Pastoral/Ministerial Transitions
I know different traditions have different approaches to calling and receiving new ministers/pastors.
In the Lutheran tradition a pastor is called by the congregation for ministry. There are a number of variations depending on the Synod. I will only speak to the ELCA process here.
Our previous pastor retired last June. We have been in a transition since. During the transition our congregation went through a self-study of the make-up of our ministries and where we see the future mission of our congregation going. The results of this study were submitted to the bishop. She, in turn, drew up a list of potential names. The first three names our call committee rejected. Not sure why because the actions of the call committee are secret. The second list had one potential name the committee was interested in, but that person ended up accepting a call elsewhere before his/her name could be presented to the congregation. The third round produced a name, and he came out for an interview. He indicated if we were to call him, he would accept. In this case the individual was in an interim status, so it was not like he already had a call. Usually all of this is kept very private because if the individual had a call, we would not want to impact the continuation of that call should the individual decline a new call.
We will formally extend the call next week. Since secrecy was not a problem, the church council, along with the bishop, and the candidate felt there should be some contract negotiations to be completed. Much of it had to do with what our congregation was willing to pay. In the US, there is not only base pay, but housing allowance, insurance coverage which has become phenomenally high, retirement remuneration. The there is the issue of paid family leave if a member of the family becomes ill and so on.
We expect the new pastor to be in place by the middle of March, which will mean he will arrive right before Easter. Seems like jumping into the deep end before he can test the water.
For me, I hope this will be the last call process I will have to go through. Our congregation has had a history of long term calls lasting 15 years on average, and since I am in my mid 70s I will likely term out before this person will complete his call here.
Feeling hopeful, but also feeling anxious for the new pastor. I have been in his shoes myself. I have a taste for what it is like to be in a new call.
His family will not immediately come over, since he has a child finishing high school in about six weeks. It would be hard for the young person to pull up stakes, fall into a new peer group, and then graduate. This way the person will be able to finish out secondary school and begin the transition to college with as little disruption.
Anyway, what is it like for your faith community to extend a call? Are you finding it harder and harder to meet the financial needs of your called people? What obstacles have your people seen in extending or continuing a call?
Asking for prayers for our new guy as we begin a new chapter in the life of the congregation.
In the Lutheran tradition a pastor is called by the congregation for ministry. There are a number of variations depending on the Synod. I will only speak to the ELCA process here.
Our previous pastor retired last June. We have been in a transition since. During the transition our congregation went through a self-study of the make-up of our ministries and where we see the future mission of our congregation going. The results of this study were submitted to the bishop. She, in turn, drew up a list of potential names. The first three names our call committee rejected. Not sure why because the actions of the call committee are secret. The second list had one potential name the committee was interested in, but that person ended up accepting a call elsewhere before his/her name could be presented to the congregation. The third round produced a name, and he came out for an interview. He indicated if we were to call him, he would accept. In this case the individual was in an interim status, so it was not like he already had a call. Usually all of this is kept very private because if the individual had a call, we would not want to impact the continuation of that call should the individual decline a new call.
We will formally extend the call next week. Since secrecy was not a problem, the church council, along with the bishop, and the candidate felt there should be some contract negotiations to be completed. Much of it had to do with what our congregation was willing to pay. In the US, there is not only base pay, but housing allowance, insurance coverage which has become phenomenally high, retirement remuneration. The there is the issue of paid family leave if a member of the family becomes ill and so on.
We expect the new pastor to be in place by the middle of March, which will mean he will arrive right before Easter. Seems like jumping into the deep end before he can test the water.
For me, I hope this will be the last call process I will have to go through. Our congregation has had a history of long term calls lasting 15 years on average, and since I am in my mid 70s I will likely term out before this person will complete his call here.
Feeling hopeful, but also feeling anxious for the new pastor. I have been in his shoes myself. I have a taste for what it is like to be in a new call.
His family will not immediately come over, since he has a child finishing high school in about six weeks. It would be hard for the young person to pull up stakes, fall into a new peer group, and then graduate. This way the person will be able to finish out secondary school and begin the transition to college with as little disruption.
Anyway, what is it like for your faith community to extend a call? Are you finding it harder and harder to meet the financial needs of your called people? What obstacles have your people seen in extending or continuing a call?
Asking for prayers for our new guy as we begin a new chapter in the life of the congregation.
Comments
The minister at our home congregation has been there for 24 years and will retire after another year. Like several other congregations, the session decided on a succession planning process whereby the incumbent minister will remain while the new one is called, and they will then work together for a few months. You can look at this two ways: the strengths of the present pastorate will be continued seamlessly while those who are wary of change will be comforted or, the minister will more or less be cloned and there will be minimal change. Another approach, which I would have supported, would have been to appoint an interim minister, often done following a very long pastorate. But (among other reasons) it was a good time for me to retire as an active elder to avoid becoming the one square wheel on the wagon, making a lot of noise and slowing down the process.
It is then the responsibility of the patron or patronage board for the parish(es) to seek the new minister. Sometimes the bishop may have a ‘preferred candidate’ to suggest, but the parishes are not obliged to accept that person.
The post will most probably be advertised on the diocesan website and in the Church of England’s ‘Pathways’ website, and parishes may pay for it to be advertised in the church press (usually the Church Times). All being well, there are applications, shortlisting, interview process, and a decision. Finally, if the bishop hasn’t been involved in the interview process there will be an ‘approval interview’ with the bishop - usually just a formality.
But in the UK an increasing proportion are convert Anglicans who tend to be younger than the ageing clergy they are joining. " Based on a 2025 report covering the period from 1992 to 2024, approximately one-third (35%) of all Catholic priests ordained in England and Wales were former Anglican clergy." Many of them are married with families. This impacts the freedom the bishop has to move clergy.
When there is only one candidate for a vacancy, and parishes are desperate, it would be hard to exercise the option to veto that candidate.
I think this is a good principle but things don't always work out according to the ideal.
There is a crying need for more clergy.
Our church is about 30 years old and our first minister was the one who planted it. He moved on to plant a new church in another city a decade later.
His replacement was a lay preacher chosen by our local church leadership. He stood down after a few years (not sure how long but probably less than a decade) to return to his lay vocation.
He was replaced by a member of our church leadership, who was mentored by someone from New Frontiers (the mentor was an older man who became a permanent member of the congregation).
Over a decade later, this minister is now moving on to plant a church on the continent. The congregation has been given a year’s notice so we have the opportunity to pray together and discuss the transition as a church. The replacement is being chosen by the local church leadership and they are being mentored in this by someone in the leadership of New Frontiers who visits to get to know the congregation. I expect the new minister will be one of the elders (I know who I would like it to be!)
This very component -- search committee secrecy -- is largely what ended up causing the complete fracture of a robust ECUSA parish, shortly after a prolonged search resulted in the calling of a larcenous, narcissistic priest. It's too much to go into here, but processes that aren't fully transparent will always be suspect to me now.