“Church Better Together”

“Church Better Together”

The story of collaboration between Zion Lutheran and Church of the Reconciliation

This piece is reprinted with the permission of the New England Synod, ELCA.

Paula Clark, Zion Lutheran Church, Oxford; Isaac Gilliard, Zion Lutheran Church, Oxford; Cindy Osowski, Church of the Reconciliation, Webster; Mark Rogers, Church of the Reconciliation, Webster; Pastor Michael Bastian, Zion & Reconciliation

It is always a stressful and difficult time when a priest or pastor leaves a church. For Zion Lutheran of Oxford, MA and Church of the Reconciliation in Webster, MA this was pointedly difficult in 2020. Both of the congregations had to deal with the resignations of their pastors, and both came to the painful realization that they could no longer afford a full-time clergy person.

The questions this realization raised were existential. Each had to ask whether the congregation could thrive or even survive with a part-time pastor. What would having a part time pastor look like? Would we need to close the doors?

The leadership of both the Episcopal Diocese of Western Massachusetts and the New England Synod ELCA raised the idea of the two churches sharing one full-time pastor. By definition, one of us would be under the leadership of a pastor from a different denomination.

This sparked lots of conversation between congregants of both parishes. Both Zion Lutheran and Church of the Reconciliation are churches with between 130 and 150 years of proud history. Both have a small and very close community. Both are very comfortable with who we were, the way we did things… and all were comfortable with our regular pews! In short, two churches with great traditions. However, tradition can be stasis. It can be paralyzing.

It was a challenge for both congregations to come to grips with the idea of not being independent or completely selfsufficient. We had to ask whether it was pride that was making us hesitant.

The Council and Vestry met together on many occasions, sometimes jointly and sometimes separately but always prayerfully. Under the guidance of Rev. Sara Anderson (Associate to the Bishop) and Rev. Rich Simpson (Canon to the Ordinary) discussions progressed and it was agreed we would jointly call a Pastor/Priest-in-charge to serve both congregations. This all happened while COVID-19 restrictions were in place, so the interview process promised to be very different than the norm. Finding candidates was challenging. Thankfully, the Holy Spirit intervened and brought us the application of Pastor Michael Bastian.

This situation was different indeed. Pastor Michael is a German-born dual citizen of his birth country and the U.S. He was serving a parish in Germany at this time of our search. He has spent considerable time in parish positions in the U.S. with his American-born wife, Susan. He was finishing up a three-year call in Germany and wanted to return to the U.S.

The entire interview process, negotiations and eventual call were done via Zoom. Pastor Michael was called and accepted the call without any of us ever meeting in person! It should also be noted that the two churches have different call procedures, which also needed to be navigated.

While the decision to call Pastor Michael was an easy one, the fact that he would be splitting his time and that he is a Lutheran clergy person by ordination took prayer and an open mind for the parishioners of Church of the Reconciliation to, well, reconcile.

We established a joint relationship committee made up of members of both congregations’ leadership and general membership. There were practical matters for consideration: How much does the new pastor get paid? Who handles the pension payments, health insurance, etc.? When will services be held? Will there be joint services? What about Holy Week? There were a myriad of other questions to be answered.

Under Pastor Michael’s leadership we moved forward by adopting a new way of being church as we decided to be “Church Better Together”. This was our joint vision.

This took prayer, open hearts and open minds. It also took full transparency of the process and openness with both the questions and the answers.

Pr. Michael began his ministry at both churches in October 2020. The partnership between Zion Lutheran and Reconciliation has evolved by celebrating our faith in outdoor services at both sites; many, many Zoom meetings; joint Bible studies; and several in-person fellowship events. Despite the challenges of the pandemic with all its limitations, something started to blossom under the detritus of fear and worry that both congregations had been experiencing.

During 2021, we offered joint services at Easter, Pentecost, at the end of August, the Blessing of the Animals in October, as well as Blue Christmas and the joint service of Lessons and Carols in late December. And, finally, after twice having to postpone it, in June 2022, we held our service of installation/celebration of new ministry for Pr. Michael. Both Bishop James Hazelwood and Bishop Doug Fisher (Episcopal Diocese of Western Mass) led through the celebration worship service.

Serving two congregations in two synods/dioceses requires adaptation, good communication and collaboration. Our partnership continues to grow. While there have been some growing pains, we continue to overcome and learn from them.

As we explore common mission with each other, our efforts continue to be marked by faith, flexibility and creativity. We are two small congregations, but we are resilient and we are generous. This has become evident in the area of our joint outreach ministry.

Both Zion Lutheran and Church of the Reconciliation decided early in their evolving partnership that joint outreach efforts would be a great way to work together, get to know each other and support our communities near and far. While each congregation had established outreach ministries, we were committed to explore and support new efforts together.

Over the past two years, our joint outreach and social ministry program has grown into something active and present in our communities. In two separate events our parishioners donated 500 cans of pasta last fall and another 601 cans of soups during a Souper Bowl of Caring drive in January. All were delivered to the local ecumenical food pantry.

From December through March, we gathered hats, gloves, mittens, socks and scarves for the local library. They are on the shelves for young families, elderly, the homeless and anyone who needs them! The response has been amazing.

In early 2022 our two parishes joined an Afghan Resettlement Neighborhood Support Team (NST) under the umbrella of Ascentria. Our family was a household of ten people from Afghanistan and included two parents and eight children with a baby soon to be born. We are assisting the family during their resettlement to the U.S. In the beginning, this included members providing support to the parents and two eldest children to write a grocery list as part of an ESL lesson. The time spent together always includes tea together. The gift of a children’s tea set proved a big hit! Before too long, Cindy, one of the NST team members, became the family’s “American Grandmother”.

In April during school vacation we assisted another volunteer in taking the mom and seven children to the EcoTarium Science museum in Worcester for an outing! Even though they spoke/ read very little English they had a great time! The playground there was a great outlet for their boundless energy.

During May, Zion Lutheran and Church of the Reconciliation sponsored a baby shower through an online registry and help from other NST member churches.

There were a couple of trips to Walmart with Mom to decide what items she needed for the baby. May ended with a combined baby shower and engagement party for the oldest son! The family provided a goat entrée and NST members brought side dishes. The event was a wonderful testament to what can be accomplished when many hands are available and churches collaborate.

Volunteering has continued with weekly ESL for the dad and eldest son as well as for the mother and eldest daughter. The baby was born in June and is a constant joy for all.

One of our NST supporters sums up her experience with the following quote: “I turned eighty this spring and cannot believe how excited I am to be on a journey with this Afghan family of eleven who are learning about life in America! I am proud to be their American Grandmother!”

Our next effort at collaboration is to host “Building Bridges”, a community veterans’ group. Zion Lutheran and Church of The Reconciliation will offer a hot meal that is shared with those attending and provide fellowship for veterans in the Worcester corridor.

We have a good thing going and we want to share the good news!

There are many other small triumphs we could share, but the point is we could not be as effective without one another! We are small, but we are resilient and we are generous. Our congregations support one another spiritually and socially. We challenge one another to do better, to be better in collaboration!

What it means to be Church is changing and we will all be changing with it. This will result in different courses of action for individuals and organizations. For Zion Lutheran Church and Church of the Reconciliation it means living into “Church Better Together” and we are! ♦