The Rev. Dr. David C. Fisher, Senior Minister of Plymouth Church, has announced his retirement from the historic Brooklyn Heights locale. He has been in the pulpit for 43 years, with nine years at Plymouth (75 Hicks Street). Rev. Al Bunis will serve as interim Senior Minister beginning October 1, following Rev. Fisher’s retirement at the end of September.
The church offers additional details:
Rev. Fisher’s noteworthy tenure at Plymouth, the historic Congregational Church in Brooklyn Heights, began in August 2004, with his formal installation as Plymouth’s tenth
Settled Minister on January 10, 2005. He is scheduled to depart from Plymouth September 30.
The nine years of Rev. Fisher’s ministry at Plymouth Church have been a time of growth and maturation—in membership, programs and mission. According to Sandra Deming, President of the Plymouth Council, “Rev. Fisher’s unique gifts of teaching and preaching have opened the eyes, hearts and hands of many, and led this congregation on a journey of spiritual growth. Thanks to David, we are a more engaged and active church today, fulfilling our mission to serve God in this world.”
In a related announcement, Plymouth Council, the church’s leadership committee, has initiated plans for the transition, naming Rev. Al Bunis as interim Senior Minister, effective October 1. Rev. Bunis, a member of Plymouth with his family since 1999, joined the ministerial staff in 2010. “It has been an honor to work so closely with David these past few years,” Rev. Bunis notes. “Under his leadership, Plymouth has thrived in so many ways, and set such a strong foundation for the future.”
The Rev. Dr. David C. Fisher has been a parish pastor for 43 years. After graduating from seminary, he learned the pastoral craft in a decade of ministry in rural America. For two decades, he served as Senior Minister at two of the largest and most prestigious Congregational churches in America: Park Street Church in Boston and Colonial Church in Edina, Minn. A graduate of Bryan College and Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, Rev. Fisher earned his Ph.D. in New Testament Interpretation at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.
He has also done additional graduate studies at Hebrew Union College and Indiana University. His academic specialty is the Jewish background of early Christianity. He has served as Instructor of New Testament at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and as Adjunct Professor of New Testament at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary.
Rev. Fisher’s many years in pastoral ministry have honed a deep interest in the theology and practice of the Christian ministry. He is a frequent speaker at clergy and denominational gatherings and has written numerous articles and a book, The Twenty-First Century Pastor: A Vision Based on the Apostle Paul (Zondervan, 1996). He also has a lifelong interest in preaching and the craft of preaching. In 2001, he served as a Fellow of the College of Preachers at the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C., where he did research and writing on the New Homiletic.
The son of a pastor, Rev. Fisher and his wife, Gloria, have three grown children and six grandchildren.
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