LYALL COMMUNITY CHURCH

The Reverend Thomas W. Fiet joined us in January 2015.  He is a native of Fruitland Township, near Lake Michigan.  He is a graduate of Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Michigan and holds a Master’s degree in Divinity from Western Theological Seminary, located in Holland, Michigan. 

 

As a Fellow from Western Seminary, our pastor also attended the Vrije Universiteit in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, studying New Testament theology and the theologian, Karl Barth, as well as interning at The English Reformed Church, an international congregation in the heart of Amsterdam.

 

From Amsterdam, our pastor has served churches in California, (The Crystal Cathedral), and here in the Hudson Valley (The Reformed Church at Hyde Park, and Pleasant Plains Presbyterian Church).

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"I believe Jesus to be the Christ, the Lord, The Messiah of God.  But the more I consider his life, the stranger and more confounding he becomes.  He will love the poor, he challenged the rich and powerful to be and do better, he will forgive the unforgivable, he will restore those who are altogether destroyed. Nothing is impossible for this Jesus-nothing, no cross intimidates him. I find it terribly challenging trying to keep up with him in terms of my own world-view and actions.  After all these years trying to follow him, I still find myself shaking my head in wonder.  Even so, we declare that anyone who would want a bigger life, anyone who would have their pain turned to something beautiful, then Jesus will help make the transformation happen.  It is that simple.  As the pastor of this remarkable congregation, we endeavor to build a community where such encounters are possible, and where making our lives something beautiful and satisfying is our reason for being.  There is a great deal going on here at Lyall and plenty of room for everyone to discover and work out their own calling."

 

Pastor Thom loves to read, walk, cook and considers himself a humbled fly fisherman and has done a little publishing. 

 

Click Our Philosophy if you would like to see how we understand the history of the Christian Church, and where we see Lyall Church in relation to it.