By Thomas C. Hanson
"I bring to the job understanding and appreciation for the incredibly difficult role of the field minister," said Dan Rogers, 47, who was appointed superintendent of U.S. ministers in April.
As superintendent Mr. Rogers is manager of the U.S. Church Administration staff in Pasadena, the regional pastors and the field ministry.
This involves long-range planning for the congregations and ministry, plans for the continual education and upgrading of the ministry, plans for producing healthy and enthusiastic congregations with a view toward evangelism, plus managing the day-to-day needs and questions of the field ministry.
Field ministers contact Mr. Rogers by electronic mail and by telephone. Typically he receives about 100 E-mail messages each morning, which he answers from his on-campus apartment before coming into the office.
"The field ministers need encouragement, and they need effective communication with and from headquarters," Mr. Rogers said. "The field ministry is an enormously demanding job. Maybe few people appreciate just how hard our field ministers work and how many sacrifices they have to make."
Mr. Rogers plans to visit church areas about once a month to stay in contact with members and ministers, and to keep in touch with what is going on in local churches.
"People in Pasadena often ask me: `Well, are you working harder now that you have moved to headquarters? Isn't this much harder than being a field minister?' My answer is: `No. Both are extremely difficult jobs. Both are physically, mentally and spiritually demanding. Both require long hours of hard work.' "
Mr. Rogers works closely with his Church Administration team: Richard Rice, manager of pastoral support; Gerald Schnarrenberger, who assists Mr. Rice in church planning, ministerial transfers, new hires and terminations; Ron Kelly, manager of pastoral development; and Carn Catherwood, who assists with special projects.
J. Michael Feazell, director of Church Administration, said: "Dan brings a wealth of practical experience to Church Administration: 26 years in the field ministry, with 24 of those years as a pastor in 10 church areas."
When asked about his reaction to the church's doctrinal changes, Mr. Rogers said: "I had questions about our previous understanding and felt that I saw serious flaws, in particular, the lack of focus on Jesus Christ. So when Mr. Tkach began teaching the new covenant, I was both relieved and excited about the new direction."
Mr. Rogers graduated from Ambassador College in Pasadena in 1970. He married Barbara Lynn Rand, June 6, 1970. They have three children: Christine, 25, and Christopher, 23, who remained in Georgia when Mr. and Mrs. Rogers moved to Pasadena; and Steven, 7.
Mr. and Mrs. Rogers have pastored churches in Atlanta, Rome and Buford, Georgia; Greensboro and Winston-Salem, North Carolina; Concord, New Hampshire; Montpelier, Vermont; and Augusta, Bangor and Portland, Maine. Mr. Rogers was an associate pastor in Boston and Springfield, Massachusetts; and an assistant pastor in Eugene, Oregon.
He was ordained a local elder in 1971, a preaching elder in 1972 and a pastor in 1988. Before returning to Pasadena in April, he served as regional pastor in Atlanta. He received a master's degree in theological studies from Emory University in Atlanta in 1995.
Mrs. Rogers works with children's ministry in the Pasadena congregation, including the softball and T-ball program for children.
To the church members Mr. Rogers said: "Having just come from the field ministry I think I have a deep appreciation for what is going on in the lives of our church members, as well as what is going on in the lives of our field ministers. My heart is continually with them, and they are in my prayers every day."
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