Not just ‘welcoming’ you but ‘affirming’ you: Admiral Church’s new pastor discusses the difference on eve of his debut

(WSB photos)

By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

What a time for a pastor to start a new gig: Rev. Jermell Witherspoon‘s first sermon as the new pastor of West Seattle’s oldest church will be on Ash Wednesday.

The title: “Do You Want to Be Made Well?” (From John 5, 6-10.)

That is not a reference to “fixing” anyone. In fact, one of the first things we discussed in a chat with Admiral Church‘s new pastor on Monday was the difference between being an “affirming” church and a “welcoming” church. It’s easy to say everyone’s “welcome,” he explains, but not so easy to find a place that will affirm you as what and who you are.

But before we get into that, a bit about who Rev. Witherspoon is.

He’s the new minister called by Admiral Church after the departure of Rev. Andrew Conley-Holcom. He’s from a family of ministers, though he grew up in “the Pentecostal space,” he says, so his family’s churches are “directly opposite” from what he’s been preaching, teaching, and exploring for more than seven years, most recently at Liberation UCC downtown.

UCC = United Church of Christ, same denomination as Admiral Church (along with Alki UCC and Fauntleroy UCC, making UCC the only denomination besides the Catholic Church to have three congregations in West Seattle). Rev. Witherspoon also worked with the Disciples of Christ denomination “to help churches become open and affirming.” When he chose to enter the ministry, “being a queer man, I felt the call for something more .., I said, ‘God, I want to continue to be a Christian, but I need you to show me a way that’s life-giving for me.’ I found UCC believed a lot of the things that I believed,” including standing for justice and inclusion,

Back to the difference between welcoming and affirming. Too many churches, he says, say you’re “welcome” because “we gotta get you in here and then get you saved! We’ve created a space where people have to be everything other than what God has called them to be … God manifests in so many different ways … you’re coming here so you can help to change US so we can live more like what God has called us to be … and affirm who God has called you to be.”

So how does that sound from the pulpit? “Our sermons must be relevant culturally, present-day relevant with all the craziness happening around … you gotta name what’s happening and name the hope that is there, that’s part of the gospel … not just despair but also beauty, resurrection … hope that the things we all have to go through in life, that we’re going to find a way to make it better … we have agency, and we are the hands and feet of God working in the Earth.”

But what about the seemingly prevailing sentiment of this time, that churches are dying? Rev. Witherspoon sees the hope for churches in that “we are co-creator with God.” Rather than ask God “what are you doing?” he suggests, “God says, ‘what are YOU doing? How are you being in the Earth in the ways I’ve called you to?” That, he insists, is “important as we invite people to church (who may have been) ostracized, pushed out of religious spaces … We have to stand as public apologies for the way others have been handled … we have to demonstrate the good of God.” Not, he says, the path of some churches that “have these big humongous spaces, seeking money and fame, condemning people to hell, scaring people into donating huge sums … Jesus’s way is not the most popular, but the way that leads to life.”

Speaking of spaces, we should mention that Admiral Church is currently in a cozy one, what they call their chapel, a light-filled but relatively small space at St. John the Baptist Episcopal Church. They moved in because, as we’ve been reporting for several years, they chose to partner with Homestead Community Land Trust to turn much of their 4320 SW Hill campus into housing, with the church’s future home for services and the community groups they’ve long hosted.

(2024 rendering of concept for what you’d see turning off California onto Hill)

Admiral Church’s Anita Shaffer, who invited us to meet the new pastor, says groundbreaking is expected before year’s end, and construction could last up to two years, so they hope to be in their new home before the end of 2028.

And Rev. Witherspoon is looking forward to it. “When we shift into our new church, that will be so electrifying and so affirming, people will be called to come, we will listen to the spirit of God – I’m looking forward to that.”

First, he’s looking forward to the task at hand – leading Admiral Church into the season of Lent. He begins work with a reservoir of admiration for what they’ve already done: “When I … realized how brave Admiral was, what spirit was calling them to do, desiring growth not just in number but in consciousness … it seemed like the perfect setup … I can be a co-creator with the community to figure out what spirit is calling us to do next … there is potential to build community in a deeper way.”

But why do that through church? we asked. The pastor sees it as “the power of collective community, building something that honors one’s neighbor and honors one’s God … I think there will always be a call to be called to each other … definitely a space for a church like this.” And yes, he acknowledges that some churches have caused harm – *we’re doing some of that correction at Admiral and that’s one of the reasons I’m here.” He hopes to “co-create” “a place where you feel safe and honored and loved … like inds and different minds… a space where everybody can feel like they are somebody.” And, a place of hope. Including his hope, “that the spirit of Admiral becomes contagious to the community.”

He will be involved in the community beyond the church as well, including the organizations that Admiral has hosted, such as West Seattle PFLAG, meeting tonight, and others in the community at large, including the Westside Interfaith Network. As for that Ash Wednesday debut, tomorrow’s service is at 6 pm; Admiral’s temp home at St. John’s is at 3050 California SW.

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