Last month, St. John’s was delighted to welcome back the Rev. Bruce Davidson, who served our congregation as a vicar from 1972 to 1973. This Sunday, September 13, we welcome another former vicar, the Rev. James G. Anderson, who served here from 1974 to 1975. Their visits are special parts of our 150th anniversary celebration.
In the Lutheran tradition, a vicar is a pastoral intern who gains practical ministry experience under an experienced pastor’s supervision. “Vicar Bruce” returned during August, when we commemorated Pastor William Haegert, his first supervisor. This month, we remember Pastor Donald Herb, who later supervised both Vicar Bruce and “Vicar Jim.”
Preparing for ordained ministry in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America involves more than earning a seminary degree. Candidates move through a structured process of spiritual discernment, academic study, practical experience, and evaluation. The three major stages are known as Entrance, Endorsement, and Approval.
Entrance includes discernment with pastors and congregations, academic reviews, background checks, and psychological evaluation. Endorsement ordinarily follows much of a candidate’s seminary coursework and Clinical Pastoral Education, often completed as a chaplain in a hospital or another institutional setting. Approval comes after further assessment, an internship or vicarage, and the successful completion of seminary requirements. Only then may a candidate be assigned and called to serve as an ordained minister of Word and Sacrament.
Looking back, I can see how the Holy Spirit planted subtle hints that eventually pointed me toward St. John’s. The Rev. Dr. Gerard Gaeta, a former pastor of this congregation, served as interim pastor of my home congregation when he signed the paperwork that began my Entrance process. After Approval, I received my first call to Faith Lutheran Church in Syosset, succeeding the retiring Rev. James Anderson, our guest preacher this Sunday!
There was another bit of St. John’s foreshadowing. When I later left Faith, I was succeeded by the Rev. Robert Kasting, who subsequently served as St. John’s interim pastor before my arrival.
Pastors Bruce and Jim are thankful for the hands-on pastoral preparation they received at St. John’s. Please join us this Sunday at 9:30 AM as we celebrate the ministries this congregation helped form and continues to support.

Blessings,
Pastor Marc