The Rev. Matthew Best recently joined the LAMPa Policy Council as a representative of the Lower Susquehanna Synod (LSS).  Since 2017, Best has served as the pastor of St. Stephen Lutheran Church, New Kingstown. Pastor Best also serves on the LSS Council, currently serving on the Executive Committee of Synod Council. He is also Chair of Emmaus Village, a tiny home project in the works that will assist folks experiencing homelessness in the Carlisle area.

Pastor Best graduated from Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg in May, 2017. During his tenure he completed one year of exchange studies in Finland at the University of Helsinki. He holds a BA in Political Science from Grove City College where he graduated with high honors in 1998.

Prior to his ordination Pastor Best worked for: US Representative Phil English (1998-1999), Washington, DC; was a Legislative Assistant for The Redding Firm, a lobbying firm on Capital Hill, Washington DC (1999-2000); had his own government affairs firm (2000-2002);  worked for a PA State Rep. (2002-2003); done strategy and campaign management for a variety of candidates over the years; served as President of Best Solutions – coaching and consulting (2003-2009); and worked for Project SHARE – a Carlisle based food pantry (2009 – 2013) initially as the Volunteer Coordinator and then Operations Manager for about 3 years.

Pastor Best shares why advocacy is important to his ministry, “Advocacy isn’t optional, or something that is an addition to faith. It’s an integral and essential part of what it means to live out the faith we receive from God. Jesus didn’t preach an otherworldly faith that had no impact on the lives of the people he walked with. Instead, the Gospel of Jesus is still alive today because it impacts people’s lives in real ways. We are living out our faith when we advocate for our neighbors.”