MOUNT VERNON — It was a calling, but it wasn’t always an easy one to answer.
Faith Lutheran Church Pastor Mark Wildermuth’s service began 41 years ago. He arrived in Mount Vernon in 1989, after being a pastor for churches in Indiana and Ohio. This church, located at 170 Mansfield Ave., was built in 1950.
In the ensuing 33 years, Wildermuth has fostered several relationships in a congregation he describes as very connected.
“This place is filled with great people,” Wildermuth said.
He pointed to the church’s support of the non-profit organization New Directions with its yearly rummage sale, and his work with Knox County Hospice among the myriad of service opportunities locally.
The church has faced its share of challenges, too.
Church membership, which numbered between 100 and 120 in-person before the COVID-19 pandemic, averages around the same numbers, counting people watching online today.
“Most statistics show church attendance has dramatically decreased for mainline churches,” the pastor said. “I think for a lot of people it has to do with so many options on a Sunday morning.
“It used to be church is the only option; now its sports, stores being open earlier, people working on Sundays that didn’t use to work on Sundays.”
Another problem is the declining birth rate, Wildermuth said. While the older generation is still very faithful, they’re not accompanied to church by their adult children, and their grandkids live in different communities.
But the question is, how to get people back into places of worship?
“I think we need to deepen the connection between their faith and their exercise of faith in worship,” he said. “To make worship engaging (we need to) find a relationship and strength for the weak that they can’t find anywhere else.”
For retirement, Wildermuth said 68 was always the number he had in mind. His goal was to still feel young and healthy enough to remain active.
“I think in many ways it’s time,” he said. “It wasn’t a bad goal to set.”
He doesn’t know who his successor will be, but the church will have an interim minister in November.
After Wildermuth’s last Sunday service in September, he’s going to miss the relationships he’s built for 33 years.
And his plans for Sundays after retirement?
“I have an open schedule,” Wildermuth said with a smile. “I don’t think I’ll sleep in.”
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