Rev. Brown celebrates 50th anniversary of ordination

LETHBRIDGE, Alta. – Rev. Richard Brown recently celebrated the 50th anniversary of his ordination quietly with a gathering of congregants of Immanuel Lutheran Church, where he is currently a member. His ordination took place on July 1, 1973, at Christ Lutheran Church (Craig, Alberta) with Rev. Bill Kronen serving as liturgist, Rev. Ken Rodeman preaching, and Rev. Paul Hein presiding over the rite of ordination. 

One week later, Rev. Brown and his wife, Linnea (née Witte), travelled to Kamsack, Saskatchewan, where he was installed in his first parish, a federated parish consisting of congregations in Kamsack, Stornoway, and Togo. On arriving at Peace Lutheran Church in Kamsack after conducting services in Stornoway and Togo on the first Sunday after installation, a young boy was overheard asking his mother as Rev. Brown strode the sacristy to vest for the service: “Is that the brown pastor?”  

The three-point parish served as an ideal training ground for an inexperienced, young, idealistic pastor who went on to serve Zion Lutheran Church in Melville, Lord of Life Lutheran Church in Kamloops, and Immanuel Lutheran Church in Lethbridge. He also served vacancies in Grenfell, Springside, Yorkton, and Neudorf, Saskatchewan, as well as Good Shepherd in Kamloops, B.C., and an interim ministry at Shepherd of the Valley in Salmon Arm after retirement.  

He may be the first pastor to bring a live donkey into church as an object lesson for a children’s sermon on Palm Sunday. 

During just over 40 years of active ministry, Rev. Brown had the opportunity to supervise and mentor four vicars and one DPS intern. He helped guide two congregations through building programs, and is a graduate of Clown College. He may be the first pastor to bring a live donkey into church as an object lesson for a children’s sermon on Palm Sunday. 

Reflecting on his ministry with those gathering to celebrate his anniversary, Rev. Brown displayed a chalice that is part of a set of communion ware that was commissioned by Lord of Life in Kamloops for the dedication of their new church building.  

During the firing, the cup became misaligned from the pedestal, and Rev. Brown shared that he kept that chalice as a reminder that “We have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us” (2 Corinthians 4:7). We are all imperfect, flawed individuals, yet God can use even a shy, introverted farm kid as a vessel for the treasure of His Gospel which is then shared at the baptismal font, at the marriage altar, from the pulpit, at the hospital bedside, and at the open grave—a Gospel which promises and delivers forgiveness, life, and salvation. 

Rev. Richard Brown 

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