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Brian David Gilbert
Town: Murfreesboro, Tenn., is my hometown, but I currently live in Princeton.
Family: I am single, I grew up with my mother, father and older sister. One of my grandmothers also grew up next door on the family farm and was always involved in my life.
Occupation: I am a pastor in the United Methodist Church serving at First UMC of Princeton.
What was your first job: My first job was working at a pizza joint called Mazio's when I was 16. Before that I did work and chores around the family farm … but my parents didn't pay me any money to do that … it was just expected for me to do the work to help the family.
What is your favorite movie: Hmm, I love older movies from the '50s like "The 10 Commandments." For a more modern flavor, I enjoy sci-fi movies, particularly "Star Wars" and am looking forward to watching the new one coming out soon.
What is your favorite book: I feel like I am supposed to say the Bible in response to this question since I'm a pastor ... but, I love the Harry Potter books and the Lord of the Rings trilogy.
What is the best concert you've been to: Metallica, by far!
If you met a genie who granted you one wish, what would you wish for: Again, I feel like I should wish for world peace and harmony, but deep down I'd also want to make a wish for a fully functioning Enterprise D with crew.
What's the hardest thing you've ever done: When I was 23 and in seminary I contracted a rare bacterial blood disease that almost killed me. I spent two and one-half weeks in the intensive care unit in a hospital. For the next three months after that I had to relearn how to walk. Trying to get around in my early 20s with a walker and deal with mobility issues and poor health was a challenge and eye opening experience. Fortunately, I'm doing very well now and don't have many side affects. It has really, in the long run, helped me in my own ministry empathize with people that are facing the loss of mobility and freedoms in their own life as they recover from their own medical issues.
Where do you most want to travel, but have never been: I would love to one day travel to the Southern Ocean and see Antarctica.
What is one thing you're truly passionate about: I am really passionate about opening the church to all people. I think a lot of people have encountered a dispassionate and sanitized version of Christianity that has left a sour taste in their mouths. Faith is a messy business, and I think the church needs to claim that. Religion isn't about judging people and beating them into submission — at least it shouldn't be. Religion should be about people coming together to try and discern what this God is trying to do in our midst and in our time. How do we connect our individual and communal struggles with this Jesus Christ? How do we live in such a way that the world is made a better place? And how do I, broken and messed up as I am, find healing and hope right here … right now? These are all questions that ought to be what church is all about. For me, my passion is about helping the church be more than just a one hour service on Sunday ... helping it be a transformational agent of grace in our world.
What is your favorite area restaurant, and what do you like to order there: I'd have to say The Prime Quarter and steak of course ... but I also have to say I love a nice iced coffee and cookie from The Flour House as well.
What is something you like about your hometown: I really like how kind everyone has been since I've moved here. I've lived in Princeton for two months and everyone has been very gracious to me. So my favorite part of this town are its people.
Is there anything you would change about your hometown: I'd love to have a coffee shop that is open late. I'm a coffee fiend, and it's hard not having a coffee shop I can sit at around 9 or 10 p.m. reading a book while enjoying a dark roast.