HomeMy WebLinkAbout28th Huron Pioneer Thresher Reunion, 1989-09-06, Page 9THE CITIZEN. WEDNESDAY. SEPTEMBER 6. 1989. PACE A-y.
Gospel clowns present magical service
BY USA BOONSTOPPEL
Imagine a clown doing magic tricks on
Sunday morning in your church. Envision a
chemical explosion describing a well-
known verse from the Bible, or contem
plate a light show reflecting the love of the
Lord to your church congregation. These
are some of the ways that Larry and
Rosemary Sitchert of Windsor present the
Word of God and they will be conducting
the Interdenominational Church Service on
September 10 at the Huron Pioneer
Thresher’s Reunion.
“We have an unusual type of ministry,”
said Mrs. Sitchert of the non-profit Gospel
and In-o-scenefelt Association. “We don’t
get up and preach like a minister but we do
different things like use puppets, light
shows and chemical magic.”
The Sitchert’s presented a Sunday
Service last year which was the first service
to be held here in about 12 years. Marian
Hallahan, secretary of the Thresher’s
Association said that there used to be
services with either a minister or a priest
but the service was phased out when the
popularity of the step-dancing competition
required extra time on Sunday. Then two
years ago, explained Mrs. Hallahan, a man
by the name of Dave Shittick started
playing some gospel music and a lot of
people started to gather around. This got
the Thresher board activated towards the
idea of bringing back the service and the
Sitchert’s were approached to conduct it.
The Sitchert’s are a travelling pair so the
drive to Blyth isn’t a problem for these
people who have travelled all over Ontario
and many of the provinces with their
message.
“We are travelling gospel clowns,” said
Mrs. Sitchert who said they go from church
to church spreading the Word of God
dressed up as clowns. “I’m Button, my
husband is Bows and my mother (who
sometimes joins them) is Sparkles.”
Although some people are very surpris
ed over the clowns outfits, the couple
usually get a very favourable reaction from
the crowds. “When some people hear that
a clown is coming to present the service, it
rubs them the wrong way, but once they
hear us, they usually change their mind
and ask us back,” said Mrs. Sitchert.
The idea for a clown ministry came to
Mrs. Sitchert after she watched a clown do
much the same thing as she does now.
“When I sat there, I felt God come into my
heart and watching the clown, I saw the
potential of the idea. ” She admitted that as
a teenager, she had grown up in a church
and ministered in various areas of the
church using visual aids and it sort of grew.
Now, she finds their ministry very
fulfilling. “It’s a commitment to Christ and
Clown and cutie
The pair started their own organization
(Gospel and ln-o-scenefelt) in 1972 and
have several people on the board. They are
also members of the Fellowship of Chris
tian Magicians and Clowns of America
which is an organization of former profes
sional musicians that converted to Christ.
“Some went out of magic but it was in their
heart and soul so they tried to find ways to
combine the magic and their newfound
faith in Christ,” explained Mrs. Sitchert.
Although it is a strange way to
communicate the word of God, the Sit
chert’s deliver the religious message to
people across Canada. Last year, the
46-year-old Sitcherts used chemical magic
to enhance the verse ‘Though your sins be
as scarlet, they shall be white as snow’
though they be red as crimson, shall be
white as wool,’ to a good crowd at the
Thresher’s Reunion. “The service caught
them unawares at first but it wasn’t a bad
crowd,” said Mrs. Sitchert.
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Welcome
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Getting the audience involved in their
magical services is one of the ways that
the non-profit Gospel and In-Scenefelt
Association presents their unusual
ministry. Rosemary Sitchert is the
clown who travels with her husband
Larry presenting the gospel in a unique
manner. They will be conducting the
Interdenominational church service at
the Thresher’s Reunion this year.
he is satisfied when we do His will.” They
are non-denominational preachers even
though they personally belong to the
Pentecostal Church. “God never called us
to indoctrinate but to share his love with
others. Because he showed his love to us,
we want to show his love to others,” said
Mrs. Sitchert.
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Mennonites admired
Continued from page A-8
Mr. Fine admits that the Mennonites
compassion and help allow him to manage
his farm. The selflessness of these reli
gious people is truly amazing. On thresh
ing day, one of the men helping Mr. Fine
was Ben Deurksen, who still had five loads
of his own wheat to thresh. But he
travelled the long distance from Belmore to
Mr. Fine’s place to help him get his crop
in. Mr. Fine said that Mr. Deurksen would
rather lose his five loads of wheat than see
Mr. Fine lose all that he had.
“What a philosophy,” said Mr. Fine.
“Most people would see that they got
their’s done first.”
On stooking day, Mr. Martin also made
the trip with a few of his sons to help Mr.
Fine. Mr. Martin made the time to help a
fellow man out. What is amazing is that
Mr. Fine isn’t even a true Mennonite. In
his early days, Mr. Fine got divorced and
this act means he can never become a
member of the Mennonite church in
Belmore. Yet these people treat him like a
brother. Mr. Fine does worship with the
congregation every Sunday.
It is because of their beliefs and
community closeness that lead the Menno
nites and Mr. Fine to farm the old-fashion
ed way. “The old way of farming requires
working together. You can’t argue with
your neighbour because you need each
other,” said Mr. Martin who is also an
elder of the church.
The Mennonites and Mr. Fine forsake
automobiles and machinery because they
believe they give people independence
which leads them away from their neigh
bours.
“We believe that God made the horse as
a beast of burden to work the land. Horses
are also better for the land because they
don’t compact the soil or pollute the air.
We are closer to nature farming this way,”
said Mr. Martin.
Mr. Fine had found his niche in life
farming with the Mennonite community.
“For me this is right.”
The way we were
News item:
The horses raised in this area were of high
quality, and there was a good deal of
shippingand trading done. As early as 1896,
bands of gypsies came through town trading
horses ... they arrived annually with two or
three covered wagons, a bunch of children
and dogs, and maybe half a dozen horses.
They would campfor a day or so and then
move down the 8th line of Morris. They had a
camping area there also, from which they
travelled an >u nd to the farmers to see who’d
be “sucker e :ough” to take one of them.
New Era, Nov. 21,1890.
Congratulations
to the Huron Pioneer Association
onthe28th Reunion
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