News and Views

By Melissa Lauber 

In today’s world, prophets of joy are rare. But in the Rev. Joseph Archie’s life, the truths spoken by Old Testament and modern prophets combine with God’s call to transcendent joy in ways that define his faith and have led him to offer himself as a candidate for the episcopacy. 

His candidacy was endorsed by the General and Jurisdictional Conference delegation from the Peninsula-Delaware Conference. Clergy and lay members will vote on whether the Conference will endorse him when they meet June 6-8 in Ocean City. If endorsed, Archie will be eligible to be on the ballot to be elected as a United Methodist bishop, when the Northeastern Jurisdictional Conference meets July 8-12 in Pittsburgh. 

Archie, who serves as superintendent of the Delaware District and pastor of Whatcoat UMC in Dover, Delaware, realizes that embracing this unique combination of justice and joy can take him into some deep thoughts and situations. “But the church has the power to change the world, to turn the world upside down,” he said. “I feel like I have such limited time on this earth. I just don’t have time for trivial things. I want to spend the time I have doing things that matter so that, as the old song goes, ‘my living will not be in vain.’” 

Commissioned into the ordained ministry in 2007 and ordained an Elder in 2010, Archie has served large and small, black and white, suburban and urban, and conservative and progressive churches. He started serving as a lay pastor in 2003, at Haven UMC in Wilmington. He went on to serve Brandywine UMC, on a circuit with both of those churches; then Eastwick UMC in Philadelphia; Newark UMC in Newark; Marshallton UMC in Marshallton, and Cedars and Christ UMCs, two additional smaller churches near Marshallton UMC. 

In 2016, Bishop Peggy Johnson appointed him to serve as superintendent of the then Wilmington District. After redistricting, he became the missional strategist, serving as superintendent of the Delaware District. In July, he’ll complete his eighth and final year as a district superintendent.

Recognizing the historic and missional significance of Whatcoat UMC in Dover, he also serves as that church’s pastor.

During his ministry, Archie also spent some time leading the Methodist Action Program, which he helped transform into a vibrant social justice agency that works in the areas of advocacy, organizing and educating around the United Methodist Social Principles.

While he greatly enjoys justice work, Archie says he is, at heart, a teacher. Before he became a pastor, he taught Wednesday evening Bible study classes at Dale Memorial UMC in Middletown. He loves teaching in almost any context – relishing opportunities to talk with preschool children about God and standing outside the state legislature teaching voters about issues like income inequality.

If he has one piece of wisdom to share it would be, “listen to everybody, learn from everybody and love everybody.” 

He resonates with teachers like Cornell West, who said, “Justice is what love looks like in public.”

“If it is God’s will for me to be bishop, connecting love and justice would be a top priority,” Archie said. “The church doesn’t do that enough.” He can image, as The United Methodist Church undergoes some dramatic transitions, taking faith outside of the church walls, and engaging society more readily. He can see pastors being not just church leaders, but pastors to entire communities. He also sees the laity being more empowered, and the church’s structure and polity beginning to earnestly reflect Bishop LaTrelle Easterling’s call to “be flexible, nimble and adaptable.”

Over the years, Archie said, people have shared that his gifts might be suited for the episcopacy. He is ready to serve if called. He sees himself as an empowering and encouraging leader, who can also be demanding, wanting to bring out the best in people and not allowing them to settle for less than their best. 

But most of all, as a leader, Archie embraces joy. “I love the word joy,” he said. “I used to ask people, ‘Is there joy in your church?’” He thinks of Romans 14:17, and the righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirt “That is a deep and abiding hope that is within us,” said Archie.

He’s fascinated by the hasidim, the covenanted faithful ones in Judaism, who dance in worship and concentrate on joy.

“We’re called to spread joy in the land. I’m not sure I have the whole definition of that,” Archie said. “What does it mean to bring joy to the world? I think it’s about bringing peace – true shalom.”

In this moment, he and his wife, April, to whom he’s been married for 25 years, are celebrating joy. And, in this unique season, as he is being considered as a candidate to the episcopacy, joy feels close at hand. Archie is focusing on being light to the world and the salt of the earth – and helping the church to be the same.

“I’m just making myself available,” he said. In that, “there’s a certain spirit of joy.”