencies in the Bible, accept that everyone needs to find their own path, and encourage people to have hard conversations with each other. I was lucky to have found churches like this, including Westminster. My faith has changed over the years and continues to.

One of the things I like about the Thomas story is that Jesus doesn’t rebuke Thomas for his skepticism. In fact, he anticipates it. Jesus holds out his hands to show Thomas the scars and invites Thomas to touch his wounds. He meets Thomas where he is and acknowledges his doubts and incredulity. He understands that Thomas struggles to understand.

And yet Jesus also says, “Blessed are they that have not seen and have believed.” Two millennia later, Christians are asked to believe in the promise of the resurrection without physical evidence. One of my favorite writers, Madeliene L’Engle wrote, “Faith is for that which lies on the other side of reason. Faith is what makes life bearable, with all its tragedies and ambiguities and sudden, startling joys.” So faith means accepting the ambiguities, the inconsistencies, the doubts, and the questions, living in the tension of unknowing in order to try to know.

Because I’m active in my church, people sometimes say to me, “You have such strong faith!” I usually smile and accept what they mean as a compliment, but in my mind I think, “Oh if you only knew!” I can’t say I’m a person of strong faith, but I am a person of great hope. And that is good enough, as it was for Thomas.
2 Comments

a time of transition

4/16/2023

0 Comments

 
Presbyterians have a saying that we do things “decently and in order.” Interim times are no exception. There are intentional steps to follow as we transition to new pastoral leadership. There are times when we may wish we were like the Methodists, who are sent a new pastor the week after the old one leaves. But we’re not, and it’s one of the many things that make Presbyterians distinct. We make our own choices. Carefully. Collectively. Deliberately. Prayerfully. Maybe a little slowly.
 
Patrick announced his departure about a month ago. His last Sunday with us will be June 11. Then, he, Jenna, Emerson, and Josephine will be moving to Cincinnati, Ohio, to live with Patrick’s dad, and Jenna will seek a full-time pastoral call at a church in that area. Now, our focus as a congregation is to celebrate Patrick’s seven years with us, recognize how we’ve changed and grown during his time as our pastor, and convey our gratitude, good wishes, and love to him and his family. 
 
While we’re doing this, the Session is already at work on the next steps in the pastoral transition process. Several decisions were made at the Session meeting on March 20. This letter is to provide you with some information about what will happen next. 
 
One of our first tasks is to figure out who we are without Patrick. Our church identity is our own, but it has also been wrapped up very strongly with his. That’s normal and good, when a pastoral relationship has been healthy as ours has been. But what are the issues that will continue to be important to us? What are the worship elements and styles that we absolutely want to keep? What are the areas of ministry that are strong priorities for us and that we will keep going on our own? And what are the new things we might try? 
 
Because the Holy Conversations study was so recent and so thorough, we can use it as our Mission Study to guide us into the future. We will be holding some congregational forums to review the Holy Conversations recommendations and also to discuss the skills and attributes we need in our next pastor. This will help the Pastor Nominating Committee know what to look for in a new pastor, as it seeks a candidate who will help us move into the future that we envision. 
 
And what about pastoral leadership while we do all this? The Ministry Teams will arrange for “pulpit supply” (worship leadership) for the weeks immediately after Patrick leaves. During this time, the Session will be actively seeking a Temporary Pastor for the interim period. (Session has decided to contract with a Temporary Pastor, if possible, rather than call an Interim Pastor, who would require a national search, likely serve for a longer period of time, thus postponing the process, and whose role would involve doing strategic research and planning Westminster has already done.) The Temporary Pastor will provide pastoral leadership as defined by the Session during the transition. Some pastoral duties will be assigned to other church leaders. And some things may take a temporary hiatus. 
 
The next major step in the interim period is the formation of the Pastor Nominating Committee, which you’ll usually hear referred to as the PNC. The PNC is a committee elected by the congregation, with a slate proposed by the Session, to do the work of seeking and selecting a new pastor. 
 
Presbyterians like acronyms, so get ready to hear about MIFs, PIFs, and the CLC. The PNC will complete what is called a “Ministry Information Form” (MIF) about Westminster, which includes general information about the church, answers some narrative questions, and ranks “competencies” which are important in a new pastor. The MIF is uploaded to a denominational matching service called “Church Leadership Connection” (CLC).  Pastors who are looking for a new call submit their “Pastor Information Forms” (PIF) to the CLC, where they are matched with churches’ MIFs. Pastors may also self-refer to churches who are seeking a pastor. 
 
The PNC will read pastors’ PIFs, listen to sermons, and do other background research, making decisions about which candidates it might like to interview (either by Zoom, phone, or in person). As it narrows down possible candidates, the PNC will bring them to Auburn for face-to-face conversations. Eventually, the PNC will bring a recommendation to the congregation, who will meet and hear the pastor candidate and vote to approve his or her call. The ultimate responsibility for calling a new pastor is the congregation’s.
 
This is the same process that brought us Patrick and, before him, Phil Windsor, and every other pastor we’ve had. We therefore have great hope that we will find the pastor who has the gifts, energy, vision, and love we seek.
 
