As a 2008 grant recipient, this sabbatical was made possible to King of Glory (and 21 other Indiana congregations) through a Lilly Endowment Clergy Renewal program. Pastor Paul is Senior Pastor of King of Glory Lutheran Church returned from his sabbatical, and after sharing some of his experiences in these blogs and congregational talks, he continued through a series of sermons.
The following, in part, was in the Lilly Endowment Press Release, dated July 9, 2008. (Click here for entire Press Release)
The Rev. Paul F. Swartz and his King of Glory Lutheran Church in Carmel offered a “prepositional proposition.” One of his seminary professors told Swartz that “the smallest words, prepositions, were the most important words in the Bible.” He has been intrigued ever since. Thus the theme of his renewal: the directional thrusts of ministry.
His congregants report that he is troubled by what we often see in congregations, the subtle self-centered emphasis that directs our focus inward and thwarts our outward ministry. He has diagnosed this malaise and sees a corrective in reversing the directional indicators of the four celebrated prepositions: up and down, in and out.
He maintains that it is always the “downward reach of God that creates the upward life of his people. And it is the outward thrust (mission) of the church that engenders the inward pull of Indiana Clergy Renewal Program individuals to Christ.” The members report: As we leave the shallow role of Sunday church attendees and move toward being committed Christ followers, there is a new sense of excitement in the congregation.
Next summer Swartz‘s time will be filled with visiting the Lutheran Chautauqua/Summer Assembly at Lakeside, Ohio, his childhood vacationland; meeting with his four siblings and their families for the first time in 10 years; engaging in a silent retreat at the Benedictine Inn and Retreat Center near Indianapolis; and serving as pastor-in-residence at Wittenberg University.
Then he and his wife will head for Berlin and the Lutheran Heritage Tour which will¨ “underscore the initiating downward reach of God‘s love and the upward lift of those who respond in faith.” They will travel to Eisleben, Wittenberg, Weidach, Wurttemberg, Frankfort and Prague.
Along the way, Swartz will meet with Luther stamp collectors and philatelic clubs. To his wife‘s amazement, he has amassed a large collection of Luther/Reformation stamps, postcards and other related material from which he is organizing the “Life of Martin Luther Illustrated Philatelically."
The Footsteps of St. Paul tour will take them across Greece and Turkey, a trip that should reinforce the outward thrust of being sent. He will return to enjoy “Re-Formation Sunday – Re-Engage! King of Glory Vision Night” with the congregation.
Swartz believes the renewal period will show him once again “how the downs of the Bible are followed by ups and how the outward thrusts of the church bring people into the heart of God.” He predicts that the program will give him a renewed sense of his Lutheran heritage and a chance to recapture that missionary zeal.
