A church closure leads to a new call for pastor
October 4, 2021
When membership of the small church he was serving dwindled to the point of closing, the Rev. Brent Raska, a home brewing enthusiast, turned his hobby into a vocation. He opened Burning Bush Brewery in 2020. Raska says the brewery has provided him with a way to continue ministry in a unique context. Courtesy of Brent Raska
As the Rev. Brent Raska finishes up another order from customers in the states he distributes beer to, he remembers how he felt on Dec. 31, 2017. How he wept after preaching a final sermon at the small church he’d served for five years, which was down to 12 people. “I couldn’t help but think I was a failure,” he said, “even though I knew I wasn’t.”
Although sad in the moment, the closing of Christ Presbyterian Church in North Riverside, Illinois, a suburb west of Chicago, presented the opportunity to pursue a dream born out of his commitment to relational ministry: to open a brewery. Raska, who had been home brewing for about six years, saw the idea as an extension of his call to ministry. He jumped in, believing the brewery would combine all of his passions for high-quality craft beer, fellowship and conversation — along with the opportunity for hospitality and community service.
“I felt like I could still be a pastor, but in a different way,” he said, adding, “a lot of 20- and 30-somethings will walk into a brewery, but not a church.”
When Raska opened with a soft launch on Jan. 1, 2020, his brewery had a community room in the back, with free meeting space for nonprofits and churches. He named his new business venture Burning Bush Brewery, after one of his favorite Bible stories.
“I love that God spoke to Moses in that way, and that Moses was faithful to God and his community,” he said. “People feel comfortable in a brewery, so they naturally ask me about the name, which leads to conversations about their thoughts about God, or faith, that they might not have had otherwise.”
Just a week after the Burning Bush’s grand opening on March 6, 2020, those conversations came to a grinding halt when the reality of the effects of COVID-19 led to an effort to flatten the virus’ curve with sheltering-in-place mandates. Among the things that disappointed Raska was that he had to cancel a book sale in the community room. Proceeds would’ve gone to a nearby Lutheran church. “My head was spinning; we were in survival mode,” he said. “We had to cut expenses.”
Raska let his head brewer go, deciding it was time for him to take that on himself. A fellow brewery owner helped him learn the intricacies of commercial brewing. Another home-brewing friend, Frank Mercadante, learned the commercial side along with Raska, and has been brewing with him since the pandemic. Mercadante also has a ministry background having led a Catholic youth ministry for 30 years. In the process of starting his own brewery, he and Raska laugh about how they’re going back to a pre-Reformation tradition: some of the best and oldest beers in the world were made by monks in monasteries.
Needing to keep income flowing, Raska kept Burning Bush Brewery open for takeout. He also started delivering his beer to some of Chicago’s suburbs.
By summer, he was able to serve many customers on his patio outside, paying close attention to social distancing guidelines. And in the fall, he started canning beers to provide another “to go” option for customers. Raska is now shipping Burning Bush beer to customers in 12 locations: Arkansas, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Texas and Washington, D.C.
“It’s been quite the ride,” he said. “We have a good core of regulars in the neighborhood now. Eventually we’d love to have a community service day with them.”
Those regulars, and others becoming familiar with the beers he has on tap, constantly ask him about the stories behind their names. Most on the current list have biblical or church references. A sampling includes:
- Lion’s Den – a hazy IPA, which is Raska’s personal favorite and the brewery’s biggest seller.
- Red Sea – a raspberry kettle sour that is another Raska favorite.
- Broken Bread – an oatmeal stout.
- Double Promised Land – a blood orange and honey double IPA. This home brew gave Raska confidence that he could brew professionally.
- Forbidden Fruit – an apple ale made with 80 gallons of fresh apple cider from Michigan.
- Jonah – a cream ale.
- Heavenweizen – Hefeweizen.
Paul Seebeck, Communications Strategist, Presbyterian Mission Agency
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O God, forgive us and grant us a trusting heart that is open to whatever you might wish to do through us. Let us see what you would have us do and give us grace to embrace it. Amen.
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