How long will all this take? It’s hard to say exactly. Past interim periods at Westminster have been 18-24 months. This one could be a little shorter or a little longer. Collective and thoughtful decision-making takes time.
 
The interim period is an exciting time in the life of a congregation. The work is done by many—the Session, the Temporary Pastor, the Ministry Teams, the congregation at large, the Presbytery, and the Church Leadership Connection of the PC(USA). The Presbytery in particular will be providing constant support throughout this process. Now is a great time to be active and involved in the life of Westminster as we strive to see where God is at work in our community, and how we can be a part of that. It is up to all of us to contribute to the future of our church and to discover where God is calling us.
 
Sincerely,
 
Jill Fandrich (Communicator) and Rob Schemerhorn (Clerk)
On Behalf of the Session of Westminster Presbyterian Church
0 Comments

How Auburn has showed me god

4/16/2023

2 Comments

 
by the Rev. Patrick Heery
(published in the Auburn Citizen March 19, 2023)

​When I arrived in Auburn seven years ago, I wrote my first article for The Citizen, saying, “This place is going to change me. It’s going to show me God.”

In that time, I have pastored my first congregation, Westminster Presbyterian Church. I have become a father to two beautiful children whom we adopted and to six others in heaven. I have learned the lakes, woods and waterfalls of this verdant country. I have enjoyed the hospitality of neighbors, movies in the park, and the fairs and festivals that so evoke Americana. I have walked in the footsteps of Harriet Tubman, William Seward and a history brimming with the ongoing fight for equal rights. I have witnessed the creation of LGBTQ Pride Week and the drop-in center for teens, Pride House. I have had the privilege of touching many hands — in sharing food at a soup kitchen, in praying over the dying, in officiating weddings and baptisms, in rehoming victims of domestic violence, in counseling the grieving, in kneeling for George Floyd and the insistence that Black Lives must matter.

Much has happened — more than I can name here. But, among it all, what remains with me the most is the love of the people. You. I’m talking about a people whose lives are busy and full of problems of their own, and yet who again and again show up for each other, to care for one another.

Oh I’ve seen plenty of the bad too. I am a Presbyterian minister (a Calvinist ... ooh) after all. I’m well aware of our sinful capacities for selfishness, hate and cynicism. I was there when they tried to ban the book "All Boys Aren’t Blue," when someone vandalized our Black Lives Matter banner, when we were collecting school supplies for children and people walked past us, refusing to donate, when more pews were empty than full on Sunday morning, and when more and more of our neighbors fell to poverty, homelessness, addiction and mental health challenges.

In each case, however, love refused to cease its song. For, I have also seen a school board meeting crowded with people defending free speech and the power of learning each other’s stories. I have seen, in the wake of one vandalized sign, hundreds more appear in the lawns and storefronts of Auburnians. I have seen the smiles of children as volunteers distribute more than 500 backpacks stuffed with school supplies. I have seen passionate worship and the curious, delightful wrestling with the questions of our faith. I have seen suffering people walk through the doors of our church, and volunteers greet them as if Jesus Christ himself had just entered.

In short, this place has changed me. It has shown me God. For, God is Love. And now that God of Love is taking me elsewhere. I will be concluding my time as Westminster’s pastor.

When my Mom died three years ago of a sudden heart attack at 69, it hit home to me the fragility of life. Though I rationally knew otherwise, I think I assumed that my family would always be there — or at least be there longer. I am reminded of the charge my pastor in Cincinnati would speak at the end of each service, based on the words of Henri Frédéric Amiel: “Friends, life is short, and we do not have much time to gladden the hearts of those who make the journey with us. So be swift to love, and make haste to be kind.”

This summer, my family and I will be moving in with my Dad, in Cincinnati, to care for him. We will be closer to family. Emerson and Josephine will get to know their grandparents, cousins, aunts and uncles more deeply. Jenna will get to focus on her vocation and career, as she will be the one this time pursuing full time ministry. I’ll be focusing on being a father and being a son. This will be a time for growing closer to my Dad, helping him with the house and his health, and grieving together. I might do some writing, some volunteering. I am looking forward to worshiping as a family. And then, when the time is right, I’ll discern what ministry God is calling me to next. But for now, I am excited to dwell in the holiness of relationships, to be swift in the same love I have experienced here in Auburn.
​
I will miss you. A lot. I find hope, however, in the thought of all the people (yes, even the pastors) you will change and show God. I find hope in the God of Love who remains here, waiting for the next person to arrive.
2 Comments

    Author

    Write something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview.

    Archives

    May 2025
    April 2025
    January 2025
    December 2024
    November 2024
    October 2024
    August 2024
    July 2024
    June 2024
    April 2024
    March 2024
    February 2024
    December 2023
    November 2023
    October 2023
    September 2023
    August 2023
    June 2023
    April 2023
    April 2022
    November 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    November 2020
    October 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    February 2019
    January 2019
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    May 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    November 2017
    October 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016

    Categories

    All

    RSS Feed

Proudly powered by Weebly