Life after Wycliffe
Paul Scuse
Labour Day 2024
After graduation and ordination my wife Betty and our infant daughter Erin and I moved to Oshawa where I was appointed as Assistant Curate at Christ Memorial Church under Don Beatty. It was a healthy church, and they had a tradition of a revolving door of Curates coming, staying for two years and leaving, so they accepted us when we arrived
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Some years prior to our arrival the entire church building burned to the ground, destroying everything. The congregation pulled together and rebuilt the building as well as rebuilding the nature of the ministry of the parish. So, we were the beneficiaries of a newly renovated worship space.
While we were there, the congregation became involved in a Renewal Ministry programmed headed by the Rev. Terry Fullam from Darien Connecticut. The congregation experienced new vitality.
While in Oshawa our second daughter, Jennifer, was born. It was a busy time for our family.
After two years in Oshawa, I was appointed as Incumbent of the Church of the Advent in the West end of Toronto, near Jane and St. Clair. Toronto West Deanery was overpopulated with Anglican churches. Each congregation was established in an era when the population was largely Anglo Saxon, but the area had changed ethnically. Each congregation had a remnant of faithful few who made it their mission to ensure that their congregation would not be the next to close. The Advent, like its neighbouring Anglican churches, was experiencing high anxiety.
The congregation was composed mostly of hard-working, blue collar, salt of the earth people who made an effort to have a positive influence in the neighbourhood, all the while knowing that it was unlikely that their neighbours would ever join the church.
Our son, Jason, was born while we were at the Advent.
After 5 years I was appointed as Incumbent at Christ Church Stouffville. The congregation was composed largely of middle management professionals, and I had to learn how to become the manager of the managers. There was a large lay ministry of Bible Study and prayer groups, which functioned on its own like a well-oiled machine. I became more of an overseer and advisor, supporting others in their ministry.
Over time, I found myself becoming discontent in parish ministry. By nature, I am one who wants to live by consensus, hoping that we can achieve a plan that everyone will eventually support. What I found instead was that every new plan or idea resulted in deep division. No matter how hard I strived for unity, I found there were always those who stood firmly opposed and were vocal in their opposition and threatened to leave the church and take half the congregation with them.
I engaged in a process of vocational testing to see if I was suited to ministry, or if there was a different calling that might suit my personality better. The result of the process was to consider a more intentional profession of clinical counselling.
After five years in Stouffville, I took a leave from the Diocese and moved with my wife and three children to Kitchener to attend training at The Interfaith Pastoral Counselling Center [which was affiliated with Wilfrid Laurier University]. In my first semester I was introduced to the book “Generation to Generation: Family Process in Church and Synagogue” by Edwin Friedman. It was a life-changing book for me. The first section of the book outlined the principles of Family System Theory, the second section applied the theory to the dynamics of church congregations, and the third section looked at the family life of the cleric and how to stay healthy in ministry. It helped me to understand and work through my previous experiences in ministry.
After completing the programme [and the supervised clinical experience which followed] I graduated with a Master of Theological Studies and Doctor of Ministry in counselling along with becoming a Registered Marriage and Family Therapist [with the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy], a Clinical Pastoral Education Specialist [with the Canadian Association for Pastoral Education] and a Certified Sex Therapist [with the Board of Examiners of Sex Therapists and Counsellors of Ontario].
While in Kitchener, we heard about interesting things happening at the church of our long-time friend Jeremy Sinnott. Betty and I went to investigate. It was the beginning of what was later referred to as The Toronto Blessing. Although we did not support everything we saw, we did discern that God was moving in a new and dramatic way and we became involved in the Prayer Ministry component of the church.
After graduating from Laurier, I was appointed as the half-time incumbent of St. John’s Oak Ridges and simultaneously opened a private practice in Marriage and Family Therapy. Although the church leadership, both Diocesan and congregational, said they were open and supportive of bi-vocational ministry, the reality felt as if they were saying: “Yes, please make money elsewhere so you can devote yourself to church ministry and be less of a financial drain on the congregation.”
While in Oak Ridges we ran two different but complementary video series: Alpha and The School of Healing Prayer [taught by Francis and Judith MacNutt]. Both courses had a significant impact on us and on the congregation.
After about seven years, the congregation of Oak Ridges was in a financial position to be able to afford full-time ministry again.
I was invited by fellow Wycliffe graduate and long-time friend Brian McVitty to join the staff at St. Paul’s on the Hill in Pickering as a half-time Pastoral Associate. Brian too had been involved in the Toronto Blessing, and our styles of ministry worked well together. Betty and I continued to run the School of Healing Prayer videos, and we also ran the Alpha Marriage Course and Parenting course.
During my time at Oak Ridges, I was invited to teach at Tyndale seminary in the Counselling Major and eventually became the Director of the programme which trained the next generation of Christian clinical counsellors.
For many years I was engaged in three half-time ministries: congregational, teaching, and private practice counselling. Eventually I had to start to cut back. I retired from congregational life, but the parish kindly offered to allow me to stay on as an honorary assistant and I continue to preach and celebrate Eucharist a few times per year. Some years later I retired from teaching at Tyndale. Now I continue, on a part-time basis, in the counselling practice. Over ten years ago Betty / Elizabeth graduated with her M.Div. [Counselling Major] from Tyndale and became certified as a Registered Psychotherapist and Registered Marriage and Family Therapist, so we often work together in co-therapy, providing couples with both a male and female perspective.
In my spare time, I have taken up the hobby of flying radio-controlled airplanes. Gravity and I have an endless battle: I try to keep the plane in the air, gravity tries to bring it down. When everything works well, it is an exhilarating feeling to be able to take off, circle, perform a loop and roll or two, and land safely. I fly both at a club field in Stouffville and on floats on the lake at our cottage. I have also become friends with a group of men that I would never have met otherwise.
We also spend time with our three kids and four grandchildren – all of whom bring us much delight. Erin and her family live in Saskatchewan, Jennifer and her family live in Minnesota, Jason and his wife live in Toronto.
Blessings,
Paul Scuse
34 Rose Way, Markham, Ontario. L3P 3V1
(905) 472-6303