Designated Pastor's Page 

Some Things You May Want to Know About Me

I have been serving as the Designated Pastor of North Church Queens (formerly, legally, and sometimes still known as the North Presbyterian Church of Flushing) since October 1, 2007.  I am a graduate of Davis and Elkins College (B.S.), Princeton Theological Seminary (M.Div.) and Pittsburgh Theological Seminary (D.Min.).  I have served churches in North Carolina and West Virginia, on the staff of West Virginia Presbytery, and as adjunct faculty teaching Religion at Belmont Abbey College and Religion and Philosophy at Davis & Elkins College before moving to New York City.  I currently serve on the Committee on Ministry of New York City Presbytery. I am married to the Reverend Victoria L. Moss, Pastor of the Ridgewood Presbyterian Church, Ridgewood, NY.   You can read my personal blog "Summit to Shore" at http://summittoshore.blogspot.com/ 

John Edward Harris

 AUGUST 2010

Grace to you and peace.

While at the most recent Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) General Assembly, I participated in a the Auburn Media Training Event, a workshop designed to equip religious leaders to communicate effectively with and through the media.  A point that was emphasized throughout the workshop was that a single well placed Letter to the Editor or interview in a local paper might reach hundreds, or even thousands of people, whereas a single sermon might only reach anywhere from a dozen to a few hundred faithful worshipers.  Additionally, is  likely that more people will read this letter than than will hear any sermon I ever preach at North Church.

Later, while observing the work and deliberations of the Committee on Middle East Peacemaking Issues and reading reports of their work in the secular press, I became particularly aware of a disconnect between the concerns and vocabulary of the Church and how the media reports about the Church.  We simply do not care about many of the same issues or speak the same language.  Now that we live in a post-Christian world where few people are biblically or theologically literate, it is incumbent upon all Christians to represent the faith in the public square and to correct errors when and where we hear or read them in the media.

May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.

John Edward Harris

Annual Report to the Congregation

For the Year 2009

Designated Pastor John Edward Harris

As I reflect on the year that was, I think 2009 certainly was more than approximately fifty worship services and sermons and twelve session meetings. 

For the second year in a row we occasionally shared worship, meals, fellowship, and study with the First Presbyterian Church of Whitestone.  We worshiped together on Ash Wednesday, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and the Ascension of the Lord.  During Lent, the Reverend Andy James and I also co-lead a Study of N.T. Wright’s book on Evil.  In July we cooperated to celebrate the 500^th birthday of John Calvin.  Of those who were there, who can forget “pin the beard on Calvin”?  More recently we and the First Presbyterian Church of Whitestone shared Thanksgiving worship with Immanuel Lutheran Church in Whitestone.  I look forward to sharing more opportunities for study, fellowship and worship with our brothers and sisters from Whitestone and hopefully new cooperative planning with our sisters and brothers in the Thai Fellowship.

2009 was also a year of subtle, almost imperceptible change.  Just prior to 2009 we removed the front pews and placed large print hymnals and Bibles in the remaining pews.  A little later we moved the speakers for the sanctuary out of view to behind the front wall.  New earthenware communion vessels appeared on the communion table and a whole loaf of bread, in addition to pre-cut pieces, is now being used for the Sacrament.  A few extra celebrations of the Lord’s Supper were also scheduled, complementing our usual first Sunday of the month celebration.  I have made a few minor changes in the order of worship and introduced a few new liturgical resources.  We also started using new bulletin stock which features the seal of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) while at the same time tending to brand ourselves as the more inclusive “North Church Queens” rather than the mouthful “North Presbyterian Church of Flushing.”

Outside of the sanctuary we have installed new bulletin boards in the entry way and thoroughly cleaned the kitchen.  More recently, the downstairs storage room was cleaned and painted, both restrooms have received a fresh coat of paint, and we are in the process of cleaning out the old Guild Room so that we can use it as meeting space and a classroom.  Other interior and exterior changes and improvements are in the works.

In the year that was, we observed our first “Evolution Weekend” and our first “Photographers for Peace” competition. Hopefully we will experience some other “firsts” in 2010.

After serving North Church Queens half-time without any other employment for eighteen months, I started working at the new Eastern Mountain Sports store in SoHo in April to supplement my half-time income.  Balancing two schedules has not always been easy and there have been times I had to work at EMS rather than attend North Church Events.

A year from now, or five or ten years from now, I hope and pray that when look back and reflect on 2009 that we will not remember it only as the year of the “Great Recession” but as a year that tested our trust in God and increased our resolve to place a higher value on intangibles such as the things of the Spirit; a year in which we safely negotiated some minor changes and saw some improvements.

In the midst of a tough economy the Session took some responsible proactive steps to reduce spending, reminding us that Stewardship is not just about giving but also the wise and prudent management of the Resources God has blessed us with.  Now that it seems like the economy is improving, however, we cannot allow ourselves to be possessed by a cut-back mentality, otherwise we will be locked into a downward spiral leading to institutional death.

In the June Newsletter I reflected on the differences I felt between leading worship with fourteen people in attendance and twenty four people in attendance and compared us to a nuclear reactor.  While it seems that more recently our worship attendance as well as our giving has increased slightly, I still find the image of a nuclear reactor helpful.  When friends and relatives ask me how things are going at North Church I often reply that I feel like I am serving at a nuclear reactor where the fuel rods are nearly spent but there is still some heat left in the core, and that if we do not find a way to introduce more fuel rods into the reactor, the chain reaction will slow down to the point of not being able to sustain a chain reaction and the reactor core will cool.

In other words, in the coming year(s) we must focus on finding ways to increase the number of visitors to worship, welcome visitors with such extravagant hospitality that they will return, and invite returning visitors to become part of our church family.  Even though our motivation for evangelism—wanting more contributors to help pay the bills, wanting more worshippers in the pews to increase spiritual energy, and wanting to add some more fuel rods to the nuclear reactor of our church—may not be the most theologically sound, perhaps this is the way God is working in our midst.