FdL minister accused of stealing from his church
The longtime pastor of a Fond du Lac church is accused of stealing as much as $10,000 from church offerings collected during the holidays, a police official says.
The Rev. Stuart Zak, 55, resigned from Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, 855 Martin Ave., Nov. 30 after he confessed to stealing money over a period of 10 years, according to a press release issued by church pastor, the Rev. Brett Naumann.
“The Fond du Lac Police Department was alerted by staff at Good Shepherd after they discovered missing cash — a discrepancy — in offerings made during holiday seasons,” said Major Kevin Lemke.
An internal investigation revealed the church was missing between $5,000 and $10,000, said Lemke.
“The suspect has spoken with police and has admitted to stealing the money from the offerings,” Lemke said. “We believe the investigation will be wrapped up by the end of the week.”
Zak told The Reporter he would not comment on the alleged theft.
In the release, Naumann said Zak would no longer be allowed to serve as pastor in any Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod program. Good Shepherd is one of three WELS churches in Fond du Lac. It has a congregation of 450.
Naumann declined to comment when asked why Zak stole the money.
“Even as we grieve over this turn of events, we thank Mr. Zak for the many blessings that the Lord has brought to Good Shepherd through his work,” Naumann said. “The Lord has brought about amazing growth both spiritually and physically through the work that was accomplished through Mr. Zak during his years of service as a pastor.”
Zak became pastor at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in 1993. He served on the Board for Wisconsin Lutheran Child and Family Service, the District Board for Parish Education as coordinator of early childhood education, a consultant for Parish Assistance and Northern Wisconsin District chairman of Evangelism, according to his past profile on the Good Shepherd Web site.
Lemke, a 28-year veteran of the Police Department, said he couldn’t recall a case of a “person of the cloth” stealing money from a church.
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| Small town evangelism | Stuart A. Zak | May 1988 |
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For more information and registration go to www.wels.net/evangelism and click on Welcoming Worship Seminar, or contact the district evangelism coordinator the Rev. Stuart Zak (920-921-8500 or email).
That means Zak arranged for Ski to do evangelism presentations for the district, two years in a row.
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GJ - One WELS pastor has suggested having all accounts audited wherever Zak was involved.
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rlschultz has left a new comment on your post "WELS Fond du Loot Pastor Donates 10 Grand to Himse...":
There is something subliminally creepy about stealing from a congregation's offering, no matter who does it. The recommendation for an audit in other areas outside of the congregation could be very telling. My guess is that skimming the pocket change from offerings could be small potatoes in comparison.
There is one missing detail in the story. I cannot determine how the pastor even had access to the offerings. This is especially true in this age of night depository boxes at banks. The counting and recording of the offerings is always done by laity such as a finance committee, trustees, financial secretary or a combination of them. This was true 40 years ago when my father was involved with it.
At my previous congregation, after the offerings were counted and recorded, they went into the bank bag with the deposit slip and dropped into the night depository on the way home.
There appears to be a defect in the manner in which this was done at Zak's former parish. The offerings sit in the plates on the altar until after the service. There is usually more than one member who counts it. The treasurer or bookkeeper will have some notice from the bank as to the exact amount of the deposit. All of this is designed to minimize the contact that a pastor would have with the offerings. There are several checks and balances. Please pardon the unintentional pun.
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GJ - Some bad ideas are:
1. Having only one person count the offering.
2. Leaving the offering at the church, even in a safe.
3. Letting the treasurer count the offering.
4. Giving the same person permission to write checks and count the offering.
5. Assuming everything is fine and never having an annual audit. Federal Reserve - take note.
I was skeptical about the money spent on financial controls at the Love Shack when SP Schroeder took office. That was needed, as insiders know, and the results have been good.
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PJL has left a new comment on your post "WELS Fond du Loot Pastor Donates 10 Grand to Himse...":
For much of this year I've been a daily reader of "Ichabod." (By the way, I found it when I did a google search of "WELS.") Though many in our synod may not appreciate this blog, I must admit that it does provide more realistic news of what's happening in the WELS than we'd ever get through the official channels. And it's true, going through the official channels simply means that your question or concern is usually "forgotten." Either that, or you're passed from one ecclesiatical official to the other with no one really willing to step up and say what needs to be said.
