McNeeley to retire after tenure at First Baptist Church

In an oft-quoted verse from the gospel of Matthew, Christ promised to make two of his disciples "fishers of men."

After 32 years of answering that call in the ministry, retiring First Baptist Church Pastor Randy McNeely will soon be happy to have more time as a simple "fisher of fish."

After retirement ceremonies this weekend at the Greencastle church, McNeely and wife Pat will be moving to French Lick, a former place of residence and ministry, where they will get reacquainted with an old friend.

"We fished Patoka (Lake) long and hard when we wer down in that area and are looking forward to renewing that relationship with the lake," McNeely said of his retirement plans.

Before saying hello to French Lick, though, there is the matter of saying goodbye to their home of the last six-and-a-half years.

A retirement party is planned for 5:30 p.m. Saturday, May 28 in the fellowship hall of the church at 404 Judson Dr. A meal consisting of McNeely's favorite foods -- pulled pork and macaroni and cheese -- as well as a variety of salads, will be served.

There will also be a fun time to honor McNeely, although the pastor remains in the dark on the nature of the program.

"I don't know what they have planned," he said. "They've asked some strange questions and my fishing pole disappeared for a while."

The public is invited to say goodbye to the McNeelys at that time.

Additionally, a reception honoring Pastor McNeely on his last Sunday at First Baptist Church, will follow the 9:30 a.m. service on Sunday.

The service will be a special time for McNeely as he baptizes his granddaughter, receives special recognition and brings a message titled "Saying Goodbye."

The entire McNeely family will be in tow for the weekend -- two sons, six grandkids and two great-grandchildren, one of whom was born just last week.

The public is also invited to this and all First Baptist Church services.

When McNeely arrived in Greencastle in October 2009, he found a church grappling with the same issues many others do.

"Like most established, mainline churches, we've struggled to bring God's message to younger families in a way that appeals to them," McNeely said. "But it is something that we've managed to do."

One key has been making sure that services and programs are kid-friendly.

"We have become younger because I helped them to emphasize kids in our service," McNeely said. "We have something called the 'Box Kids' that the kids and adults love.

"When people come and see our desire to include the kids, that makes them feel comfortable with us."

Another way of engaging churchgoers of all ages is by being an active, outward-looking church. This has taken the form of mission trips to Costa Rica, trips to and support of Bacone College in Oklahoma and some more locally-focused efforts.

Every third week at First Baptist is Red Bag Sunday, in which church members leave non-perishable items out by their cars during service. The items are then picked up and taken to local pantries.

There is also the Brown Bag program, which helps meet the need for local kids in need of food on the weekend. Each week, 34 or 35 bags are filled to be sent home with local students in need.

Young people are doing the helping as well. Each year, a group of middle school and high school students travels to Indianapolis with backpacks full of cold weather gear to give to the homeless.

"We seem to be a group of people that always look for ways to help out other folks," McNeeley said.

While McNeely has certainly served as a leader, the big ideas haven't always originated with him.

"I don't have to be in charge," McNeely said. "I'm not threatened by an ideas they have and they're not threated by any ideas I have."

The approach is helpful to a congregation now in transition.

"They have thanked me for not being a micro manager," McNeely said. "They are healthy and ready to move forward even without leadership for a while.

"They are under control."

This fact is important, as American Baptist Church does not dictate such decisions to local congregations, giving them autonomy to choose their own leadership.

Two search committees have been at work in the church -- one to choose an interim pastor and another to choose a permanent replacement.

After announcing his intention to retire, McNeely gave the congregation a covenant of separation, establishing what he will and will not do upon retirement.

This includes not performing weddings or funerals for members of the Greencastle church, leaving those rites to the new minister.

"I will come back and be their friend but not their pastor," McNeely said.

Such a document forces the church and the retiring pastor to move forward.

"What a lot of people don't understand is that if they're continuing to call the pastor, that pastor cannot move on," McNeely said.

Additionally, by announcing his retirement several months ago, McNeely feels he and the congregation have had a chance to process their emotions.

"I think the announcement ahead of time has been a plus because we have had the mourning," he said. "We mourned together and now we're back in the celebration stage."