Timothy Murphy
A progressive Christian pastor, author, and former Claremont School of Theology adjunct in his first run for elected office, Murphy is the lone Democrat on the May 5 ballot for Indiana Senate District 19. He'll face the winner of the Holdman / Fiechter Republican primary in November in a district Trump won by 39 points in 2024.
The 60-second story
Rev. Dr. Timothy Murphy is a progressive Christian pastor, author, and former adjunct professor of religion and ethics who is the lone Democrat on the May 5 ballot for Indiana State Senate District 19. He has been Senior Pastor of Plymouth Congregational Church (United Church of Christ) in Fort Wayne since August 2018 and self-describes as a 'minister-scholar-activist.'
Murphy will face the winner of the Holdman / Fiechter Republican primary in the November 3 general election, in a district President Trump won by 39 percentage points in 2024. The campaign platform he is running on is unusually detailed for a long-shot challenger in a deep-red district — covering democracy reform (popular ballot initiatives, multi-member districts with proportional representation), economic justice (raising and indexing the minimum wage, ending 'right to work'), universal subsidized childcare at $10/day, paid parental and sick leave, environmental policy, restoring abortion access, replacing Indiana's flat income tax with a progressive structure, tenant protections, and free public transit for under-18s and over-65s.
He is the author of two Chalice Press books — 'Counter-Imperial Churching for a Planetary Gospel: Radical Discipleship for Today' and 'Sustaining Hope in an Unjust World: How to Keep Going When You Want to Give Up.' Before Fort Wayne he was Executive Director of Progressive Christians Uniting, a Los Angeles-based faith-and-social-justice nonprofit, and an adjunct instructor at Claremont School of Theology where he taught courses on religion, ethics, immigration, and inter-religious justice movements.
Murphy's pre-campaign public profile in Fort Wayne included a notable June 2025 hunger strike for Gaza — a coordinated nationwide action that his associate pastor Rev. Sara Ofner-Seals began in May on a 250-calorie-per-day fast; Murphy joined on June 1, 2025 with a zero-calorie strike. The pastors held a press conference and were covered by the United Church of Christ's national news service. He has explained his decision to run on his campaign site as a response to 'the unresponsive and unrepresentative state of our current democracy,' and writes that 'the deck may feel stacked against us, but I'm ready to help make the impossible possible.'
Quick facts
- Residence Fort Wayne, Indiana (in the southeast Allen County portion of Senate District 19)
- Profession Senior Pastor, Plymouth Congregational Church (UCC), since August 2018
- Education BA, Centre College (Kentucky); MDiv, Eden Theological Seminary (Missouri); PhD, Claremont School of Theology (California)
- Family Wife, Candace
- Religious tradition United Church of Christ; standing also in Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)
- Books Counter-Imperial Churching for a Planetary Gospel; Sustaining Hope in an Unjust World (Chalice Press)
- Prior states of residence Kentucky, Missouri, Texas, California — moved to Fort Wayne in 2018
- First run for office Yes
Three things voters should know
He's a progressive pastor running an unusually detailed platform
Murphy's campaign site lays out positions across nine policy areas — democracy reform, economic justice, education, families, environment, healthcare, taxes, housing, and transportation — each with three to five concrete proposals. For a presumed-long-shot Democrat in a deep-red district, this level of platform detail is rare. Standout planks include a $10/day childcare cap, replacing Indiana's flat income tax with a progressive structure, multi-member legislative districts with proportional representation, and free public transit for under-18s and over-65s.
He went on a hunger strike for Gaza
In June 2025, Murphy and his associate pastor at Plymouth Church, Rev. Sara Ofner-Seals, joined a coordinated nationwide fast for Gaza organized by Veterans for Peace and Friends of Sabeel North America. Ofner-Seals fasted on 250 calories per day starting May 22; Murphy joined on June 1 with a zero-calorie hunger strike. They held a press conference advocating for full restoration of humanitarian aid to Gaza and were covered by the United Church of Christ's national news service. The action pre-dated his Senate campaign but illustrates his approach to public moral advocacy.
Author, scholar, and former Claremont teacher
Murphy is the author of two books published by Chalice Press — 'Counter-Imperial Churching for a Planetary Gospel: Radical Discipleship for Today' and 'Sustaining Hope in an Unjust World: How to Keep Going When You Want to Give Up.' Before Fort Wayne, he was an adjunct instructor at the Claremont School of Theology (2016–2018) teaching courses including 'Immigration as a Human Rights Crisis' and 'Religion, Poverty, and Inequality,' and Executive Director of Progressive Christians Uniting (2014–2016) focused on mass incarceration and climate change.
Biography
Timothy Charles Murphy grew up in Kentucky and pursued an academic and ministerial path that took him through three institutions: a Bachelor of Arts at Centre College (Danville, Kentucky), a Master of Divinity at Eden Theological Seminary (St. Louis, Missouri), and a Doctor of Philosophy from Claremont School of Theology in Southern California. He holds ordained standing in both the United Church of Christ and the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and has served in pastoral and ministry roles in Kentucky, Missouri, Texas, and California.
From 2007 to 2010 he was Minister for Youth and Social Justice at Pilgrim UCC in Carlsbad, California, where he led young-adult and youth ministries, organized direct-action and community-organizing engagement, and trained adult mentors in Safe Church boundaries and Our Whole Lives sexuality curriculum. He went on to serve in additional Southern California congregational and ministry roles.
From January 2014 to September 2016 he was Executive Director of Progressive Christians Uniting, a Los Angeles-based faith and social-justice 501(c)(3) focused on mass incarceration and climate change. During the same window he taught as an adjunct at Claremont School of Theology — courses including 'Immigration as a Human Rights Crisis,' 'Religion, Poverty, and Inequality,' 'Interreligious Justice Movements,' and 'Religious Leadership in Urban Contexts.' He also served as Transitional Pastor of All Peoples Christian Church in Los Angeles from late 2016 through 2018.
Murphy was called to serve as Senior Pastor and Teacher of Plymouth Congregational Church (UCC) in Fort Wayne in August 2018. Plymouth Church is an LGBTQ-affirming progressive Protestant congregation in downtown Fort Wayne (501 W Berry St., 46802); under Murphy's leadership it identifies as a 'global mission church' and a 'just peace church.' He and his wife, Candace, have lived in Fort Wayne since 2018.
His public-facing activism has included environmental advocacy (he has received an honor 'for your dedication to educating, raising awareness, and empowering congregations to actively protect and preserve Creation through responsible stewardship') and the June 2025 Gaza hunger strike alongside his associate pastor. His May 2025 campaign launch was accompanied by a Wix-built campaign site at murphyfor19.com, a Facebook campaign page, and an ActBlue donation conduit.
Career
Business holdings & ownership
Memberships & affiliations
Plymouth Congregational Church (UCC) — Senior Pastor, United Church of Christ — ordained ministerial standing, Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) — ordained ministerial standing, Progressive Christians Uniting — former Executive Director (2014–2016), Veterans for Peace / Friends of Sabeel North America — participant in 2025 Gaza fast, Indiana Democratic Party (Allen County)
Positions, in their own words
Where the money came from
$1,993 raised this cycle · 1993 contributions
- Allen County (Fort Wayne) individuals$1,018
- Other Indiana individuals$780
- Out-of-state individuals$195