Pastor’s Report: “What. A. Year.”
Rev. Nate Klug
To look back on 2020 is to review what is certainly the most challenging year in my seven years of ordained ministry, and probably one of the most challenging years in the 88-year history of Arlington Community Church. And while I will have a lot to say on a positive note, it seems dishonest to begin without acknowledging the loss that we have experienced this year, ever since COVID-19 shut down the Bay Area in mid-March of 2020.
First and foremost, we have grieved the deaths of ACC members Edna Combs, Jim Gallardo, David Seely, Edie Rodman, and Russell Weeks, as well as ACC friend Don Wooton. And we have said goodbye to these friends without the comforting rituals of in-person memorial services open to all. In some cases, we used Zoom to remember and give thanks with large groups. In other cases, I gathered with a small collection of family members for a private memorial.
Secondly, we have been watching mass death unfold around us at an almost unimaginable scale. As I write, almost 400,000 Americans have died from Covid-19, and the disease has affected communities of color and poor people in disproportionately horrific ways. This year we went about our daily work, tried to remain safe, and planned for the future, but we did so under an unimaginably dark cloud.
What was taken away from us at ACC, on a most immediate day-to-day level, was the ability to be with one another in person – the essence of church life. If you’d told me in 2019 that any church would have to go almost a year without gathering for in-person worship, sharing food, and joining in service, I’m not sure I would have thought they could have made it.
And yet, we have made it so far – and I would even go so far as to say that Arlington Community Church has grown in love of God and neighbor. New friendships have been made, new leaders have sprouted up, new social justice projects have been begun, new gifts and talents have been revealed, and new technologies have been embraced (or…at least lovingly tolerated).
As I look back on 2020 at ACC, I am so proud and grateful to be your pastor. I am going to share a few highlights of the year from my perspective, arranged into themes.
Virtual Life: Flying by the Seat of Our Pants
When we pivoted to virtual worship in mid-March, Jacob taught himself iMovie, Shanti and Tim learned how to record themselves playing and singing, and I learned how to set up my phone on a tripod without tripping over my mic cord. Even more impressively, the majority of ACCers willed their way onto Youtube and Zoom (“Goodnight Moon, Goodnight Zoom”) in order to participate in our worship, programming, and board meetings.
Our weekly worship services regularly reach 100 views, and our special Easter and Christmas Eve videos have exceeded 250 views. We’ve reached new people in the Bay Area and beyond. We even welcomed 8 different guest virtual worship leaders while I was on two months of paternity leave.
Now, nine months into the pandemic, lay leaders regularly hold meetings and social hours over Zoom. I do pastoral visits via Zoom office hours. We don’t love it, but we’ve gotten used to it. And, praise be to God, it has kept us safe.
Giving Back
Nor has virtual life diminished our generosity. When the pandemic struck, we had just begun a campaign to donate our entire Lenten plate offering to RIP Medical Debt. We pushed ahead, joined with seven other UCC churches, and eventually raised $44,000 in total, which forgave $4.6 million of medical debt in the East Bay. Likewise, we donated generously to our North Richmond neighbors over the Christmas holiday. And we continued to give faithfully to ACC, and many of you made increased pledges for 2021 to ensure that all this good work could continue.
We also pioneered our first-ever Virtual Holiday Bazaar. Planning for this began back in the summer, and Joe Pratt spearheaded the collection of various items and the administration of this unique sale. 44 friends and members of ACC donated – everything from baked goods to singing lessons, gingerbread houses to signed books – and we raised $4,800 for our general fund and our Missions and Social Justice board. Most importantly, we blessed each other and learned something new about one another.
Awakening to Anti-Racism
As young people poured into the streets last summer to protest George Floyd’s killing at the hands of the police, ACC began to investigate its own privilege and complicity, as a majority-white congregation, in the continued plague of racism in America. A group called “Racists Anonymous” morphed into a more active “Becoming Anti-Racist” group, both led by Helen Winters.
These groups, in conjunction with a Black Lives Matter Bible Study series, and many individual conversations among ACCers, meant that racial justice remained at the forefront of our consciousness during 2020. As we move into 2021, several lay leaders have introduced a new project, Reparations for Black Homeownership. We will devote the entirety of our 2021 Lenten offering to this project, and we’ve invited other local churches to join us as well.
Our Campus
It’s a little ironic, given that our building mostly stands empty right now, but the beginning of 2020 saw some wonderful improvements to our physical campus. First, thanks to the long-time efforts of Ruth Robinson and others, we partnered with master labyrinth builder Lars Howlett in February to design and construct a permanent labyrinth on our church patio. Bob Stokstad’s photograph of ACC with the labyrinth in the foreground and the church in the background is now iconic. Even during Covid-times, I see visitors walking and running around the labyrinth every week.
We also purchased new sandblasted cedar signs to hang on our exterior. These give more prominence to our church name – which even many Kensingtonians can’t seem to remember! – as well as instructing first-time visitors where to go. Both our labyrinth and our new wood signs will serve ACC well for years to come.
Even though our life together was diminished this year, I feel like I am leaving some important things out in this report! Which just goes to show you the extent to which ACC has remained active and imaginative in responding to God’s call.
Much of this has gone on behind the scenes – in the flexibility and determination shown by our church staff, Council, and Moderator, who have met countless challenges this year. I want to end by thanking them.
God’s peace,
Rev. Nate Klug