Since this is true, I can imagine that Pastor Jackson easily became frustrated during his days in the WELS trying to get his DP and others to listen to him. That may explain his biting sarcasm on this blog. If he were simply expressing concerns in a nice way, no one would probably listen!
That said, I'd like to caution all of us from thinking everything that happens to someone in the WELS is because of CGM and Church and Change. Neither is everyone who sins a shrinker.
I'm a WELS pastor in the area around Lake Winnebago. Stu Zak has been part of our pastoral conference. I don't know him real well, but I don't believe we need to connect his personal sins to the shrinkers.
There are many who are hurt by Pastor Zak's actions. Most unfortunately, the gospel and the credibility of gospel ministry in and around FDL is taking a hit from his actions. Just take a look through the ignorant comments to the article at the FDL Reporter website to find that out.
So, while I, too, smell the stench of CGM and secrecy coming from parts of Appleton, I'm not so sure I can smell it in Fond du Lac.
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PJL has left a new comment on your post "WELS Fond du Loot Pastor Donates 10 Grand to Himse...":
Oh no, I've been found out! Actually, I knew that someone would find me if I gave even a hint of where I was from.
One of the things I admire about Pastor Jackson, Michael Shottey and others on this blog is that they're willing to step out and be counted. They sign their names.
If you want to know ...
1) We print out the service because many of our elderly members find it easier to hold a bulletin than a hymnal. So, I listen to the people I serve.
2) Yes, I make use of a screen and PowerPoint. I had stopped doing this for about nine months, but again, many of our members, even some seniors, told me how much it helped them. They said that they're visual learners. So, again, I listen to the people I serve.
3) I didn't know that the NIV was tacky. It's the version of Scripture I've been using since I was ten years old!
Make me to be what you want me to be. Since you found me, feel free to e-mail or call so I can know more about you.
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Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "WELS Fond du Loot Pastor Donates 10 Grand to Himse...":
>>>But watch out!!
No use of the hymnal (merely printed for "ease of use", no doubt. More like ashamed of ancient text if you ask me)<<<
Did you bother to notice that the church in question is using the Common Service from Christian Worship? It's not the Lutheran Hymnal, but this service is rooted in the Western Rite that dates back to at least the third century A.D.
It does not help the cause to lambaste pastors who are actually upholding liturgical worship, especially in such a superficial manner.
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GJ - The pastor is not a Shrinker, based on several marks (notae). He has a statement of faith which emphasizes the Means of Grace. I find his wording a bit awkward overall, but it does seem to be his own rather than something borrowed from the Evangelical Covenant Church. Kelming another confession is something I noticed at Gunn's sect and some other quasi-WELS parishes. Also, this pastor gave away his identity, which is very un-Growthy. His response to criticism was light-hearted, very unlike the Shrinkers I know. They rage and fume, but always anonymously.
I saw no link to Time of Generic Grace, which is one good indication by itself. He did not say, "God has blessed this congregation with membership growth ever since I arrived," - typical of Shrinkers. See Dom Perignon Patterson and VP Huebner.
As Paul said in Galatians, neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails, so we should not condemn based on the hymnal or Bible translation. This pastor is explicit about the Means of Grace on his website, something I hardly saw in WELS or Missouri over the years.
WELS pastors are starting to feel safe in being Lutheran. That is a good sign.
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Michael Schottey has left a new comment on your post "WELS Fond du Loot Pastor Donates 10 Grand to Himse...":
Pastor Lidtke...another in a long line of younger men from the Michigan District that I can't wait to be old enough to be "in charge."
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GJ - The Chicaneries know they are losing. That is why the attacks on the blog are mounting. Of course, Chicanery attacks are like being stoned to death by popcorn.
Did I say popcorn? I wasn't even thinking even Ski.
