UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST SUMMARY CHURCH PROFILE

Transcription

1 UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST SUMMARY CHURCH PROFILE Second Congregation al Church Cohasset, MA Senior Minister MA Conference Pilgrim Association June 30, 2017 LOCAL CHURCH PROFILE CONTENTS Position Posting Who Is God Calling Us To Become? Who Are We Now? Who Is Our Neighbor? References Consent and Validation God is able to provide you with every blessing, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work. (2 Corinthians 9:8)

2 POSITION POSTING LISTING INFORMATION SCOPE OF WORK COMPENSATION & SUPPORT WHO IS GOD CALLING TO MINISTER WITH US? LISTING INFORMATION Chu rch name: Str eet address: Web links: Second Congregational Church 43 Highland Avenue, Cohasset, MA See: (Note: Currently under revision) Confere nce: Massachusetts Association: Pilgrim UCC Conference or Association Staff Contact Person: Reverend. Don Remick, Associate Conference Minister, Summar y Ministr y Description The Second Congregational Church stands beside the town common in the picturesque seaside community of Cohasset, situated between Boston and Cape Cod. The church, known colloquially as Second Congo, has a rich history and will in seven years celebrate its bicentennial. Ministers seem to like it here: Only two have occupied the pulpit in the last four decades, the most recent having retired in June 2016 after serving twenty-nine years as pastor. We now seek a leader and partner to walk with us into Second Congo s third century and give new life to its motto of being a welcoming beacon of faith, love and service. Navigating the future will, we believe, require both respecting loved traditions and also challenging us with new ideas and approaches; remaining grounded in the teachings of Jesus Christ and the Bible while valuing the diversity of spiritual experience; and invigorating the internal fellowship of the congregation as well as its outward commitment towards service to its neighbors in need. We also know there is a fine line between vision and hallucination! The new minister and the congregation will need to attend to the practicalities of keeping the church sound financially and structurally as well as supporting its hardworking staff and volunteers. We aspire to see an increase in church membership by welcoming those of any age or background in search of a spiritual home. We envision a pastor who can meet people where they are and help them to LOCAL CHURCH PROFILE 2017 PAGE 2

3 discover the better angels of their nature. Believing that God is still speaking, we seek someone to help us listen and learn, be uplifted through worship, music and laughter and go forth with grateful hearts to be cheerful givers of ourselves. Phot ographs: Second Congregational Church of Cohasset LOCAL CHURCH PROFILE 2017 PAGE 3

4 Parsonage LOCAL CHURCH PROFILE 2017 PAGE 4

5 What We Value about Living in Our Area Cohasset is the quintessential, New England town. There are long stretches of oceanfront for boating, biking, walking and running. We are a community with history and character. Our schools are among the top in New England and our sports teams among the best on the South Shore. Our children can learn about the sea, the arts and theatre, or just have fun with their friends on the village green. We are only 15 miles from downtown Boston, accessible by boat and train and we have an amazing culture right here in town from the South Shore Music Circus, with summer performances by famous singers and comedians to the South Shore Arts Center that provides workshops, classes and special events for artists, young and old. Current size of membership Number of Members Active Non-Active 215 Pledging Members 91 Average Weekly Worship Attendance 78 Average Attendance Easter 182 Average Attendance Christmas Eve 194 Church School Enrollment 40 Average Weekly CE Attendance 8-10 Number of Baptisms 7 Number of Funerals 4 Number of Weddings 3 Number of Confirmations 9 New Members 0 Towns Where Parishioners Live 4 Committees Within the Church: Church Committee; Deacons; Trustees; Music; Christian Education; Finance; Flowers; Outreach; Nominating; and other small group ministries Languages used in ministr y: (other than English): None LOCAL CHURCH PROFILE 2017 PAGE 5

6 Position Title: Senior Minister Position Duration: Settled a called position intended for longer-term ministry in which the minister moves church membership to the congregation and moves standing to related association Compensation Level Full Time Does the total supp ort package meet conference compensation guidelines? Yes SCOPE OF WORK Cor e Competencies: 1. Inspirational 2. Engaging 3. Innovative 4. Servant Leader 5. Youthful in Spirit COMPENSATION AND SUPPORT Salar y Basis (from the Call Agreement Workbook, equal to Cash Salary plus Value of Parsonage/Housing Allowance): $60,000 to $80,000, depending on experience, plus the value of Parsonage/Housing Allowance plus benefits. Benefits: Health Insurance (family); Pension; Social Security offset; professional expenses; continuing education; sabbatical. What is the expected living situat ion for your next minist er? Parsonage is available if desired (currently rented). Housing allowance of $30,000-$35,000 is available if parsonage is not desired. LOCAL CHURCH PROFILE 2017 PAGE 6

