Pastor looks back at 10 years

The Rev. Susan Dorward, of the Brookdale Reformed Church, celebrated her 10th anniversary as its pastor July 1.

On Sunday, Sept. 22, on a Zoom call, together with a member of her congregation, Marjorie Tiedemann, she shared thoughts about her Bloomfield experience with this newspaper.

Dorward was chaplain for the Eastern Christian Children’s Retreat, in Wyckoff, but God, she said, informed her she was going to Bloomfield.

She started at Brookdale as a “pulpit supply,” a substitute that would fill-in for the occasional service. At first, she was uncertain she would take the job as a substitute
because she wanted her own church and Brookdale had a pastor. So, Dorward made a list of signs she wanted from God to convince her and one thing she wanted was a church with a red door. Brookdale Reformed, when she finally saw it, but before taking the job, had a door recently repainted red for a TV commercial.

“But I was a little bit snarky and said to God that they already had a pastor,” she said.

But, according to Dorward, the Holy Spirit spoke assuring words, telling her she would be its pastor. Thirty days later, the Rev. Scarlet Gordon, the Brookdale pastor,
retired.

“When Scarlet announced her retirement, the congregation started praying for a shepard,” said Tiedemann, a church member for 37 years. “We were fine, but within ourselves. When Susan came, everything changed. We spread the light. Before, we were more solitary. Susan got us involved with Muslim and Jewish groups. It’s been an expanding experience.”

Dorward said she did not come to Brookdale Reformed with any plans in mind.

“I wanted to get to know the people first,” she said. “Once I got settled, I thought it was a family within the church walls, but had to expand.”

One church member suggested they give free bottled water to people in the park. After three years, the church was distributing four to five cases a week.

“It opened up people’s eyes to go out and help others,” Dorward said. “It’s not always getting people inside the church, but being the hands of God. It’s difficult, but you have to do it. We’re in this together, the congregation and me. Jesus is not the Lone Ranger.”

Her difficulties being a pastor, she said, is keeping her flock together and preaching so that she is understood.

“You can take up an entire newspaper writing about the difficulties,” she said. “My work is 24/7, 365.”

Even when on vacation, Dorward is busy orchestrating people to visit others in need. She speaks of her professional difficulties to several people, some are members of her church and two other pastors.

As for the size of the congregation, if everyone came at the same time, she said there would be 42 people. When she arrived, there were about 25.

“It’s like any family,” Tiedemann said. “You have losses and gains. We try to embrace people without overwhelming them.”

Before Dorward arrived, Tiedemann was thinking of finding a new church.

“But the doors opened up and light started to shine when Susan came,” she said. “Angels started filling the church. That’s how I felt. Susan is attuned to God and she’s patient.”

Dorward said the mark of a good pastor is to listen to the congregation and to God.

“I’m not here for myself,” she said. “We’re here to be Christ’s hands. You read a Scripture and you feel God wants you to preach on it. It’s very intuitive. With prayer, we have to figure things out. The best way is through Scriptures.”

She has expanded church activities. There is a labyrinth, used for meditation, that is rolled out in the large Fellowship Hall; a food pantry; the Blessing of the Animals, the monthly Good News Cafe and a Blue Christmas Service for people experiencing loss, among other activities. On Saturday, Sept. 28, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., the church will have a Rummage Sale; rain date, Oct. 5. On Oct. 6, at 12:30 p.m., there will be a prayer service to discuss what people could do for the nation.

“We’ve gotten a few new members from the Rummage Sale,” Dorward said. “Everything we do has to do with outreach.”

But the pastor of the Brookdale Reformed Church said she presently has no plans for the future.

“God hasn’t told us yet about the future,” Dorward said. “It’s step by step, week to week, day to day.”

The Brookdale Reformed Church is located at 16 Bellevue Ave.

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