Official Workbook report source text
Official Workbook source-navigation report record. No analysis has been added.
- Report number/id
- R39
- Report title
- R39 New Jersey District
- Workbook start page
- 123
- Workbook end page
- 124
- Source pages
- 123, 124
- Source status
- source_checked
- Committee
- Not available
R39 New Jersey District Ministry Situation and Challenges From the Jersey Shore to the Appalachian Highlands, from the New York suburbs to the Philadelphia suburbs, from the sandy Pine Barrens to the fertile dairy lands, New Jersey is a wonderfully di- verse place to live and proclaim the Good News that Christ Is Risen Indeed! Yet, the geography only points to an even more diverse demographic. New Jersey is the home to more scientists and engi- neers per square mile than any other area of the world. Religiously and ethnically, it is host to the second-largest population in the U.S. of Jews, Muslims, and Cubans, the largest population of Peruvi- ans, as well as high numbers of Portuguese, Brazilians, Hispanics, Arabs, African Americans, Asians, Chinese, and Italians. In fact, 23.4 percent of its residents were born outside of the U.S.! This great diversity of people of over 9.5 million and growing is all gath- ered together into 8,721 square miles, making New Jersey the most densely populated state in the U.S. Yet there are only four cities with a population greater than 100,000! That means the population is spread out over a multitude of smaller cities and municipalities. The challenges of culture, language, religion, thought, and worl- dview are readily evident within this environment. The question is how does a well-established, relatively long-term resident, pri- marily of a northern European descent, church share the Gospel of the risen Christ with such a diverse population? The good news is that this is happening and with God’s blessing will accelerate in the coming days. Both our prayers and our work aim at reaching all the people of New Jersey in their great diversity one person at a time. Ironically, the dense population of New Jersey is, in some ways, 2026 Convention Workbook 124 OFFICER, BOARD, AND COMMISSION REPORTS you in His own holiness, hung naked, bare, and exposed. He hung on the cross dressed only in your sins and the sins of the entire world. He’s covered in your sin, and you are covered in His righ- teousness. Despite various challenges, the district has been exceedingly blessed by our gracious Lord. The pastorate is dedicated to pro- claiming the Gospel, despite the hardships they may face. Several of the pastors travel over 200 miles to serve a vacancy. Among the 77 congregations in North Dakota, there are 10 dual parishes, 7 tri-parishes, and 2 quad-parishes. Many other congregations share a pastor but are not in an official parish arrangement. These con- gregations are being served, at the time of this writing, by 44 active pastors. I have never heard any of the pastors complain or give thought to pulling back. The challenges that the district faces are shared by many oth- ers. The demographic shift away from rural communities has made it difficult in many areas of North Dakota. Rural churches are growing smaller, putting at risk the proclamation of the Gospel in congregations that used to flourish. Apathy toward God’s Word, financial stress, and overall rural congregational sustainability are problems that our people face. To address these issues, I have put before the district a threefold emphasis: catechesis, rural ministry, and preaching stations. A. Catechesis The treasures of our Lutheran heritage are great and abundant, wide and deep. This marvelous confession of faith, drawn from the sacred Scriptures, has been passed down by the faithful who have come before us. As a cherished heirloom is bequeathed down the generations, so, too, have we received this confession of Christ and His redeeming work from our forefathers in the faith. We do not hold the Lutheran Confessions on par with Scripture; we do not say that the Confessions are infallible, but we do say that our confes- sion has not erred or failed. The goal for the district is for there to be a Confessions study in every circuit and parish. These Lutheran treasures are not just for eggheaded clergy but are a gift bequeathed from our Lutheran forefathers to all of us today. B. Rural Ministry Rural ministry is of great concern for our district. The goal is to help as many struggling congregations as possible. To that end, a Rural Ministry Task Force has been established to discuss ideas to serve struggling rural congregations. There are several ideas that have been discussed. 1. Hub-and-Spoke Models, also called the Cathedral Model. A larger, multi-staff congregation deploys her pastors to serve smaller congregations in the area. 2. Reisepr ediger, i.e., traveling preacher. A man travels a larger area, bringing the gifts of God to the people. 3. Specific Ministry Pastor (SMP) program. The SMP is, in my opinion, an exception that is to be made only in rare circum- stances. Thus, for an SMP candidate to serve, the situation must be a rural parish that makes it improbable for them to be served in any other way. 4. Congregations entering into parish agreements. Some of these models require a congregation to be gathered by the Holy Spirit to receive the gifts of God at a time other than to visitors and at outreach events. Campus and financial planning are also included in the plan. • New Jersey District University (NJDU) is a fuller, more in- depth version of SCC for more mature congregations. Since these are larger congregations, their plans will encompass more areas of ministry, in a more sophisticated way. NJDU is a seven-session, seven-month process compared to SCC’s four-session, four-month process. • Advanced Development. Congregations that have completed either SCC or NJDU are eligible to enroll in Advanced De- velopment sessions that will cover a host of topics to train and equip congregational leaders to better lead and serve their congregations and communities. More than half of the district congregations have participated in IMD, and that number continues to grow! In addition to this ministry focus, the district unveiled its new strategic plan at the 2025 district convention. This plan features four strategic targets: • Healthy Congregations • Healthy Workers • Expanded Ethnic Ministry • Financial Development For each of these target areas there is an assigned task force that works on developing the strategic plan with goals and action steps to be shared with congregations and pastors. While there are too many aspects of each of the targets to be mentioned here, the task forces, in conjunction with the direction of the district president, are prioritizing goals and developing action steps for district and congregational implementation. Some of them correlate to Synod resolutions (see above), and others are of local priority. Filling the pastoral office of our congregations continues to be a priority and challenge for the district. One answer has been the increasing number of congregations that have chosen to enter into a shared ministry. This enables congregations to have another chapter in life and the opportunity to write an alternative to closing. Our prayer is that with involvement in Small Church Clarity they can have a brighter future. Another answer is for congregations to en- gage in the specific ministry pastor program. The district now has six specific ministry pastors and another three in training. These men are proving to be a great blessing to our congregations and district. We encourage our Synod to embrace our history when we had both a practical and theoretical path to ordination and use this concept in the present. Our prayer is that the risen Christ would bless the humble ef- forts of the district toward healthy congregations, healthy workers, and vibrant outreach to the glory and honor of God, the edification of His Church, and the salvation of the world. Stephen A. Gewecke, President