Pastoral Leadership

Services

Sundays - 9:00 AM

Gethsemane Evangelical Lutheran Church Leadership

Gethsemane Evangelical Lutheran Church is blessed to have a leadership team who are truly dedicated to Christ and accomplishing His will. Following are brief bio's of our leadership team and their qualifications for ministry.

Gethsemane is in a time of transition as members have recently formed a Call Committee. Gethsemane members have been invited into a creative process to provide input regarding their hopes and dreams for new pastoral leadership. In the meantime, Pastors Rova and Holman are assuming all pastoral duties. “We are ‘patiently hopeful’ as we discern the Holy Spirit’s leadership for a new chapter of ministry,” says Pastor Mark.  Pastor Rova shares her enthusiasm. “The collaboration between the 3 Lutheran congregations, [Messiah, Our Savior’s and Gethsemane] for VBS, Confirmation, and other faith formation programs bring new opportunities for the Children, Youth, and Adults of the congregation.


Installed on Sunday, June 16, the pastors share the three-quarters time position. Both will lead worship, attend Church Council meetings, be active in visitation & counseling, and conduct pastoral acts such as weddings, funerals, new member’s classes, baptisms, etc. 

Specifically, Pastor Mark’s responsibilities will focus on Stewardship, Administration, and Inter-congregational collaboration.

Pastor Marion’s responsibilities will focus on Youth & Family Ministry, Adult Education as well as collaborative ministries with leaders of the Messiah and Our Savior’s congregations. 

Both pastors have already met with several of Gethsemane’s Ministry Teams, and they report, “the volunteers and elected leaders at Gethsemane are exceptional! 

Marion Rova

Interim Pastor

Originally from Comfrey, MN, Pastor Marion completed her undergraduate degree at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, with a BA degree in Elected Studies. As a teen-ager she sensed God was calling her to be a pastor. At that time, though, there were no women clergy in the Lutheran Church! Nevertheless, her Confirmation pastor and his wife encouraged her, giving her hope that “someday, the church would come to its senses!” She enrolled at Luther Northwestern Seminary, the predecessor body of Luther Seminary in St. Paul. She graduated from seminary in the same year her youngest child graduated from High School! She and her husband John, a former distinguished architect, live in Duluth. They have three sons, 7 grandchildren, and 3 great grand-children. 

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Originally from Comfrey, MN, Pastor Marion completed her undergraduate degree at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, with a BA degree in Elected Studies. As a teen-ager she sensed God was calling her to be a pastor. At that time, though, there were no women clergy in the Lutheran Church! Nevertheless, her Confirmation pastor and his wife encouraged her, giving her hope that “someday, the church would come to its senses!” She enrolled at Luther Northwestern Seminary, the predecessor body of Luther Seminary in St. Paul. She graduated from seminary in the same year her youngest child graduated from High School! She and her husband John, a former distinguished architect, live in Duluth. They have three sons, 7 grandchildren, and 3 great grand-children. 

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Mark Holman

Interim Pastor

Pastor Mark credits his upbringing in a fostering family in Minneapolis with his sensitivity to the needs of the disadvantaged, and his patience with unpredictable needs of a congregation in transition. He also graduated from the University of Minnesota in the Twin Cities, majoring in Sociology, then went to the Hamma School of Theology at Wittenberg University in Ohio. He sensed his calling was in the church from a young age. “I experienced the church as a place of nurture, stimulation, support, and care. As a youth, I was encouraged in the church, and I stayed involved.” Mark and his wife, Marcia, live in Duluth. Marcia is retired from a long career in Special Education with a focus on autism and behavioral issues.

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Pastor Mark credits his upbringing in a fostering family in Minneapolis with his sensitivity to the needs of the disadvantaged, and his patience with unpredictable needs of a congregation in transition. He also graduated from the University of Minnesota in the Twin Cities, majoring in Sociology, then went to the Hamma School of Theology at Wittenberg University in Ohio. He sensed his calling was in the church from a young age. “I experienced the church as a place of nurture, stimulation, support, and care. As a youth, I was encouraged in the church, and I stayed involved.” Mark and his wife, Marcia, live in Duluth. Marcia is retired from a long career in Special Education with a focus on autism and behavioral issues.

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