12.15.05

Sherry Martin

Seminary staff member wins ARP writing contest

Sherry Martin, director of academic services and registrar at Erskine Seminary, was recognized by the ARP Magazine as adult division winner of the publication's Christmas Essay Contest. Her entry, "One of the Least of These," appears in the December issue of the denominational monthly.

"It was Dr. (Loyd) Melton who saw the advertisement in the magazine about writing a story for submission using the theme of Jesus' love," Martin said. Melton, John Montgomery Bell Professor of New Testament at Erskine Seminary, is also Martin's pastor at Cedar Springs ARP Church, which she now attends with her family.

When Martin read the instructions for the contest, an image came instantly to mind, she said. She had seen a newspaper photograph of a mother and child shortly after Christmas several years ago. "I will never forget the eyes of the little boy and his mother as they stood on the outside looking inside," she said. "The story evolved once the scripture was chosen."

Martin has devoted considerable time to writing projects over the past several years. She has written a book titled, "Echoes from the Pews: A History of the Rocky River Presbyterian Church," as well as meditations for "The Upper Room."

"I began writing meditations for 'The Upper Room' right before my father died in November 2002," she said. "As I would pray for Daddy, I realized that I had begun my grieving process."

Working through that experience of loss, she wrote her first meditation, which was published in July this year. "They work so far in advance that it usually takes a couple of years before your meditation is published," she said. "The next meditation will be published in the March 2006 issue."

Martin's history of the Rocky River Church began when she was enrolled in an Erskine Seminary class on small church dynamics taught by Melton. "We were discussing a project for my work, and he suggested that I write some aspect of the history of my home church," she said.

Rocky River Presbyterian became Martin's home church in 1968, when she moved with her parents and six siblings from Zephyrhills, Fla., to the Abbeville area. At first the family attended a Baptist church in Calhoun Falls, but the Rocky River Church was only a mile and a half from their home, and they began worshipping there.

In "Echoes from the Pews," Martin describes her first Sunday at the church: "I recall the people staring at our family as we filled a whole pew by ourselves…I remember admiring the simplicity of the beautiful little country church with its small sanctuary, solid pine wooden benches, and glowing hardwood floors."

Her motivation for writing the history of Rocky Road Presbyterian is in part personal. "I was nurtured and formed in this country church," she said. "It is where I first learned about the love and majesty of God."

One of the most challenging aspects of writing the book was piecing together necessary information, she said. The church was originally organized in 1768 as the Bull Town Church at Fort Bull. She traveled to Montreat, N.C., where old session records were housed, and also consulted Nancy Griffith at Presbyterian College, who gathered presbytery records for Martin's use.

Learning more about the history of Rocky River Church and realizing how much she enjoyed research and writing were two rewards Martin received from the work. "It was sheer delight to learn that history as I read and researched, and it was a blessing to realize something about myself in the process," she said.

"The story was told out of a deep love, commitment to, and appreciation for the labors of faithful servants of God who have invested themselves in this congregation," she said.

In the preface to "Echoes from the Pews," Martin wrote about her father, who was a deacon and later an elder in the church, and she was proud to give a copy to her mother, to whom she dedicated the book.

"She cried when she read the preface about Daddy and the dedication of the book to her," Martin said. "Of course, I cried, too."

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