With gratitude to
Rev. David A. Vogan
Executive Presbyter Emeritus
for your dedicated service to
Huntingdon and Northumberland Presbyteries
1976 – 2000 A.D.
Based on an interview with David
by
Rev. Lee E. McCardle
Autumn 2002
State College, PA
DAVID ALEXANDER VOGAN, B.A.,
B.D., M.Th.
The Reverend David A. Vogan was honorably retired
on August 31, 2000. He served 24 years as Executive Presbyter for
Huntingdon and Northumberland Presbyteries. Upon his retirement,
he was honored with the title Executive Presbyter Emeritus.
David’s ministry touched many people and events throughout
the years. Even now in his so-called retirement, he continues his
work for the Lord. The thoughts I recorded here reflect the
topics we covered in my interview with him in 2000. On that
summer afternoon prior to his retirement, I sat in Dave’s
presbytery office, and we talked at length about his life and his
long service to God’s people. His office was appointed with
pieces of unique art and mementos he collected over his lifetime.
David gladly described his favorite pieces.
I asked David about his early days of preaching. That’s when
I learned how well Dave is organized. He knew from a glance at
his record book, that he preached 28 sermons prior to his entry
into seminary! And he knew the dates, locations and scripture
citations for all his sermons! I sat in awe, for I have no such
record book. Dave learned about good record keeping from his
father the Rev. Ferdimore Vogan. The Vogans trace their ancestry
back from America through Ireland back to France.
David Alexander Vogan was born August 1931 in the Presbyterian
manse at Greensboro, Vermont. He was named after his paternal
grandfather David Washington Vogan and his maternal grandfather
Alexander Neese Fraser. David’s father, the Rev. Ferdimore
Vogan was the pastor to the United Presbyterian Church in that
town. (Dave uses his father’s name in his own email address:
Ferdimore@aol.com) Ferdimore was a farm boy born in Sandy Lake,
PA. Dave’s mother, Margaret Fraser Vogan, was a native of
Pittsburgh. Prior to their marriage, she taught high school Latin
while he finished his seminary studies. Margaret became an “active
pastor’s wife.” She was the church organist. She taught
a Sunday school class as well as led the women’s programs.
Dave says, “Her manse was always open to folks in the church
and community.” Dave’s sister Ruth Carr was also born
in that same Vermont manse. Of those days, Dave says, “I
recognized that God was a part of my life always.” The Vogan
family lived in Greensboro from 1927 to 1936.
Ferdimore was then called to serve as pastor of the Christ
Presbyterian Church in Drexel Hill, PA near Philadelphia. His
family accompanied him. David attended the Upper Darby schools
from kindergarten through 10th grade. The Vogans then moved to
Mercer, PA where Ferdimore became pastor of the Bethany
Presbyterian Church. Dave graduated from the Mercer High School.
David’s favorite school activities included: running
cross-country foot races, participating in plays and dramatic
productions, and music. He once played “Captain of the
football team” in a dramatic production. David sang in a
high school vocal quartette. In February 1947, he received a
badge with garnet and gray ribbons for singing in the All-State
Chorus at State College. That event was sponsored by the
Pennsylvania State Music Association to promote better school
music statewide. David also sang in a combined 5,000-voice choir
from high schools in and around Philadelphia. They sang the
Hallelujah Chorus in Philadelphia’s Municipal Stadium under
the direction of Eugene Ormandy with the Philadelphia Orchestra.
Dave remembers that Oscar Levant played Rhapsody in Blue with the
orchestra on that program. Ormandy was noted for inspiring his
musicians to play a lush velvety quality that epitomized the
“Philadelphia Sound.” Maybe that explains Dave’s
velvety sermon tones! David’s dramatic talents were not
restricted to public school plays. When he was 6-months old, he
played Moses in a Sunday school drama.
At each of his father’s pastorates, David got to know the
local clergy and how the denomination was structured. Along the
way, Dave participated in the winter youth gatherings in
Philadelphia Presbytery. In his junior high school year, Dave
attended the Lambec Presbyterian Camp near Erie, PA. It proved to
be a winning experience for Dave. There were good
teaching/learning opportunities. There were very exciting
softball games. There was a lovely girl named Janet! And there
were stories, wonderful stories about Pittsburgh Xenia –
that almost mystical school which eventually became Pittsburgh
Theological Seminary. The stories of seminary intrigued David.
But first, David matriculated at Westminster College. His
declared major was chemistry, which he soon changed to
journalism. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1952.
David and Janet solemnized their marriage vows in July of that
year. He went to work for the New Castle News in their
advertising department. All of this took place during what was
politely named the Korean Conflict in which American troops
supported South Korea in a war against North Korea.
David enlisted in the U.S. Army in November 1952. He became a
member of the Army infantry in Kentucky. He was trained to be a
rifleman in the Korean War. During the bayonet training
exercises, where they trained soldiers to attack and personally
kill enemy soldiers with a bayonet, David concluded, “I can
not do this!” It didn’t take long for David to discern
the training tactic employed – once you de-personalize the
enemy, you kill him like he was an it. The Army soon discovered
Dave was one of only two soldiers in his company who had a
college degree. With that, they shipped him to Fort Riley, Kansas
to join Army Intelligence.
