The World Now—& You

From the moment of my ordination as a United Methodist minister, my purpose has been to show that we don't have to go to another world to find an existence we can honestly like and that the fairer we are to this world, the more we want to respect it and know it and hope actively to like it, the closer our relationship to God will be. After all, the very word "religion" comes from the Latin word "religare," (as in ligament) and means "that to which we are linked or bound.” As individual selves we are linked or bound to the whole of creation.

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I grew up in New Jersey, attended college in the Midwest and after graduating from Princeton Theological Seminary, was ordained in the United Methodist Church. I’ve served pastorates throughout northern New Jersey, and as a District Superintendent, I had the privilege of working with and overseeing the ministry of over 70 churches.

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I began my study of Aesthetic Realism in 1971 and in 1973 I had the honor of being appointed an Aesthetic Realism consultant by its founder, Eli Siegel. I have served on the teaching faculty of the not-for-profit Aesthetic Realism Foundation since that time. I continue to be happily engaged in the study of how art and religion are deeply akin and meet the greatest hope of every human being, which is to like the outside world on an honest basis. I am grateful to be continuing my study of this big subject in classes taught by the Chairman of Education, Ellen Reiss.

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I am also proud to serve on the Board of Directors at CUMAC (Center of United Methodist Aid to the Community) in Paterson, New Jersey. For over 30 years CUMAC has focused on feeding people and changing lives through its work to alleviate hunger throughout Northern New Jersey. I greatly respect this work and the passion, empathy, and energy of the CUMAC staff who are making a real difference in people's lives.

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I have the great good fortune to be married to my wife of 38 years, Rosemary Plumstead, who herself is an Aesthetic Realism consultant and was an educator in the New York City public school system for over 3 decades. As you can see from the photos I've included here, we've enjoyed traveling together, from Rome to the Grand Canyon and the wilds of Alaska, South and Central America, Cuba, South Korea, Bosnia and many other places.  We've discovered that people everywhere, while different in many taking ways, are also very much related—with hopes and fears and the same human desire to like the world. 

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I’m happy to welcome you to this website, and I look forward to the journey we can take together!