Cheney Congregational Church calls new pastor

After an intensive search process beginning in February, the Pastoral Search Committee at Cheney’s Congregational Church is unanimously recommending the calling of Rev. Matthew Keith Goodale as the church’s new pastor.

Rev. Goodale grew up in Colorado Springs where his father was a Presbyterian pastor. He graduated summa cum laude from Whitworth University with a bachelor of arts in theology in 2016 and has recently completed his masters of divinity at Princeton Theological Seminary.

In a June 26 news release, church officials stated the committee not only reviewed Goodale’s application materials but also reviewed a video he submitted of a sermon from another church, conducted a Skype interview and attended a service at First Presbyterian Church in Coeur d’Alene where he also preached.

The committee also hosted him for an extended lunch in Coeur d’Alene.

“We loved the way his sermons focused on moral parallels revealed in the narrative forms of scriptural passages,” church officials said in the release. “We found him to be an engaging conversationalist and thoroughly committed to intellectual honesty, to continuing scholarship, to personal confidentiality and to the protection and affirmation of all marginalized people.”

Goodale received the President’s Scholarship Award during his four years at Whitworth, top student awards in the study of Greek and Hebrew, the 2016 Alumni Ideals Award and the Seminary Fellowship Award that waived full tuition at Princeton.

He was a resident assistant while at Whitworth, captain of Whitworth’s ultimate Frisbee team (2013-2016), a pastoral intern at four different churches, leader of the middle school youth group at Princeton Community Church (2017-2019), a chaplain at Trenton Psychiatric Hospital (2017-2019) and a parish assistant at Fullarton Parish Church of Scotland.

His wife Meghan spent her early years in Cheney and attended the Treasure Chest Preschool at Cheney Congregational when it was affiliated with the United Church of Christ. She is also a graduate of Whitworth University with a degree in biology and plans to complete a master’s in education at Whitworth during the next year.

Cheney Congregational Church’s council approved a compensation package negotiated with Goodale. Final approval by the congregation will be voted on after his candidacy sermon on July 7, at 10 a.m. The public is invited to attend.