Pastor Ernie Farrar stands in the aisle between the pews of the New Harbor United Methodist Church on Thursday, Sept. 5. Farrar has returned to the congregation after 17 years of serving in other churches and communities in New England. (Johnathan Riley photo)
The New Harbor Methodist Church saw a familiar face return to its pulpit as Ernest “Ernie” Farrar rejoined the congregation earlier this summer.
While it’s unusual for a pastor to return to a Methodist church they have already served, Farrar said the Methodist placement system identified him as a good fit for the needs of the New Harbor Methodist Church community again after the departure of Pastor Kelly Harvell at the end of June. He will split his time between the New Harbor church and Bath United Methodist Church.
“Usually it’s just you’ve kind of done that and let’s send you onto a fresh challenge. You learn things from doing stuff in different places,” he said.
Farrar said the system the Methodist church uses to assign pastors is based on assessments of church goers, the pastor, and community need.
“In our system, the Methodists are assigned to places, so we can be called any particular year to go wherever,” he said. “So being here for 10 years was a pretty good stint.”
Farrar originally held the post for 10 years, leaving in 2007 after his sons graduated from high school. He said it felt right to step aside and offer to go somewhere else at the time.
“At the end of it, I said, ‘Yeah, all the boys have graduated, it might be time to let somebody else come in with different talents and me to go try my wings somewhere else,’” he said. “I’ve offered what I have to offer here, I’ll step aside from here.”
He spent the last 17 years around New England, spending five years in Middleboro, Mass., one year in Presque Isle, four in Wayne, and most recently seven years in Lunenburg, Mass. before returning to New Harbor.
Farrar said to aid his acclimation process of being back in the area, he’s already visited the Maine Department of Motor Vehicles to receive his Maine plates and gone to Moody’s Diner in Waldoboro.
Being back in the community, Farrar said he’s looking to get involved again in a way that falls outside of the church.
“I’m trying to see what ways I can bridge into the community and what kind of ways beyond the walls of the building and help the people of the parish do the same thing,” Farrar said.
During Farrar’s first 10-year stint, he coached soccer at Bristol Consolidated School for eight years and volunteered a few days a week to help with wrestling practice at Lincoln Academy.
Getting into the community and being an active participant reflects Farrar’s ideas what was effective of Jesus’ teachings.
“The basics of Jesus’ life was he went to a few synagogue but most of the stuff you read about him, he’s out on the fields on the shoreline, he’s wherever people are,” Farrar said. “I really think that’s the ultimate of what church is about: to be there where the people are, where you discover where the hurts and hopes are and you do what you can to respond that.”
The New Harbor United Methodist Church, at 6 Southside Road, hosts worship services at 9 a.m. on Sunday. For more information, call 677-0180 or email newharborumcmaine@gmail.com.
