How a man who set out to be a Presbyterian minister became a Catholic deacon

Details: 

After nearly 30 years of serving with the clergy at Simi Valley’s St. Peter Claver Catholic Church, Deacon Jim Carper is now answering a new call.

The Simi Valley resident was recently appointed parish life director of St. Bernadette Catholic Church in South Central Los Angeles. He has been serving in the congregation since June.

“I am excited about the opportunity to serve a parish that needs me,” he said.

…The grandson of the Rev. James Fawcett, who was a Presbyterian minister in Pittsburgh, Pa., the deacon said he felt called to follow his grandfather’s steps to become a pastor from a young age.

Carper enrolled in the preministerial program at Westminster College in Pennsylvania. But he withdrew from the program shortly after and instead pursued a double major in speech and English.

“I’m not sure really (why I changed course). Perhaps being away from home changed my perspective, or I didn’t feel worthy or ready,” he said.

After graduating from college, he took a job with an Illinoisinsurance company in 1980.

“Truth be told, it was the first good job I landed after school,” he said.

The company eventually transferred him to Los Angeles in 1986.

Two years later, after marrying his wife, Teresa, who is Catholic, and at the urging of his grandmother, he decided to convert from Presbyterian to Catholicism.

“When I asked (my grandmother) why (I should convert) she said, ‘It’s been my experience when the wife is Catholic and the husband is something else, the wife and children go to church and the husband doesn’t. I’d rather have you be Catholic than nothing at all,’” Carper said.

After his conversion, the couple began attending St. Peter Claver in Simi Valley. And it was a comment from one of the deacons at the church that further solidified his calling.

“One Sunday . . . during Mass, Deacon David Geary whispered to me, ‘You’re going to be a deacon some day,’” he said.

A story from 2012, following his ordination, has more: 

“Just as we became one in marriage, we are now one in our service to our community ? our church community and the community of Simi Valley and beyond,” Teresa Carper said. “Jim wears the stole, an outward sign of a deacon. I bear the soul of the deacon.”

Deacons are voluntary positions within the Catholic Church.

“We vow to undertake a life of service to the church and to the community,” James Carper said. “This means that a deacon has received the sacrament of ‘Holy Orders’ similar to those of priests. The duties of the deacon often lie outside the walls of the church. We are expected to actively participate in community service and outreach. We do so by assisting at care facilities, prisons, homeless shelters and many other places where people need ministry, prayer and comfort.”

…Most importantly, “we are called to see where the greatest needs lie in our parish and our community and try to address them,” James Carper said. “I believe we are living in a very frightening time for many people. There is a great deal of uncertainty. … People are looking for comfort and answers in a world that isn’t providing any. I need to be there for people.”

Congratulations!

Photo: Ventura County Star