Parsonage in a Pear Tree
Lighthearted Glimpses at Life in a Small Town Pastor's Family
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About the Book
Arlo Janssen, the author of PARSONAGE IN A PEAR TREE, writes about his being brought up in a small town in Minnesota in the 1930's and early 40's. The large family, of which he was number seven, lived in a parsonage, next to the church, where his father was the pastor
Though the family was poor, humor abounded in their home life. They were able to smile in virtually all circumstances. The title of the book comes from their singing, as a joke, the "Twelve Days of Christmas" with the words, "And a Parsonage In a Pear Tree."
The book contains episodes and information from the life of the children in the family, especially the youngest. Arlo, number seven of ten siblings, was ''the oldest of the youngest.''
Some episodes are touching; some are humorous; all are interesting. People who have been brought up in small towns say, when they read the book, that they can identify with almost everything.
PARSONAGE IN A PEAR TREE is not Christian book, as such; however, it definitely has a heartwarming Christian message in various chapters. The Janssens were all committed Lutheran Christians.
About the Author
ARLO T. JANSSEN, born and reared in a Lutheran parsonage in Odessa, Minnesota, taught in parochial schools in Wisconsin and Pennsylvania. After graduating from Concordia Seminary, Springfield, Illinois, in 1955, Arlo served parishes in Indiana and Pennsylvania. Moving to Arizona in 1962, he directed the Mule Mountain Christian Youth Camp in Bisbee and attended the University of Arizona, earning two more degrees. From 1966 to 1999 Janssen taught English and speech at Cochise College in Douglas, Arizona, and wrote textbooks for teaching English as second language. Living today in Benson, Arizona, with his wife, Ofelia, he still writes and assists in Lutheran parishes, including a Spanish-language parish in Tucson. After all these years, Janssen loves most to write and talk about growing up in a parsonage in the village of Odessa, in western Minnesota, near the South Dakota border.