Pr. Jim’s Sabbatical in ’27

We recently celebrated Pr. Taran’s return from sabbatical from the summer of ’26. This next summer I will be taking my final sabbatical before retiring January 6 of ’31. My last sabbatical was in ’22. Sabbaticals at St. Luke are supposed to be every 6 years, but it will only have been 5 years. Why? Because my sabbatical previous to ’22 was in ’14 (8 years previously). I didn’t take the regularly scheduled sabbatical (which should have been in ’20) because at that time there was a pandemic and we were amid a large-scale building project. So, the Church Council granted me another and last sabbatical in ’27. We are given 3 months of sabbatical plus 1 month of vacation, so I will be away May-August of 2027.

Some of my time on sabbatical will be dedicated to finishing my thesis for the ThM (Master of Theology) I have been working on the past couple of years. I am in the midst of taking the last of my courses for the program but will still have the thesis to write this next year, and a German competency (reading theological German) test to complete. Please pray for the German test – that might just do me in! My degree will be in Reformation Studies, particularly Luther’s theology and writings, and specifically his understanding of spiritual attack (one’s experience of angst).

Some of my time on sabbatical will also be spent working with the bishop of our Synod (geographical area of our denomination), and leadership from the congregation to develop a transition plan for the last 3+ years of my ministry at St. Luke following my sabbatical. It would be great if the transition were in place upon my retirement so that the ministry wasn’t held back with an interim period or call process.

Finally, some of my time will be spent with family and on renewal. Lori and I will be traveling with my siblings and cousins and spouses to Norway to visit the places of our ancestors. I will also be leading a group from St. Luke to Spain to do El Camino de Santiago, or the Walk of St. James (and I will take those days elsewhere in the year, in January, as a vacation trip to Egypt with a group of pastors). I will also attend a pastor’s conference in South Carolina. I will spend time at Priest Lake, both working on my thesis and at other times enjoying the company of family.

It will be a full experience. This will be my fourth and final sabbatical while at St. Luke. These experiences have been a lifeline for the longevity of ministry here. I am deeply indebted to you all for the gracious gift of time, the opportunity to renew, and the expectation that your pastor(s) grow and go deep in their studies to improve their craft. Thank you!

Your brother in Christ,