David was shipped to Frankfurt, Germany where he served in the
Army Intelligence Center. He edited interrogation reports. Janet
moved to Germany to be with him for 6 months. The Army base
chaplain got to know David on a personal level. He encouraged
David to consider life as a pastor, and how David could better
use his talents serving God’s church. Upon the completion of
his Army enlistment, David and Janet Vogan returned to the
States. David was honorably discharged from the U.S. Army with
the rank of Corporal.
David took a job as a journalist in Ohio. After a few months, the
family returned to New Castle. He participated in church work as
a lay Christian education teacher and later as a member of the
church staff. His pastor, Bob Mayo was so impressed with David’s
talents, that he signed up David to lead devotions at a meeting
of their council of churches. It was David’s very first
sermon. Bob Mayo further encouraged David to apply for “under
care” status with their presbytery. After much prayer, David
and Janet sold their house and moved to Pittsburgh Theological
Seminary in 1959. During his student years at PTS, David served
as student pastor at the Slovak Congregational Church in North
Braddock near PTS. This provided David with the opportunity to
learn the discipline of sermon writing week after week, month
after month, year after . . . The New Castle church provided
financial assistance for the Vogans during this time. Janet
worked in the seminary office.
David received his Bachelor of Divinity degree summa cum laude
from Pittsburgh Theological Seminary in 1962. He was accepted
into a post-graduate study program at New College in Edinburgh,
Scotland. While there, he studied with the noted theologian James
Stewart. As part of his studies, he enrolled in a Hebrew course,
but soon dropped it when he discovered that his classmates were
all Hebrew scholars who planned to teach Hebrew at the college
and seminary levels! Sometime during their busy schedules, David
and Janet found time to conceive 2 handsome sons, William and
David, Jr. These sons spent the year in Scotland with Janet and
David. Upon the Vogan family’s return to America, David
received his Master of Theology degree from Pittsburgh
Theological Seminary.
David sought God’s call to serve as a pastor to a
congregation. In time, he was invited to preach a sermon in the
Milesburg church. It served as a neutral pulpit where the search
committee from the Bellefonte church came to observe his pastoral
skills in worship. The way was made clear, and the First
Presbyterian Church of Bellefonte called David to be their
pastor. He preached his first sermon in the Bellefonte church on
September 1, 1963. His pastorate proved to be a long and fruitful
one ending in the autumn of 1976.
I first met David when he was introduced as a candidate for the
office of Executive Presbyter of Northumberland Presbytery. I was
a member of that Presbytery at the time. Prior to the meeting, I
read David’s background papers. He was presented to that
presbytery in their meeting in the Jersey Shore Presbyterian
Church. David came bounding down the church isle with hands out
and a big smile on his face. He was awesome and very winsome as
one divine was heard to say! I sat there amazed. Did this Rev.
Vigan or Vogan or whatever his name was, did he know a secret
that we didn’t know? The answer is yes!
David exuded great confidence as he spoke a good word for the
Lord. He described his past service to the Church, and he told
about his world travels and his family. We were very impressed.
Northumberland Presbytery voted to call David as Executive
Presbyter. The vote count was 76 for, 1 against. The Huntingdon
Presbytery, meeting in the Bellefonte church, voted 77 for, 3
against. And how do I know these vote counts? Dave gave them to
me out of his record book! He started work as our Executive
Presbyter on November 1, 1976. And what was his secret? He in
time confessed to us that David Vogan is an introvert! It was
unbelievable, just unbelievable!
For the next quarter century, David’s leadership of our
presbyteries revealed a new and needed spirit for those times.
David led us with a pastor’s heart - but with a difference.
His was not a touchy feely leadership. David came prepared to
fairly and firmly negotiate the business of presbytery. He
planned and prayed and planned some more before he led
discussions. He taught us over and over by example that our
chances of having our recommendations enacted, increased by leaps
and bounds when we did our homework, and we thought it through
ourselves, and we put it on paper in black and white. He taught
us by example to respect the god-given intelligence of those who
might be our opponents in a particular debate, especially if we
wanted them to vote with us.
One year, Dave enrolled in a continuing education course on
listening skills. He demonstrated his new skills in many a
presbytery meeting. Now days, he deftly applies those listening
skills in his everyday life. When he listens to me, he looks
directly in my eyes with his full attention to what I have to
say. And frankly, it is somewhat unnerving because I am not used
to people paying close attention to me! So, Dave’s new
listening skills have over the years encouraged me to carefully
say to him what I really want him to know, or else he will
discover my secret, that I sometimes don’t know what I’m
talking about!
In the middle 1900s, our congregations and presbyteries often
flew by the seat of our pants, that is, we relied mainly on oral
discussions and personal feelings to decide important matters of
faith and theology. Little forethought or study was involved.
