“They are very welcoming to new people coming in, and there is a lot of desire for outreach. We call ourselves the Beacon of Broad Street.”
Editor’s Note: This is the fourth in a series of articles profiling the leaders of Burlington Township’s places of worship. This week’s article highlights the life and work of the Rev. Kim Crutchfield of Broad Street United Methodist Church.
For the Rev. Kim Crutchfield of Broad Street United Methodist Church, the call into ministry was one that did not come expectedly. Growing up in a family that regularly attended church services in Atlanta, Ga., Crutchfield did not really become interested in the idea of going into ministry until his early-to-mid 20s. In 1971, he attended a Bible college in Texas, where he met his wife Stephanie and really became passionate about going in this direction for his future.
The 64-year-old served as a staff pastor in a Charismatic/Pentecostal Church from 1975 to 1983, during which he earned his master’s degree in theological studies in ethics from Columbia Theological Seminary in Decatur, Ga.
“Following eight years serving in Georgia, my wife and I moved to New Jersey where I continued my theological education,” Crutchfield said. “I received my master of divinity in 1986 from Princeton Theological Seminary and became attracted to Wesleyan theology and the Methodist sense of the world.”
Crutchfield and his wife Stephanie both became missionaries in 1993, and served under the General Board of Global Ministries to East Africa. In six years in Africa, Crutchfield taught in both Kenya and Tanzania before moving to the Philippines in 1999.
“I joined the faculty of Union Theological Seminary while there and taught classes in the Bible, preaching and theology,” Crutchfield said. “The material I encountered in my studies deepened my theological reflection and charged my preaching with new urgency and life.”
Crutchfield’s journey continued from 2003 to 2011, this time in Taiwan before returning home to the United States. Columbia awarded him with a doctor of ministry degree and the missionary then took the head pastor job at Broad Street United Methodist in Burlington Township. The history of the church itself is “incredible to see” Crutchfield stated.
“This is the oldest congregation of Methodists in New Jersey, having begun in 1770,” Crutchfield said. “Last year, this congregation celebrated their 245th anniversary, and it’s very historic in this town.”
A trio of theologians is Crutchfield’s inspiration to continue doing what he has done for so long. Karl Barth, Dietrich Bonhoeffer and Paul Tillich are three men who inspired him and whom the pastor still studies today.
“Studying theologians is a hobby of mine that I continue to do today,” Crutchfield said. “Other than that, I enjoy painting, playing tennis, riding my bike, and collecting model airplanes and tanks.”
In his plenty of years serving God and helping others, Crutchfield enjoys being able to “make positive impacts on the world, and introducing people to Christ” the most.
His current congregation is “very-loving” and that’s the best part about serving there.
“Our church is a tight-knit bunch of people,” Crutchfield said. “They are very welcoming to new people coming in, and there is a lot of desire for outreach. We call ourselves the Beacon of Broad Street.”
For more information on Crutchfield or Broad Street United Methodist Church, check www.broadstumc.org.
