James A. Cress, 60, Ministerial Secretary

[Stan]

BY MARK A. KELLNER, news editor, Adventist Review

James A. Cress, 60, Ministerial Secretary for the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists since 1992, died on the evening of November 26, 2009 at the University of Maryland Medical Center in Baltimore, Maryland.

According to a family statement, Cress succumbed to “complications arising from a rare pathogen believed to have been contracted in the course of his travels. Upon his return from the last of his itineraries, the infection worsened. Despite the very best medical care and a valiant struggle, consistent with Elder Cress’s energetic approach to Christian service, he succumbed rapidly.”

Cress always considered himself a “pastor on loan” to the world church headquarters, where he led out in training; encouragement; and mentoring of pastors, elders, deacons, and deaconesses around the world. His position saw him travel to many countries, holding seminars, preaching sermons, and working with local leaders and pastors to promote excellence in ministry.

Dr. Jan Paulsen, president of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, said, "We are devastated at this news, realizing the depth of service we all engage in, service that presents a possible challenge to our health and to our families. Let us keep his wife Sharon in your prayers. This is a tremendous loss to her, as well as to the church."

Cress was the author of several books, including “Common Sense Ministry,” “More Common Sense Ministry,” and “You Can Keep Them If You Care,” and hundreds of articles for Ministry magazine, of which he was publisher. In that role, Cress continued and strengthened fund raising efforts to send copies of Ministry to pastors outside of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, as a way of building bridges between Adventists and other faith communities. This also led to the annual PREACH seminar, which under Cress' leadership expanded to global satellite, cable TV, and Internet broadcasts, reaching 25,000 pastors each year with continuing education in homiletics.

“We are all shocked by this unexpected news,” said Gerald Karst, a general vice president of the world church, who also advised the Ministerial Association, of which Cress was secretary. “We have lost a colleague and a friend, whose commitment to the Lord and to the Church was total. His passing leaves large shoes to be filled. He lived life to the full. He viewed life through positive eyes.”

Cress graduated from Southern Missionary College with a B.A. in Theology and received a M.Div. degree from the Seventh-day Adventist Theological Seminary at Andrews University and a D.Min. degree from Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California. He had previously served as a pastor, evangelist, and ministerial secretary in the Mid-America Union before joining the world headquarters team.

Cress' wife Sharon, who survives, is an associate secretary of the Ministerial Association, in charge of Shepherdess International, a ministry to pastor's spouses and children. She has served the Seventh-day Adventist Church as a Bible worker, associate pastor, and seminary leader.

Cress is survived by a brother, John C. Cress, of College Place, Washington, an Adventist pastor who serves with Adventist Health Care. A third brother, David Cress, who had been president of the Georgia-Cumberland Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, died in an airplane crash in December of 2004.

A memorial service is anticipated for December 5, 2009, at Sligo Seventh-day Adventist Church in Takoma Park, Maryland.

[Nan]

Sad news indeed....there are still risks in service. Not that that would have influenced Elder Cress I am sure.

[Norman Byers, N.D.]

Hi Stan, this is sad to hear. Our prayers go out to his family. Norman

[Denise]

That's so sad....I remember when our we lost his brother Dave, who was once our General Conference President. He was one of the nicest, sweetest person I met. And I am sure his brother James was as well. I never met James, but one of our members in church was a good friend of James. I am sure she knows of this already. We'll have to pray for his family. Thanks for posting this.

[Gail]

Oh, wow- just read this now. We have/have had books by both him and his wife, and his name would pop up every now and then. Just goes to show that you just never know when your turn will come.

:(