Into this vacuum stepped assertive speakers who easily incited
fears into the hearts of people, which resulted in emotional
inertia or even spiritual senescence in the people. Oh, it was
great fun to watch orators blast each other on the floor of a
meeting. And when the subject involved sexuality, which it often
did, it heightened the drama. But such entertainment yielded
little spiritual fruit for the church. When our beloved David
arrived, he silently pronounced the end of those days when
divines shouted down their opponents on the floor of presbytery
– those days were gone, and good riddance!! David showed us
how to plant seeds for change and growth in our churches - to
research and plan our work, and work our plans for the glory of
God. Some of us were eager to learn this new lesson, while others
never grasped it. We two presbyteries owe a debt of gratitude to
David for showing us a more perfect way to conduct our ministries
for the Lord!
I served as a pastor for over 2 decades in a church in
Northumberland Presbytery. Toward the end that pastorate, the
bottom fell out of the relationship between the congregation and
me. I was at a loss as how to proceed. I called David. He came
and sat with my wife and me. We talked around our table. I wanted
to immediately resign, dust off my shoes and quickly move out of
there. But David helped me think through my choices and not make
hasty decisions. He and the Committee On Ministry and others
helped me patiently negotiate fair terms for my exit from that
pastorate. For David’s skill and faith in me at that crucial
time, I am most grateful. And I am one of many pastors who
benefited from David’s wise counsel over the years.
Since his retirement, David has more time to devote to their
growing family. Their son Bill (an associate actuary) and wife
Janellen Farmer Vogan (a singer and recording artist) have 2 sons
and a daughter. Their son David, Jr. (a math professor) and wife
Lois Corman (a non-practicing attorney) have 1 son and 1
daughter. David said that he and Janet are pleased and thankful
for their family. He mentioned the joys of sharing in conducting
their weddings, and baptizing their granddaughter in Old South
Church in Boston. He says the great joy of his ministry with the
presbyteries was working with good people at the presbytery level
and in the local congregations.
During my interview with David, I asked about his views on the
future of the Church. Of special interest was David’s
concern for the integrity of the Church’s theology. He said,
“I believe Scripture is a document of its time.” “I
hold to the doctrine of the authority of Scripture that says
‘the Scripture is what God wants proclaimed.’”
“I especially hold to the Confession of 1967.” “I
am concerned for the integrity and sanctity of clergy as a whole.”
David says, “I don’t know how people cope with life
without faith in God.” During these later years, both David
and Janet deal with significant health problems – he with
joint replacements and cancer - she with Multiple Sclerosis and
an acute brain aneurysm. They provide help and encouragement to
one another, and so live out their marriage vows to love and
cherish each other in sickness and in health all the days of
their lives. In David’s March 28, 2000 report to presbytery,
he gave a personal witness of his perseverance in time of ill
health. David noted, “that in the end, the Church’s
purpose in its ministry to the sick is neither the recovery of
health nor the prevention of death, but the reconciliation of the
patient to God and the reception of divine grace. Whatever part
faith plays in prompting recovery from disease or preventing it
in the first place, the supreme importance of a trusting response
to God remains. Life has to be lived in sickness or in health. It
is God’s gracious purpose that it be lived with God.”
David has endured 4 hip replacements and all that goes with them.
In recent months, Janet’s MS has progressively worsened to
the point where paid caregivers are required to supplement David’s
care of her daily needs. “Nevertheless,” he says,
“throughout my ministry, life has never been dull! And for
this introvert to say that, is something!”
As for his retirement activities: David served as program “dean”
for the lay pastors program in Northumberland Presbytery. His
name appears on the pulpit supply list for both presbyteries. He
is involved in programs with our Synod of the Trinity,
specifically the “African American Male At Risk Project.”
David is an avid fan of the Penn State Lady Lions basketball
team. Senior Citizen Season Tickets for 2002-03 are only $70
total for all 13 home games, plus $12 for two NCAA playoff games
at the Jordan Center. In Dave’s words, “It’s a
great bargain.” A longtime friend has volunteered to stay
with Janet, so Dave can attend games. Go, Lady Lions!
On Sunday, June 4th 2000, Huntingdon Presbytery held a grand
retirement celebration for David and Janet Vogan and for Mrs.
Rose Phillips, Secretary of the Presbytery. Rose also retired.
The celebration was held in the Huntingdon Presbyterian Church.
Elder Robert B. Stewart, III, made remarks, as did Rev. John
Dean, Rev. William Moore, Rev. Bruce Stevens and Rev. Leslie
Papp. Music was provided by the church choir with Tim
Flinchbaugh, director; Marian Sue McElwee, organist; and
Annegrete Walsh, pianist. The celebration committee members were
Rev. Cathy Colebank and Elders Peggy Kendall, Alice Quay and Nan
Stewart.
I thank God for David and his talents. His walk and his witness
inspire us to continue the ministry of Jesus Christ while we have
life and breath. May God bless you always, our beloved David!
Lee McCardle, HR
Autumn 2002