Father Rick Matters has announced that he will leave St. John's Episcopal Church in Lodi for Carmel in May. (Brian Feulner/News-Sentinel)

Going after 14 years

Episcopal priest Matters to leave Lodi for Carmel

In an announcement that shocked his parish, Father Rick Matters has said he is leaving St. John's Episcopal Church after 14 years and moving to Carmel.

"I have discerned that God is asking me to continue my ministry elsewhere," Matters said in a letter to his congregation.

Matters' final service at St. John's will be on May 13, Mother's Day. Then he will head for All Saints Episcopal Church in Carmel.

Matters, 56, stirred controversy within the San Joaquin Diocese for supporting the consecration of Gene Robinson, an openly gay priest, as bishop of the New Hampshire Diocese in 2003.

Matters' bishop, John-David Schofield, vehemently opposed Robinson's consecration and is now seeking to remove the San Joaquin Diocese from the Episcopal Church. Matters has been working equally hard to keep the San Joaquin Diocese intact and within the Episcopal Church organization.

Now he will head to the ocean, where he won't face a bishop who doesn't see eye-to-eye with him. In fact, the Diocese of El Camino Real is looking for a new bishop. The diocese serves Monterey, San Benito, Santa Cruz, Santa Clara and San Luis Obispo counties.

All Saints conducted a nationwide search for a priest before selecting Matters, said Nan Borreson, who chaired the parish's search committee. The committee was impressed with Matters' credentials, personal warmth, experience, intelligence and the ability to bring diverse groups together, Borreson said.

"We think we're lucky to get him," she said. "We really anticipate his arrival."

Jon Ledbetter, senior warden at St. John's, said that it's common for ministers to move on after a certain period of time. The average stay for a pastor in the Episcopal church is less than 10 years, and Matters has been at St. John's for 14, Ledbetter said.

"We are all understanding and excited for his opportunity," he added.

However, Matters said that many tears were shed during Sunday's services.

"The members of St. John's and I are grieving the anticipated separation," he said. "There is a lot of love, and that love and respect causes some grief. It's supposed to be painful because the sorrow is an expression of the love of Christ we share, one with the other.

Rick Matters' life and times

1950: Born in Spokane, Wash. He grew up in western Washington.
1963: Moved to Nigeria when his father accepted a position with the Ford Foundation.
1964: Attended a boarding school in Switzerland, returning home to Nigeria during vacations. He attended two Swiss schools over a five-year period.
1969: Began attending Whitworth College in Spokane.
1972: Married Andrea Matters.
1993: Became priest at St. John's Episcopal Church in Lodi. He previously served at parishes in Asheville, N.C., and Everett, Wash.
2003: Voted in favor of the consecration of Gene Robinson, an openly gay priest, as bishop of New Hampshire. He broke ranks with his own bishop, John-David Schofield, of the San Joaquin Diocese. Matters also co-founded Remain Episcopal, an organization dedicated to keeping the San Joaquin and other dioceses intact within the Episcopal Church. Schofield is attempting for the diocese to break ranks with the Episcopal Church over homosexuality and other issues.
2007: Announced he will leave St. John's and become rector of All Saints Episcopal Church in Carmel.
Source: Father Rick Matters.

Norm Mowery

Former Lodi pastor is happy in Carmel

Norm Mowery was pastor of Lodi's First United Methodist Church for 11 years before moving to a Methodist church in Carmel in 2003. He also served nine years on the Lodi Unified School District board and was one of the founders of the Breakthrough Project, which was formed by church and lay people after a cross burning at Tokay High School in 1998.
Mowery isn't as involved in community activities like he was in Lodi.
"I'm on couple of community boards and Rotary, but I'm focused more on my local church," he said.
"I love Carmel, and I love my parish," Mowery said Thursday. "What I tell people here is that (Carmel) is just different. It's not better; it's different, and I enjoy it. It's just a good time in my life and my ministry."
Because the Monterey Peninsula is an attractive weekend destination, many Methodist church members from Lodi have visited Mowery on Sunday mornings.
"For a long time, I had visitors from Lodi almost every week," Mowery said. "It's tapered off a little bit."
As much as he enjoys Church of the Wayfarer, Mowery hasn't forgotten his former roots.
"I will retire back in Lodi some day," Mowery said. "My heart is still in Lodi."
However, retirement remains five or 10 years away from retirement. Mowery plans to remain in the ministry as long as he is positive and enthusiastic about it.
— News-Sentinel staff.

"It's like when a loved one dies," Matters said. "The hurt, that lump in the throat, is because we love that person."

Like many pastors, Matters said God inspired his decision to move.

"I really understood that my calling in Lodi ended in the middle of 2003," Matters said.

His main calling, in addition to the traditional role of leading his congregation spiritually, was to increase the church's membership from the time Matters came to St. John's in 1993. The small, historic chapel was at Locust Street and Lee Avenue at the time, and there wasn't enough space to fulfill its needs. In 2001, the small chapel was trucked across town to Lower Sacramento Road, where it lies behind a larger, modern sanctuary.

By 2003, Matters had achieved the goals of getting the new church built and expanding its membership. God had told him his work was done at St. John's, but then told Matters he should stay put after all.

Matters stayed in Lodi in an effort to unify the Episcopal Church at the national and diocese levels. He co-founded an organization called Remain Episcopal in an effort to keep churches like St. John's in the San Joaquin Diocese instead of seceding.

But last summer, Matters said God's message changed. One day, he felt God lifting his hands from Matters' chest and releasing him from the calling to unify the church.

Then a friend nominated Matters for the All Saints position without his permission. He was recently accepted by All Saints.

Matters said he's using his faith in God to know he's making the right decision to leave St. John's.

"It's a statement of faith, not a fact like two plus two equals four," he said.

Matters will be reunited with Norm Mowery, former pastor at Lodi's First United Methodist Church, who has been at Church of the Wayfarer for almost four years. The two will be only two blocks apart.

"He was my best friend in Lodi," Mowery said. "We got together regularly for prayer."

Mowery has nothing but praise for Matters.

"He has a deep sense of spiritually," Mowery said. "He's taken some strong stands with his bishop. I think Rick has it all together on that, standing for social involvement, but growth out of a heart that is passionate about Christ."

Matters said his main challenge in Carmel is more spiritual.

"It's a strong and healthy congregation," he said. "They need spiritual revitalization. God is still calling me to some kind of leadership in the larger church. I'm not sure what that is."

Matters will resign from Remain Episcopal when he moves to Carmel, but he will support the organization in prayer. He also regrets having to resign from Lodi's Breakthrough Project and the Ethics Committee at Lodi Memorial Hospital.

Matters' wife, Andrea, taught art at Joe Serna Charter School. They have three children ranging in age from 22 to 29. All three live on the East Coast.

Contact reporter Ross Farrow at rossf@lodinews.com.