Rev. Jonah bissell, Co-Pastor
Pastor Jonah was born and raised in Rutland, Vermont where he met his now-wife Danielle. They both attended Moody Bible Institute in Chicago where they completed degrees in Biblical Studies.
Jonah then went on to complete a Master of Theological Studies at Duke Divinity School in North Carolina, where his first child was born. Jonah and Danielle have since been blessed with boy-girl twins, and seek to forge connections between families (of all kinds) in midcoast Maine.
Jonah is also a Ph.D. student at Boston University where he studies early Christianity and its connection to local ecology in late antique Egypt. Because of this Jonah has shifted to part-time here at FBCF, focusing primarily on preaching and teaching.
Jonah is ordained in the American Baptist Churches U.S.A. and is passionate about critical thinking, relational connection, and the development of just and sustainable cultures. Among other things, Jonah loves reading, small-scale farming, skiing, and skateboarding, and would love to hear more about you and your story!
Rev. Dr. Aaron Werner, Co-Pastor
Pastor Aaron is a native to Maine, where he and his father and grandfather have worked as lobstermen in the Portland area.
After high school Aaron completed a Bachelor of Science at the University of Maine and Liberty University. He then went on to complete a Master of Divinity (2002) and a Ph.D. in Apologetics (2007) from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Kentucky.
Aaron has pastored churches in Florida, Kentucky, Arkansas, Indiana, and California. He also served as a church-planting missionary and lead pastor for Cross Church in Portland, Maine from 2013-2019. Additionally, Aaron has served as Dean of the Chapel at Shorter University and has taught as a professor at Liberty University and Westover Honors College at the University of Lynchburg.
Beyond this Aaron has worked as a commercial lobsterman, a professional SCUBA Diver, an EMT, and an NCAA D1 Track & Field coach. Aaron and his wife Kathy have been married for 27 years, and they are blessed with four daughters.
We are so excited to have Aaron here with us at First Baptist Church of Freeport. He can’t wait to serve our community here in Freeport!
