Description:
On All Saints' Day in 2009, St. Peter's Lutheran Church in North Plainfield, New Jersey, closed its doors for a final time. This book is a love story, a eulogy, good words spoken from and about the last years of a congregation's ministry.
This book is not an instructional handbook, it's a memoir of a pastor and her people written to provide comfort and encouragement for others walking through similar journeys. The chapters narrate the challenging conversations, bold generosity, and faithful witness they chose in closing.
Eulogy for a Faithful Church speaks of a congregation who looked at their resources and capacity and asked, "Given this reality, how do we be the church? How can we best make the gospel known?" Then, with grief, sacrifice, and trust in God, the people chose to say goodbye to both a sacred place and a beloved community. Their story, woven together with Scripture, names the faithfulness of a community of faith which chose to die and, in doing so, found new life.
Brief description: A writer, pastor, and artist, Sara Olson-Smith weaves together the ancient stories of scripture with lived experiences of community of faith. Currently serving at St. Paul Lutheran Church in Davenport, Iowa, her ministry began in central New Jersey. Her writing can be found in various publications, and you can hear her voice on the podcast of Bible stories for children called Little Bird and Jesus.