FAMILY - Vacancy pastor Joshua Skogen, his wife, Katie, and their children, Caleb (12), Micah (10), Lana (9), Nora (7), and twins Luke and Levi (3).
By BARB FINSETH
Staff Writer
Pastor Joshua Skogen began serving the Hartland and Manchester Evangelical Lutheran Churches as vacancy pastor at the beginning of August of this year. Previously, Pastor Shawn Stafford served for 10 years with the people of these two churches before leaving to fill a position as an assistant professor in the Religion Department at Bethany Lutheran College in Mankato.
In the Evangelical Churches, it is customary for a local pastor of their fellowship to serve a vacancy on a part-time basis until a full-time pastor is hired. Pastor Skogen is now serving as full-time pastor for Scarville and Center Lutheran congregations in Iowa. He has taken the responsibility to line up pastors or seminarians to cover each Sunday worship service for Hartland and Manchester. He also travels to Hartland to teach confirmation class, visit shut-ins, and provide personal pastoral care wherever it is needed.
Joshua and his wife, Katie, live in Scarville, Iowa with their six children, ages 12, 10, 9, 7, and identical twins three years old. In personal time, Joshua says he enjoys, "spending time with my family, visiting extended family, playing disc golf, and helping with the youth wrestling club in Lake Mills, Iowa.”
Joshua was born in Peru, but grew up on a dairy farm in rural Princeton, MN. When he was younger, some pastors began suggesting to Joshua that he should consider entering the ministry. Then he won the "future pastor" award at his church's youth camp, and, "That got me thinking about it. I love Christian doctrine and I care about the souls of others, so becoming a pastor seemed like a possible fit for me." With the encouragement of a pastor, he started his study in Greek and Hebrew in preparation for seminary.
In 2000, he earned an Associate of Arts degree at Bethany College, then continued his studies at Southwest Minnesota University, graduating with a Bachelor's degree in secondary education in mathematics. He worked for a few years before beginning his seminary education at Bethany Lutheran Theological Seminary, graduating in 2010 with a Masters of Divinity degree.
Pastor Skogen served churches in Waukon, Iowa and Portage, Indiana before accepting the call to serve as full-time pastor with the Scarville and Center Evangelical churches in 2018. He says it is now such a pleasure to be able to meet and serve the people of the Hartland and Manchester congregations while they search for a full-time pastor.
The Hartland and Manchester churches are a part of the Lutheran denomination affiliated with the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod. They practice a conservative, traditional liturgy.
Pastor Skogen expands on the Evangelical Church’s beliefs: "We believe that the Bible is God's Word, and we submit to it as being authoritative in all that it says. The worship services use the historic liturgy, which we have shared in our Christian Church through generations. It keeps us focused on Jesus Christ, who was crucified for our forgiveness and eternal salvation."