Downingtown, PA
Please join us as we welcome Bishop Patricia Ann Curtis Davenport for the installation of Messiah’s new pastor, Timothy H. Knauss.
Clergy are invited to vest; the color of the day is white.
46 West Lancaster Avenue
Downingtown, PA 19335
Our building is handicap accessible.
Pastor Greenwald will be holding special question & answer sessions this summer. During the sessions, she’ll explain the Interim process of gathering information about the mission and ministries of Messiah. It’s a time for you to ask the questions that you’ve been thinking about and to get firsthand information about the process, and it’s a time to hear how God is working and walking with you.
Here are the details—mark your calendar and plan to join us!
| Task | Status |
| Consultation with Synod when a Pastor Resigns | Complete |
| Notifying the Congregation | Complete |
| Exit Interview | Complete |
| Farewell Celebration | Complete |
| Receipt Form for Congregational Records and Financial Settlements | Complete |
| Establishing Proper Boundaries with Former Pastor | Complete |
| Procedure for Selection of Interim | Complete |
| Interim Ministry Costs | Complete |
| Letter of Agreement with Interim | Complete |
| Bridge Pastor (if necessary) | TBD |
| Task | Status |
| The Interim Pastor Arrives | Complete |
| What is Intentional Interim Ministry? | Complete |
| The Five Focus Points | Complete |
Preparing the Congregational Profile
|
Complete |
| Final Review of Congregational Profile by Office of the Bishop | Complete |
| Task | Status |
| Selection of a Call Committee and Call Process Option | Complete |
| Call Committee Begins Meeting | Complete |
| The Synod Committee of Deans and Its Functions | Complete |
| Interview Process | Complete |
| Call Committee Recommendation to Council | Complete |
| Council and Candidate Interview Each Other | Complete |
| Preparation for Special Congregation Meeting | Complete |
| Council Recommendation to Congregation | Complete |
| The Call Meeting (Special Congregational Meeting) | Complete |
| Conclusion of Congregation-Interim Pastor Partnership | February 28 |
| Task | Status |
| Welcome Next Pastor | |
| Arrange and Plan for Installation Service | |
| Sharing the Work and Vision of the Transition Process with the Next Pastor | |
| Role of Former Interim | |
| Develop Plan for Continued Implementation of Vision | |
| Constant Transition |
The flow of the call process includes four phases that we will journey through together.
Phase One of the interim process begins when a pastor resigns or departs for any reason. As a pastor leaves, it is important to find a way to say goodbye and to begin to define appropriate boundaries so that the congregation is able to receive another individual as the pastor. Phase One ends in the selection of a qualified Interim Pastor.
Phase Two of the interim process begins with the welcoming of the Interim Pastor. The Intentional Interim Pastor will carry out the work of interim ministry by following a widely-accepted process known as the Five Developmental Tasks for a congregation in transition. Phase Two concludes with the preparation of a package of material called the Congregational Profile, and its submission to and approval by the Synod’s Office of the Bishop.
At this point, the congregation selects a Call Committee. That Call Committee receives the names of possible pastoral candidates in a highly confidential process. After the Call Committee interviews pastoral candidate(s) and hears them preach, it eventually recommends one pastoral candidate to the Council. If the Council agrees, the Council calls a special congregational meeting arranged in cooperation with the Office of the Bishop. If the congregation decides to issue a call to the pastoral candidate, and the pastoral candidate accepts, then he or she becomes the next regularly-called pastor of the congregation.
Throughout the process the congregation has worked to develop its vision of the future to which God is calling it and has called the pastor it believes will lead it in pursuing this vision. Now the congregation welcomes this new pastor. Rather than set aside the work of the transition process, it is important for the pastor and congregation to work on implementation together. The arrival of the next pastor is not a time when “things return to normal,” but is a continuing part of transition.
At the beginning of 2017, Messiah Lutheran Church entered the Call Process. The Call Process is when a congregation’s regularly called pastor (Pastor Gulotta) leaves, we enter into the “interim period” – a time for saying goodbye, reflecting on our faith community’s past and discerning God’s purpose for future ministry, and calling a new spiritual leader to guide the congregation into this new season.
Use these links or the menu above to access information about:
We’ll be using our website as a location to share information during this journey and provide a place to ask questions. If you have questions or concerns during this process, please don’t hesitate to contact me.
Jon Marsh
Vice-President, Church Council