As a high-schooler, Timothy Roth was at a loss as to where his studies would lead him. He toyed with math and architecture, as well as becoming a chiropractor.
It was in his second semester of college that the fog lifted when he attended a retreat of his Christian fraternity. From that point forward he had no doubt pastoring a church was his future. To realize his conviction, Roth enrolled at Concordia Seminary in St. Louis, where he grew up in a suburb.
Seminary included studying Greek and Hebrew so he could have a better working knowledge of the Bible from its original text. I had Spanish in high school and college, and that helped with Greek, he said. Technology also gave him a helping hand.
When I venture into the original text, I use a computer program to help me be precise, particularly when a word can have several translations.
He used the word love as an example. Agape love is unconditional; philos is brotherly love, and eros is physical love.
ROTH came to Humboldts Lutheran church three years ago when the Rev. David Meier retired. At the time, congregants had the option of calling a pastor from another church or appealing to a seminary.
They chose the latter, which led to Roth eventually becoming the Rev. Timothy Roth.
He and his young family arrived on July 10, 2016, when his wife, Marie, was in the midst of completing a masters degree in communications from Ball State University.
They have three children, Levi, 6, Nathaniel, 3, and Abigail, who will be 1 on Sept. 10.
Marie homeschools the two oldest.
The Roths decided on homeschooling to give their children an education that includes religious principles. This is not meant as an insult to the Humboldt schools, but we want our children to avoid some things that occur in a secular setting, the Reverend said.
His Sunday morning routine includes services, one from a traditional vein, the other a contemporary service that includes praise music and is somewhat reflective of current events.
Roth, 30, said he is a traditionalist when it comes to social issues abortion, same-sex relationships and the sexual identity of an individual.
Those issues dont fit his interpretation of what it means to be a Christian, he said.
