Coming full circle

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In 1974 I was licensed through the Vermont Conference United Church of Christ to serve two rural Vermont congregations, one in Eden, VT and the other in North Hyde Park, VT. One of the accomplishments during the two and a half years my wife Carol and I served these two churches was leading a very large and vibrant youth group that drew from local villages. After finishing my degree at Johnson State College, we moved to New Haven where I continued my studies at Yale Divinity School.

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At the conclusion of my seminary studies, I was ordained and I made a trip to Rupert, Vermont to interview for a job opening with the Congregational Church of Rupert. I fell in love with Rupert, returned and told my mentor Fr. Henri Nouwen, a professor at the Divinity School at the time, that the church wanted to call me as pastor and teacher. Henri’s response was, “you’ve been there, you’ve done that. Your next pastorate must be in a city.” I subsequently accepted a call to become the Minister of Parish Development at Pilgrim Congregational Church in St. Louis, Missouri - the first church to integrate west of the Mississippi. From St. Louis to New York City (Queens) to Los Angeles, California, I worked in city churches with diverse communities. Within these parishes, I established a soup kitchen, learning centers, a model interfaith program, a partnership with Habitat for Humanity, a Film Festival honoring my predecessor at the First Congregational Church of Los Angeles, Senior Minister/ author Lloyd C Douglas.

 

Other endeavors included receiving an honorary doctorate, an earned doctorate, and awards for service including the Ralph Bunche Peace Award. I also became a chaplain in the LAPD, a board member on international organizations, a lecturer, adjunct faculty at a seminary, writer,  and continued my interest as a filmmaker.

 

After more than twenty years in cities I yearned for Vermont and accepted a position at First Congregational Church of Manchester where we brought their meetinghouse into the 21st Century. When I left my position in 2010, I continued to write collaborating with theologian Walter Wink and interviewing Rene Girard for a book on Girard and scripture. I became in interim pastor in several churches and was also elected to the Vermont House of Representatives. At that time, together with Pastor Rob Noble, I began a Pastoral Preparation Program to train men and women for ministry in southern Vermont so they could become licensed bi-vocational pastors to serve local communities and keep our churches from closing. To date, there have been eleven graduates who are serving, or have served, our local congregations.

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In late 2017, I was asked to come to the Rupert Congregational Church upon the retirement of their pastor and accepted the interim position in order to seek to prevent the historic 1786 Rupert Meetinghouse from closing. This has been a very large challenge as the community has few resources. We are the oldest Meetinghouse in continuous operation in Vermont with a rich tradition begun by the Reverend Samson Occom a direct descendant of the Grand Sachem of the Mohicans who brought indigenous and settler folk together. I took a forty-year detour and arrived back to where I wanted to begin my ministry.

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I thank God!

 

Steve Berry

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