Questioning the Locals: The Rev’d Canon Aaron Zook

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WHO: The Rev’d Canon Aaron Zook
OCCUPATION: Canon to the Ordinary, Diocese of Eau Claire; Priest-in-charge, St. Simeon’s in Lafayette and Christ Church Chippewa Falls
LIVES: West Hill, Chippewa Falls
IN THE VALLEY: 34 years, resident of Chippewa Falls since 2015
FAMILY: Wife, Anna; daughter, Mamie; cats, Iggy and Newton

After spending countless hours on stage – including more than 1,000 performances at Fanny Hill Dinner Theatre – Aaron Zook took on a new role in 2013 when he was ordained a priest in the Episcopal Church. Zook grew up in Fall Creek and graduated from UW-Eau Claire with a degree in theater and religious studies – a pairing that has served as a template for his life so far. He helped found the Bare Bones Theatre Company and performed with numerous community and university theatrical groups (cooking, delivering furniture, and working at a laundromat to pay the rent). A decade ago he began pursuing holy orders, and attended a seminary near Oconomowoc. Now he oversees two parishes in the Chippewa Falls area, including Christ Church, which is celebrating its 150th anniversary this month. Zook, 37, talked with us about the similarity between working on the stage and behind the pulpit, a legendary waterslide that was never built, and the time Justin Vernon opened for a klezmer band.

What are some of your most fond theatrical memories?

There are several. My favorite is performing with my wife, Anna, for the 1,000th time at Fanny Hill. She was always my favorite actor to work with and to have reached that milestone was a testament to our shared artistic life. Another favorite was escaping from a straightjacket as an opening act for Amateur Love at the old Stones Throw. The bar’s insurance company made them take down some posters that showed me hanging from the ceiling. As far as I know, there is still a toggle bolt jammed into a support beam directly above the old stage area.

How does a guy go from the theater to the priesthood? Describe your journey.

My time in the Theatre was never about being famous or even entertaining people (though I enjoyed giving the audience a release from their everyday lives). It was always about trying to learn why people make the choices they do. I was always looking for motivation so I could understand the way different characters handle the struggle of life: What people prioritize and why they do – that’s what truly shows their character. For me, the Theatre and the Church are not that different. The Theatre is a snapshot and the Church is a gateway, but they are both looking at the same things: Who are we, how did we get here and what do we do to become something better?

What do being on stage in the theater and “on stage” in front of a congregation have in common?

There is a surprising amount of overlap. In both cases there are practical aspects like what you wear and whether people can hear you or not. Beyond those similarities there is an essential connection that motivates both activities. In either case, you are actively distorting time. In Theatre, you’re pulling people out of their day and transporting them to the time and place of the action of the play. In the Church, you are pulling people out of time altogether, but rather than transporting them to a different point in time, you’re folding time up like an origami swan and helping them navigate into the past and the future simultaneously. In either case, you’re giving people perspective and reminding them that their struggles are shared with other people throughout history and beyond cultural context.

Many people find spiritual meaning and fulfillment in the arts. How does that relate to finding spiritual fulfillment in a church?

I imagine that there isn’t a single activity in life that can’t be a source of spiritual meaning. Some activities, like artistic endeavors, lend themselves to the process more universally than others do. A person can hear God’s voice while scrubbing a toilet, but it isn’t a pleasant way to search that out. Working in the arts allows you to see a moment from all angles, from inception to creation to life. That kind of work takes an internal Truth and tries to make it universal so that other people can understand it. The Church takes universal Truth and tries to internalize it so that individuals can live that Truth for themselves. They are closely related. They are like the front doors of a car: one drives and one is driven, but they are part of the same vehicle and they share a destination.

What is one of the best cultural experiences you’ve ever had in the Chippewa Valley? 

Sometime in the early 2000s, I saw a klezmer band play at the Old Racy D’lene’s. It was their first (and possibly only) performance. Justin Vernon opened for them and he accompanied himself by recording and looping phrases from his guitar. He built this beautiful, complex piece over the span of about 15 minutes, then he slowly deconstructed it. It was remarkable. He sang in the deepest registers of his voice, which he rarely does anymore. The whole thing was beautiful. Casey Anderson was leading the Klezmer band and they managed to connect to that opening act without feeling contrived. The whole night was great.

What frustrates you about the Chippewa Valley?

I think we have a tendency to forget just how many of us there are in the Chippewa Valley so we have blinders on about some issues. The area has such a wonderful “small-town” feel, that we easily lose track of people on the margins, like the unemployed and the homeless, and we also don’t realize how much we could change those things if we banded together.

What is your favorite piece of local trivia?

Fanny Hill Dinner Theatre almost had the area’s largest and strangest outdoor water slide. When the business was still owned by Larry Barr, the eccentric and brilliant businessman who created most of the music festivals in the Eau Claire area, he had developers investigate the cost of putting a slide from the back deck of Fanny Hill to the Chippewa River, a span of about 600 feet. He thought he could buy an old chair lift from a defunct ski hill to bring people back to the restaurant. In the end, he decided the cost was prohibitive.

Christ Episcopal Church will be celebrating its 150th anniversary soon. What events do you have planned?

We’ll be giving historic tours of our building on Saturday (Aug. 27) and walking people through the growth and evolution of the parish. The tours start at 10am. We’ll also be holding an ecumenical service on Saturday at 2pm to celebrate all the people and events that have been a part of our ministries for the last century and a half. We’ll cap off Saturday with a free dinner in our churchyard. On Sunday morning (Aug. 28), we shift gears from looking at our past to working on our future by holding a service that will include a baptism as well as several confirmations. That service is at 10am and our bishop, The Rt. Rev’d Jay Lambert, will be celebrating. It is pretty wonderful to think that not only can we celebrate 150 years of continual ministry, but can ensure many more years as we liturgically welcome several people into our community.

Is this longevity unusual for a small-town church?

This longevity is unusual for any church, regardless of the size of its community. The Church has always been “cyclical.” It tends to grow and shrink through generations several times over. Most churches aren’t emotionally equipped for the lean years. Because of that, they often merge with other congregations, or simply shut the doors and walk away. Others are very dependent on a given family and as that family’s children and grandchildren move away, the parish loses its core leadership and has trouble identifying itself. With Christ Church, we have a parish that has a very fluid identity and, as such, it continually adapts to make the most of the people who are here.

What are the most interesting things you’ve learned about the church as you’ve prepared for the anniversary?

The most interesting part of the research has been how big of a role our church has played in the community. Beyond the services and ministries and outreach over the years, Christ Church has been a center of so many parts of the community in Chippewa Falls. For example, for many years, the community used our space for theatrical performances. Our parish even had a “Dramatic Club” that performed plays in the Church and elsewhere around town. Personally, that seems eerily appropriate to me.