Gale Presbyterian Church has finally welcomed a new minister, after more than a year without following the retirement of longtime pastor Linda Bell, who retired after the move to a new building in Elmira.
Rev. Scott Sinclair joins the church from a long line of ministers, including his father, grandfather, and several uncles.
![Rev. Scott Sinclair is settling into his new role at Gale Presbyterian Church after years of ministerial work in Port Dover, Owen Sound and Ottawa.[Whitney Neilson / The Observer]](https://www.observerxtra.com/content/images/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/post-galechurch.jpg)
He said he wanted to be a minister since he was young, but pursued other career paths before turning to ministry.
Sinclair has a bachelor’s degree in wildlife biology from the University of Guelph and bachelor’s of education from the University of Toronto. He didn’t end up working in either field, instead spending his working life doing construction.
He knew it was time to get into ministry when he was in his early 30s and lacking inspiration. While deconstructing a barn, the structure fell down, and his co-worker disappeared from sight.
“I was so afraid that the guy died, that I’d just dropped a barn on him,” Sinclair said. “I called out his name several times, and not getting a response, and scared to death to get closer to the barn to find out. He just pops up from the back of the barn on top of the rubble. Even though there was no real calamity, I looked at myself and thought ‘I don’t want to do this anymore.’”
The next day he went down to Knox College to find out how he could start his ministry training.
His first stint as a minster was in Hagersville and Port Dover. He then moved to Owen Sound to preach for 12 years. After that it was off to Ottawa for three years. He said Elmira seemed like the right fit for him and his wife, as they wanted to be closer to their elderly parents.
Sinclair has two grown children – a daughter who’s a musician in Ottawa, and a son teaching English in South Korea.
He said he doesn’t have any specific goals set for his ministry in Elmira, but as with all his prior experience, he aims to improve the lives of his congregation physically and spiritually.
“We investigated Gale Presbyterian Church during its vacancy and felt that Elmira as a community and Gale as a church were a good fit, would certainly enjoy living here and serving here.”
He also worked as the director of Camp Kintail at Lake Huron, a camp that Gale is an active supporter of.
Sinclair’s definition of a good church is one that has some impact on the community around it. He said it will take awhile for him to know what sort of ministry and mission Gale can be in Elmira.
“I do hope that this church can sort of become a place of spiritual growth and nurture for anybody in the community.”
A typical church service involves prayers and hymns about being together in the presence of God, proclamation of the word, and prayers and songs about what they can do in missions for the world.
He commends Gale for its ability to blend the traditional music of the church with contemporary Christian music. The church has two choirs, one which focuses on traditional choral music, and then a band.
“Where I find real fulfillment in ministry is when I’m interacting with people,” Sinclair said. “The church service on Sunday morning is one thing. I get much more fulfillment when someone comes in the office and wants to talk one to one.”
He’d also like to put his gardening and forestry background to good use. The idea of using some of the outdoor space as a meditative place for people to come when the church doors are closed intrigues him.
Sinclair notes that he thinks all ministers should have a turning point in their life, not necessarily before they become a minister. His was doing the pilgrimage of El Camino de Santiago de Compostella, an 800-kilometre walking tour across Spain.
“It’s a pilgrimage route that has been in place since the 9th century,” Sinclair said. “I undertook that pilgrimage back in 2008 and I would say that was probably the most significant spiritual experience of my life.”
Sinclair started his ministry in early August and had his official induction at a service on August 10.
“I did most of my growing up in Guelph, so coming to Elmira was sort of like coming home.”
