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Rev. Dr. Walter John Boris
CPC Conference Minister
On May 17, 2008 the delegates to the Spring Assembly Annual Meeting
called the Rev. Dr. Walter John Boris to serve as Conference Minister.
Walter John began his duties on August 1, 2008.
Ministerial Profile Excerpts
 The first church I served was St. Paul's UCC, in the rolling farmland south of Council Bluffs, Iowa. The congregation was founded in 1868 by German immigrants who made their way north from St. Louis, along the Missouri River valley. St. Paul’s was a postcard – a white frame building, with a steeple and a bell that was hand-rung every Sunday. The cemetery wrapped around the building. Whenever I got frustrated with ministry, I went for a walk among the gravestones. I read the engraved names: Heuwinkel, Young, Franke, Hobus, Boehm – and thought about the generations of people that had lived and died, carrying on faithful ministry in that place. These people were the saints of God! They were a great comfort to me. They reminded me I was not the beginning and end of all good things. Ministry had gone on long before I arrived on the scene, and it would continue long after I was gone. Each time I walked, the burden of perfection was lifted from my shoulders and I was inspired for ministry.
I found another reminder of the saints of God at St. Paul’s – patchwork quilts! I think it’s impossible to look at a quilt, with hundreds of pieces of material and thousands of small, even stitches without wondering about the people who created such a piece of warmth and beauty.
As church members proudly showed me their family quilts, I came to understand the heirlooms as an alternative version of Paul’s image of the church as the body of Christ. We spend lots of time trying to be like each other, but the beauty and strength of the church comes from the paradox of unity and diversity. Have you ever looked closely at a pieced quilt made from leftover scraps of cloth? Taken by themselves, many of the pieces are plain, or downright ugly. But put them together, and they are beautiful beyond description.
We established an annual quilt show in the sanctuary. The second year, the event fell on All Hallow’s Eve. We left the quilts hanging on the wall for our Sunday service of remembrance. We read the names of loved ones who had died that year, and sang “For all the saints, who from their labors rest…” As I introduced communion, I was moved to draw attention to the quilts saying, “We are literally surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses.”
I’m touched by the images of the cemetery and the quilts because I believe it’s impossible to be the church by yourself. We come together, to find wholeness. Together, we are the saints of God, and we make a beautiful quilt through the love of Christ!
I am a person of faith -- Since my early childhood, I recognized the sacredness and interconnection of all Creation. I’m awed by the divine mystery of God revealed in the life and resurrection of Jesus, the Christ. I strive to live with integrity and faithfulness, as Jesus did. Inspired by the power and presence of the Spirit, I work for a just, loving, and peaceful world.
I am a “people person” -- I seek to minister to people by being open, accepting, and responsive to their needs. I willingly assume roles of leadership, but at the same time, I strongly encourage the leadership of the laity. I care about people and try to understand the world through their eyes. I enjoy people of all ages and take special delight in talking with children and wise elders. In my role as teacher and pastor, I help people understand each other and appreciate the uniqueness of each person. As a husband and father I live out my commitment to loving family relationships.
I am a creative person -- I love life and experience the world as a continually fascinating place. I find excitement in seeing new possibilities for teaching and ministry. I approach new projects with enthusiasm, imagination, and the energy needed to carry them out. I am especially effective in working with committees to solve problems and develop programs. My natural creativity is stimulated by the sharing of group members. Together, we are often able to do more than we could accomplish as individuals.
Ministry often comes as a surprise, despite intentions and job descriptions. My work with each of the churches I’ve served has developed out of my relationship with the congregation and the community. Most of the things that have defined my 13 years of ministry at Kirkland (Washington) I could not have anticipated. My deep involvement in Interfaith Alliance for the first eight years – I had never been political before. Bringing in 12 different congregations (including Korean Seventh Day Adventist, Romanian Pentecostal, Hispanic Evangelical, and Egyptian Coptic) to share our building – I had never shared a building with even one congregation. Leading our congregation to an Open and Affirming declaration – I had been sympathetic to gays in the church, but the issue had never been a pressing one in Omaha, NE. When Tent City4, a homeless encampment, was desperately looking for a new host, our congregation courageously stepped into the controversy and extended an invitation, providing a home for the camp for three months. Holy Humor Sunday! – What?? That’s what I said when a member suggested it. For five years it became one of our most popular, meaningful, and fun services of the year. The list goes on… Longest Night service. Blessing of the Animals. Elder Tales. Access Ramp. Congregational Folk Art. D-Min. studies. Hosting an Adult Respite Care Center. "Living the Questions," "Saving Jesus," "Opening the Boxes," and "The Phoenix Affirmations" - studies and worship in Progressive Christianity. Children’s Sabbath and a congregational partnership with Sibling House, a foster-care ministry for siblings. What will we accomplish as we join together in ministry? I don’t know yet. But as I live with you and hear your stories, the Spirit will speak… and I’ll listen.
