Lake Fellow in Parish Ministry

317-253-6461 | TBrinks@SecondChurch.org

A native Michigander, Tyler grew up in Commerce Township, a northwest suburb of Detroit, and attended Hope College in Holland, like many family members before him. Tyler comes from a religiously eclectic family. His dad’s side includes family who attend either other large Presbyterian Church (USA) churches or congregations in the Reformed Church in America; two of his cousins are ministers in the RCA. His mom’s side, by contrast, includes an aunt who’s spiritual but not traditionally religious and his uncle who practices Buddhism and married into a Jewish family. Because of the love and admiration Tyler has for his religiously mixed family, he tries to practice a Christian faith that’s less dogmatic and more perceptive to where and how God is working in ways unexpected.

A champion of generous orthodoxy (committed faith and faithfulness with flexibility and openness), Tyler considers the church’s equipment—preaching and teaching, praise and prayer, the sacraments and life together and for each other—as important resources for us as we live into God’s calls on our lives and the call to heal our broken but not irredeemable world. We need each other for that journey ahead, and Tyler is glad he’s joined the community at Second and in Indianapolis to travel that road together.

A graduate of Princeton Seminary (MDiv/MACEF), Tyler has served churches in Philadelphia, PA; virtually, in Flushing, NY; and in Bloomfield Hills, MI, at his home church, Kirk in the Hills. An avid and competitive runner (and generally active guy), Tyler looks forward to exploring Indy on foot. Tyler is also learning to garden, usually drinking coffee from a yellow mug, often listening to podcasts, and still, sort of, learning to read and write.