Our Pastors and Ruling Elders
Schöne Grüße! My name is Philip Gelston and I am the pastor of Christ Church of Wiesbaden. My family and I moved to Wiesbaden in August, 2011 to plant CCW. I grew up in Crystal River, Florida. As a child, my parents taught me to fear the Lord but it wasn't until high school that I became serious about my relationship with God. Through the loving kindness and faithful biblical teaching of my church, I came face to face with the reality of my sin and the grace of God that is only offered in the Gospel. Soon after I felt a call to ministry.
While in Seminary I began dating Nora, who is now my wife. Nora is a German citizen from Bad Breisig and we met in Pittsburgh, PA where she was a university student. After we both graduated (she from Robert Morris and I from Westminster Seminary), we were married and moved to Richmond, VA so I could be the Youth Pastor at Sycamore Presbyterian Church. We served in Richmond for 6 great years and during that time our hearts for the kingdom worldwide grew. We knew we had special inroads in Germany because of Nora’s citizenship and so we partnered with our denomination, the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) and Ministry to the Military and Internationals (MMI) to plant a church in Wiesbaden. We have 4 children.
I am a graduate of Covenant College ('98) and Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia ('04)
Pastor of German Ministries
Johannes Damaschke is an Assistant Pastor at CCW and has been leading our German Language Ministries since August, 2024 (check out CCWDeutsch.de). As a native Schwabe he grew up about an hour south of Stuttgart. There he also came to know and love the Lord Jesus Christ. He graduated from the University of Mainz (American Studies / History) with a B.A. and from Reformed Theological Seminary, Charlotte, N.C, with an M.Div. Beginning in the fall of 2024 he will continue his education at the University of Heidelberg with a Ph.D. in historical theology. His desire is to make disciples and see the church grow in love for the triune God and committed to the Reformed faith. With his wife Emilie he has one son, Olevian (’23), and a second on the way. Emilie is originally from Strasbourg (France). She serves alongside Johannes as a stay-at-home mom and loves to support the ministry of the church in various ways.
Ruling Elder
By the grace of God, Bravo Santoso is a ruling elder at Christ Church of Wiesbaden. After spending childhood and attending formal school in Medan, Indonesia, Bravo came to Germany and completed studies in Mechatronics and in Mathematics. Having been raised in a Christian home, he was converted by the Holy Spirit to become a believer in Jesus Christ while reading an evangelistic tract, was introduced to Reformed theology by his older brother, started to serve in the local church, and wrote books sharing the testimony that the Bible is the Word of God. Holding a CCM from Birmingham Theological Seminary and a MATS from Whitefield Theological Seminary, Bravo yearns to invite every Christian to read and study the whole Bible as well as to point to Jesus as Lord and Savior, because belief in Jesus and reading the Word of God have indeed changed his life. Bravo and his wife Ervina have been blessed with two children.