Pastor Eric Reimer — Build relationships and spread love

Eric Reimer is a pastor who tweets.

He is the new pastor at St. John’s Evangelical Lutheran Church in Altamont. “The word of God …,” said Reimer, “needs to be proclaimed wherever people are. The Lutheran movement itself exists largely because of changes in the way people communicate.”

Martin Luther’s ideas in the 1500s had been expressed before by other theologians, but Luther was able to print them and distribute them quickly before they could be repressed, said Reimer, leading to the Protestant Reformation.

“And then once his ideas were out there, he took advantage of things like using woodcuts to make interesting illustrations to accompany his catechism, so Christian teachings and instructions would hold people’s attention,” Reimer said.

Luther was also an advocate of translating the scriptures from Latin into languages people spoke and could easily understand.

Whether it’s on Twitter or Facebook, Reimer said, the church should be where “God’s people are.” He went on, “And so whenever there are ways to advocate for peace or to care for one another or to love our neighbor, the church should show up and proclaim that.”

In his job as a pastor, Reimer says on this week’s Enterprise podcast, “A lot of what I do is creative.” This includes writing sermons and inventing fresh approaches to Bible study. 

His job also involves relationships, providing spiritual care in homes and hospitals. This has been complicated by COVID-19 restrictions, Reimer said, and some of his congregants he has met only through screens.

As a teenager, Reimer worked at a Lutheran summer camp — and continued to work there for seven summers. One of the things that attracted him to Altamont was its proximity to the Adirondacks. 

He floundered when he first went to college, Reimer said, but was grounded by his desire to return to work at the Lutheran summer camp. “Being there for others … was what I was called to do,” he said.

He discerned his call to the ministry at the camp, Reimer said, as he likened being a pastor to being a counselor for life. He described his work as a lifelong cycle of sharing joys and sorrows with a group of people.

The outdoor aspects of the camp, like hiking on the Appalachian Trail, he added, reinforced the importance of working together and caused intense bonding.

Being there for others, as Reimer put it, sometimes involves people you don’t even know. 

As the Thanksgiving holiday approaches, Reimer closed with a challenge.

“It’s always appropriate to give thanks,” he said. “And whether you’re a Christian or not, I think we can all benefit from the act of actively giving thanks and looking for things to be thankful for.”

Reimer challenged podcast listeners “to spend the week looking for different reasons to be thankful … to have gratitude. And I will then challenge you to find new ways to express that gratitude to others. And to help build relationships and spread love.”

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