His name is Andrew Rushan Sinnaduray, but members of Jefferson City's Central United Church of Christ (UCC) call him "Reverend Rushan." Last April, Sinnaduray, who was born in Sri Lanka but grew up in New Zealand, became pastor of a mainline Mid-Missouri Protestant church with a distinctly German heritage.
Sinnaduray's background is much different than any member or previous pastor of Central Church. The Rev. Stephen Buchholz was the last pastor and retired after more than 30 years of service.
Central was founded by German immigrants in 1858 and became Central Evangelical and Reformed Church, the church with the tall steeple in the city's Old Munichburg district. In 1957, a merger of the "E&R" church with the Congregational Church created the United Church of Christ.
"The congregation realized the community around the church is changing," Sinnaduray said. "It's no longer just German, it's more diverse. There used to be many members walking to the church, and now hardly any do."
Before hiring a replacement, part of Central Church's task was a complete re-examination of the church, including its goals for the future.
Members determined they needed a pastor with a deep interest in young people, while serving the older members. Sinnaduray says his passions include journeying with youth and young adults as they discern their gifts and passions and helping the local church reach out to its community.
"One thing I've seen since I've been here is that we have a large group of young people from our neighborhood walking in to church," he said. "We're working to find out what they need. Most of the time, young people are in bed on Sunday mornings. We also need to find out how we can get their parents to come in."
Before his ordination into the UCC in 2008, Sinnaduray served as director of youth ministries at St. Paul's Methodist Church in Auckland, New Zealand. From there he moved to Canada, serving an Anglican church at Charolottetown, Prince Edward Island. Sinnaduray's move to the United States took him to the Congregational Church in Exeter, New Hampshire, as associate pastor. It was a relatively short move as senior pastor at the First Congressional Church in Canton Center, Connecticut, in 2010, where he was recruited late last year by a search committee from Central Church.
Sinnaduray's wife, Arushini, is a lawyer and also a Sri Lanka native, and they have two children, Aran and Alisha. Before they visited Jefferson City, Sinnaduray learned a relative was already living in the Capital City. His mother mentioned that her cousin, Shariya Molegoda, is rector at Jefferson City's Grace Episcopal Church.
"The move has been good for me," Sinnaduray said. "It was a big step for the church. I was different, I had different life experiences. It's not always easy to get out of your comfort zone. I was surprised at the number of churches we have here, but I know there are still a large number of members of the community who are not served by a church and we need to reach out to them."