bishops and other sources, was to put together a recommendation for the transition process and a time line.
No plan for interim When a pastor retires, conventional church wisdom has been that the longer the pastorate, the longer the interim period. This allows the con- gregation to grieve and prepare itself for new leadership. With the encour- agement of Delaware-Maryland Synod Bishop Wolfgang D. Herz- Lane, however, Christ Lutheran has embarked on a process that elimi- nates the need for an interim senior pastor.
In its recommendation to the
council, the task force noted several key reasons for what is being termed “a single handover” from the current senior pastor to the one to be called. First, the congregation is healthy, without major conflict. Next, the group noted that Christ Lutheran is “a complex organization requiring unique leadership skills that go far beyond the typical pastorate.” And, finally, the congregation already has a clear sense of its mission and purpose.
Herz-Lane also believes that the congregation is without issues that would require an interim pastor. He said Sabatelli’s early announcement of his retirement gave the congrega- tion “a gift of time to live through the kind of transition that ordinarily an interim pastor might lead.” The transition process consists of several key steps to be completed by subgroups of the Transition Task Force, assisted by others from the congregation. One group analyzed the mission and vision statements and solicited feedback from the congre- gation. The mission and vision stayed essentially the same, with some minor tweaking of language. Another group completed a
detailed staffing survey. In addition to interviewing staff, they considered different organizational patterns to improve the way the staff functions. One important outcome was that the council accepted the group’s rec- ommendation that the senior pastor continue to chair the boards of the various social ministry and educa- tional entities of Christ Lutheran. A third group, in addition to facilitating farewell celebrations, produced guidelines setting forth expectations for departing staff and parishioners during the transition period and after. Yet another group has begun working on the congrega- tional profile that is part of the call process. A primary emphasis throughout the transition, Thomas said, has been strong communication—not only keeping the congregation informed as the process unfolds but also actively seeking input from members. To that end, the Transition Task Force gave parishioners the opportu- nity to suggest their own or another person’s name for the call committee. A council subcommittee reviewed all nominees before recommending a final slate of call committee members to be presented to the whole council for action.
Sabatelli believes the process so far is working well. The bishop’s
OFTEN IMITATED •
support has been crucial, as has what Sabatelli terms a “gifted, talented and prayerful group of lay leaders who are committed to the process as it evolves, committed to the church, and committed to Jesus Christ and the mission of the church.” The con- gregation is not in survival mode but is looking forward. From the perspective of the task
force, Thomas said it’s most impor- tant to involve as many people as possible through formal and informal lines of communication. No matter how smooth the transi- tion, people are going to react and are going to have concerns, he said. It’s the task force’s responsibility to help people bring those concerns forward and help them “embrace the new pastor as the new spiritual leader of the congregation, not holding on to the past but looking forward to even better days ahead under new leadership.”
At this point, the call committee’s work is proceeding in the usual fash- ion. Candidates will be nominated by the bishop and interviewed by the call committee. The current time line calls for identifying a new pastor by the time of Sabatelli’s retirement next June.
For more information, contact Ronald Thomas at
rathomas@towson.edu.
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October 2011 35
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