Excerpts from Application Responses
Why Conference Ministry? Why now? Why Central Pacific?
The local church is the heart of ministry. Sunday school, youth group, and worship are all important building blocks in my faith. But my childhood experiences at church camp started me down the path to ordained ministry. From the beginning, the wider church has been part of my understanding of “covenant community.” As a young minister in my first call, I quickly became active in the Iowa Conference in education, camping, and youth ministry. I knew then that someday, I’d serve in Conference Ministry.
In 28+ years of ministry, I’ve participated extensively in the national UCC, three Conferences, two Associations, and the Association of United Church Educators. My attraction to Conference Ministry continued, but I also felt a deep commitment to local church ministry, and I was unwilling to balance travel obligations with family responsibilities. My family is my primary covenant. A pastor accomplishes little if the church is “successful” but the marriage is in shambles! Cindy and I celebrated 32 years of marriage on October 18th. Together we have raised three intelligent, creative, and
compassionate children. We are now in the empty-nest stage of life, and are ready for a new adventure/challenge. Now I’m free to fully enjoy and learn from the wider church, and share the wisdom I’ve gained in my ministry.
Why He Wants to be Our Conference Minister
I’m open to a call to Conference Ministry anywhere in the UCC, but the Central Pacific Conference has particular appeal. Both the conference and the churches fit my experience and passion. The majority of churches are pastoral sized. This presents challenges in terms of finances and people-power, but these churches are arguably the ideal size. A church is, above all else, a loving and affirming community, rooted in the love of God. In smaller churches, people can know and support each other. With the change in staffing, the CPC is now a pastoral sized conference. In a solo call, the minister needs to be a generalist. At one time or another in the churches I’ve served I’ve been called on to be a janitor, secretary, interior designer, youth guru, postal rate expert, general contractor, insurance negotiator, and pizza delivery man. That’s in addition to the expected roles of pastor, preacher, prophet, priest, performer, pundit… theologian, cheerleader, mediator, visionary, scholar, and CEO. You can add artist, storyteller, and actor to the list and you still won’t be finished. I have skills and experience to help meet the needs of the CPC. Your summary of the peace and justice passions of the churches of the CPC - Just Peace, O&A, and God is Still Speaking is impressive and appealing. It would be an honor to minister with them.
There is a close match between your needs/expectations and my person/skills. You are looking for a pastor, a communicator, a teacher, an effective administrator, a community builder, and a creative, prophetic, visionary leader. I offer you honesty, openness, faith, a pastor’s heart, experience, courage, vulnerability, dedication, vision, creativity, humility, and a healthy sense of humor! I will stand with the clergy and churches of the Conference to speak out against injustice. I will be a visible and supportive presence with the churches and clergy families of the Conference. I will tirelessly promote an understanding of Christian faith that transforms our whole lives, not just 10% of it, for stewardship. I will call churches and clergy to be creative and bold in their worship and their congregational life. I will work to weave the churches of the Conference into a whole cloth. As a teacher, I’ll encourage congregations to share their ministry with their wider communities in innovative, inviting and inclusive ways…. I’m excited to begin!
How would you encourage fully engaged volunteer participation both in time and tithe?
When I invite people to participate, my offer is always grounded in Paul’s image of the “Body of Christ” (I Corinthians 12:12-26). Paul’s metaphor can be understood at various levels. Each person is valued for his or her particular gifts. Each church is valued for its own gifts. We all make unique contributions to the whole. We don’t stand by ourselves. We are intimately interconnected. We need each other. No one else can contribute the perspective achieved from our experiences. We are the only one who can offer the unique collection of skills we have acquired in our lifetimes. To be “saved” is to know ourselves to belong, to be part of the whole. I’ve served rural congregations and know how easy it is to feel alone – our church against the world. The ministry of the Conference provides opportunities for individuals and churches to work together and experience being part of the Body. Participation is for the benefit of both the individual and the covenant community.
People are searching for intimacy and meaning. They want to connect with others and they want to do something to make the planet a better place. I continually remind people that we are partners in this journey of life. People are encouraged to participate by honest relationships and positive experiences. First, in my travels as Conference Minister, I would listen to what members of local congregations need to say. Second, I would celebrate their ministries – reminding them of the best of their own history. Third, I would call them into theological conversation, as partners in covenant. Our congregational polity often leads to an over-emphasis on autonomy and freedom. But Paul’s letter to the Corinthians reminds us that we are all part of a whole; the body of Christ. Covenant Community means both freedom and responsibility. Fourth, after watching and listening, I would invite people to contribute their unique gifts to the ministry of the Conference. It’s important to pay attention to people, to give them an opportunity to share their gifts, and to thank them for their efforts.
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