St. Paul’s Lutheran Church announces pastoral installation
In 2016, we at St. Paul’s Evangelical Lutheran Church in Sassamansville will celebrate our 179th year of serving God and spreading the Gospel. Over that period of time, 20 Pastors have served as spiritual leaders at St. Paul’s and have faithfully guided our congregation. We are pleased to announce that on August 7, 2016 we unanimously installed our 21 St Pastor – Pastor Matthew Finney.
Pastor Finney brings many gifts to St. Paul’s. He received his Master of Divinity at the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg in 2010. He also has a Master of Science degree (2003) from North Carolina State University and a Bachelor of Science degree (2000) from Purdue University both in Agricultural Science.
Before receiving the Call at St. Paul’s he served a two point parish in Western Pennsylvania known as Holy Shepherd Lutheran Parish which was a combination of Holy Trinity parish in Lanse and Shepherd of the Hills parish in Karthaus.
His wife of 12 years Denise received her Doctorate in Ecology from Penn State University and is currently teaching at Ursinus College in Collegeville. They are now living in nearby Lower Frederick Township with their two daughters.
In our pastoral search, one of the main themes that was emphasized throughout was our desire to honor our traditions in celebrating our faith but nevertheless be open to new ways of learning about and spreading the Gospel. Those traditions have their genesis in our humble German American heritage. We were once a thriving farming community and that lifestyle was the centerpiece of community life. It was a very simple existence but it relied both on the regularity of our worship practices and on the simple profession of our deep faith in the power of God in guiding us in our daily conduct. Over the years, farming has dimin- ished as a way of life and we have become more sophisticated in our spiritual lives. Nevertheless the simplicity of the profession of that faith of our ancestors remains the foundation on which we want to build. As we look to the future, we at St Paul’s feel blessed to have obtained the services of Pastor Finney to lead our flock into the Twenty First Century.
We are a dedicated Christian community and people of abiding faith. All are welcome to our Summer Worship Service every Sunday at 9:00 A.M. Starting September 11 our Sunday School is in session at 9:00 A.M. and Worship Service is at 10:15. All are welcome to join us as we begin this new phase of our ministry.