I imagine you all remember Pastor Larson discussing the New Testament book of Hebrews while he was with us for the 4 Sundays in August. Hebrews 11:1 says …”faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” I was reminded of that verse this past Sunday when I talked about where we are in our journey to bring a new pastor to Holy Trinity. We are right now at a critical juncture in this journey. The Ministry Site Profile (MSP) has been submitted to the Synod office in preparation for being posted on the website for review by rostered clergy in New England and around the country. In addition to Lutheran clergy, there are numerous Protestant denominations with which the ELCA is in communion. Clergy from those other Protestant denominations may also be interested in the position. The future of our search process is unknown, but we have “faith in the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.”
At this point, let’s pause for a moment thank the team members who have been working to get us to this point, and to pray for the Call Committee members as they lead the interview process. Those who worked on the first component of the journey, that is planning and executing transition activities in preparation to writing the MSP include: Dan Scammon, Rebecca Schrumm, Jessica Feeley, Jeff Morrison, Auderien Soeun, Cheryl Brigham, Byrl Short and Paul Karl as Council liaison. Take a moment to thank them when you see them. The MSP Writing Team utilized the data from all the transition activities to craft the document that we sent this week to the Synod office. The writers are Mark Beliveau, Dot Kasik, Linda Edwards, and Eileen Kackenmeister. They did a masterful job.
The Call Committee is convening now to begin the process of reviewing applications in preparation for interviews. The group will be led by Dick Topping and includes Dave Smith, Julie Moore, Tina Maiorino, Bobbi Febbo, and Stephanie Goupil, with Erline Beliveau as Council liaison. Their work must remain confidential so we will not be able to follow developments in their activities.
We know from recent discussions that at the moment there are a number of churches in New England as well as several right here in New Hampshire searching for new pastoral leadership. We pray for the Call Committee in this important discernment process and that their minds will be open to the words of the Holy Spirit.