Welcoming Rev. Dr. Julia Wharff Piermont
Dear Christ Church Congregation,
After reviewing over 90 candidates, it was with great JOY and excitement that the Pastor Nominating Committee, enthusiastically and unanimously nominated Rev. Dr. Julia Wharff Piermont to the congregation, to be our next pastor at Christ Church of Longboat Key. Julia is a spiritual leader, and Jesus is at the center of Julia’s faith and teaching. She is committed to our tradition of mission and the beauty of our worship service here at Christ Church.
The JOY and excitement continued on Sunday August 13, 2023 when Pastor Julia led our church in worship service, and was then overwhelmingly elected to be our first full-time installed pastor at Christ Church of Longboat Key at the Congregational meeting immediately following worship service.
An exciting moment for a church not yet 20 years old, and one filled with optimism and hope, as we collectively “Grow in Jesus’ Name.”
Pastor Julia and her husband Dennis H. Piermont plan to relocate to Longboat Key from Dublin, OH in early November. Pastor Julia’s first Sunday worship service as Pastor of Christ Church is scheduled for December 3, 2023.
Julia comes to us from Worthington Presbyterian Church in Worthington Ohio, a large church with a rich 200-year history, where she was Head Pastor for the last 9 years. She completed her Doctorate at Princeton Theological Seminary, her Masters at McCormick Theological Seminary in Chicago, and a Bachelors in Music, magna cum laude, at Luther College, Iowa. She is married to Dennis H. Piermont, whom we were thrilled to meet, and look forward to getting to know better. We pray for much love, joy and happiness for Julia and Dennis as they plan to join their new family at Christ Church. We are so blessed that Julia has accepted our call.
God has been in charge of this process from the beginning, and He has truly been in our midst as we have traveled on this spiritual journey, both personally and as a committee.
In Julia’s own words….
When the PNC asked me to describe my sense of call to Christ Church, I said, “Christ Church is not a cookie-cutter church, and I am not a cookie-cutter pastor.” From your founding in a passion to be more faithful to Christ, to your enthusiastic generosity in building a beautiful church, to your joyful care for one another, to your energetic pursuit to serve others in Christ’s name, you show how—shaped by God’s Word and trusting God’s Spirit to quicken your imagination and actions—you think for yourselves. That’s how I try to be in ministry: nourishing a biblically-shaped imagination through prayer and study, staying alert for opportunities to join Christ’s redeeming work in the world, and finding nimble ways to respond. To me this expresses what it means to bear much fruit by abiding in Christ (John 15:5). With great delight, I look forward to serving as your pastor, that together we may love one another as Christ loves us and declare God’s steadfast love to the world.
and in the words of others….
During the period of both pandemic and political discord, Julia encouraged us to recommit to the future. Citing Eugene Peterson, she recounted God’s direction to Jeremiah to purchase land around Jerusalem after it had been conquered by the Babylonians. “(I shall) plant them in this land with all my heart and soul.”
Member, Worthington Presbyterian
I could not be happier. In every aspect. I would make her an offer yesterday. A beautiful people person.
Robert S. Romanski, Director of Music, Christ Church
Getting to know Julia through her sermons, her prayers and finally in person has been a most joyful experience.
Judy Ebrahim, PNC Christ Church
Simply put, Julia has a way of making the Biblical message come alive and be real and relatable in our lives, which can often be challenging in this day and age.
Member, Worthington Presbyterian
With a quality like King Solomon, Julia brilliantly walks the tightrope of moving the church to a new and better place while still respecting the needs of the congregation.
Member, Worthington Presbyterian
Praise God for calling Julia to Christ Church. She is absolutely the right pastor for us at this time.
Karen Fors, PNC Christ Church
My first impression, when watching her sermons on line, was to notice the quiet joy she brings to the pulpit mixed with a blend of theology and day to day application. When she shared what she was looking for in her next calling, it had so many similarities to what we were looking for in our new pastor. Thank you, Lord.
Steve Bergman, PNC Christ Church
Julia’s incandescent sermons tremendously strengthen not only one’s faith but also raise one’s understanding of the relationship between personal faith and generosity.
Member, Worthington Presbyterian
Dr. Julia has a long and successful history of Biblical teaching, Presyterian Church leadership, Mission Outreach and Community engagement.
It has been an honor for each of us on the Pastor Nominating Committee to have been selected by you to serve for the last several months. We very much appreciate your trust and your prayers. We were hard at work during this time meeting weekly, both in person and via Zoom. We reached out in various ways to publicize our pastor search: created and posted our Ministry Information Form on the PCUSA Church Leadership Connection website, sent numerous e-blasts to the congregation members requesting your recommendations, created a stand-alone “Pastor-in-Paradise” website, sent over 900 letters to churches around the country and made numerous phone calls to individual churches requesting recommendations. Collectively, we viewed over 2,500 hours of online sermons, blog postings and other online resources. We conducted in-depth Zoom interviews, contacted numerous personal and professional references and prayed collectively and individually.
All of us believe that God has certainly guided and blessed our work; culminating in our joyful and successful connection with Julia.
We look forward to Julia’s new role as full-time Pastor for Christ Church of Longboat Key and know the Christ Church family will welcome Julia and Dennis with open arms and hearts as they join our church and our community.
Christ Church Rejoice!
Your Pastor Nominating Committee,
Steve Bergman, Judy Ebrahim, Karen Fors, Jerry Fox, Barbara Liggett, Susan Stuckert, Bill Wartinbee, Michael Chester (Chair)