7 Comment on the residential/commuting expectat ions for your next minister: The parsonage is available if desired. Otherwise, prefer 30-minute commute from Cohasset. State any incentives (e.g. school debt reduction or retention bonus after a certain number of years in position): We are open to talking about one or more mutually agreed upon incentives with candidates. Describe peer and professional supp ort availa ble for ministers in your association/conference: Mass Conference office, Pilgrim Association and local clergy group. WHO IS GOD CALLING TO MINISTER WITH US? Describe the ministry goals you envision your next minister co-collaborating with the congregation to achieve. Provide a welcoming atmosphere to visitors of all ages and with various religious backgrounds Grow the congregation, particularly young families Inspire our youth to be active in our church in ways that are relevant to them. Lead us in living out our new motto of being a welcoming beacon of faith, love and service Respect SCC traditions while encouraging and challenging us to embrace new ideas and approaches in worship and service Describe how your vision of the minister you ar e now seeking will assist the congregation in making an impact beyond its walls. An administrator/group facilitator who empowers the parish to discover their talents and gifts and inspires members to share them, both within and beyond the church s walls. Bring dynamic leadership to the pulpit with meaningful, scripturally based sermons relevant to today s world as they encourage the parish to action. Be a leader who appeals to a multigenerational congregation with particular focus on helping our youth to think beyond Cohasset and reflect on their role on society. Bring a sense of pragmatism to the fiscal matters of our church Expand our Appalachia Service Project (ASP) brand by encouraging the development of multigenerational hands-on local service opportunities. LOCAL CHURCH PROFILE 2017 PAGE 7

8 Specify language require ments or culturally-specific capacities preferr ed in a next ministerial leader, and why those matt er to the congregation s sense of calling. Our next minister will possess these qualities: Openness to affirming each individual as a child of God, celebrating the total identity of each person. Passion for growing our multigenerational congregation as a church home where visitors come, visit and stay. Based on what you have learned about who your church is, who your church s neighbor is, and who God is calling the church to become, describe four ar eas of excellence from The Marks of Faithful & Effective Authorized Ministry that your next minister will display to further equip the congre gation s ministr y in these are as. Building tr ansfor mational leadership skills Empowering the Church to be faithful to God s call, reflective of Christ s mission, and open to the surprises of the Holy Spirit. Strategically creating the future of God s Church. Witnessing in the public square to God s redeeming power. Performing necessary and appropriate administrative tasks. Working collaboratively with intellectual awareness and sensitivity. Encouraging leadership development of self and others through continuing education and lifelong learning. Engagi ng sacred stories and tr aditions Exhibiting knowledge, understanding, and continuing study of the Hebrew Scriptures and the New Testament. Maturing in effective proclamation and preaching. Understanding the history of the Christian Church, from biblical times forward. Bringing life to sacred stories and traditions in worship, proclamation, and witness. Leading faith formation effectively across generations. Holding the Holy with integrity especially as represented in the Sacraments. Bring relevance of sacred stories and traditions to today s culture and challenges. Wor king together for justice and mercy Drawing on the ministry of Jesus Christ to confront injustice and oppression. Practicing the radical hospitality of God. Identifying and working to overcome explicit and implicit bias in the life of the Church. Understanding community context and navigating change with a community. LOCAL CHURCH PROFILE 2017 PAGE 8

9 Engaging in mission and outreach. Building relationships of mutual trust and interdependence. Str engthening inter- and intr a-personal assets Developing and maintaining a healthy sense of self as shaped by God, community, and life experiences. Living in relationships of covenantal accountability with God and the Church. Exhibiting strong moral character and personal integrity. Respecting the dignity of all God s people. Understanding and ministering to stages of human development across the life span. Demonstrating excellent communication skills. WHO IS GOD CALLING US TO BECOME? You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. (Matthew 22:37 NRSV) Who is God calling you to become as a congregation? Knowing that the foolishness of God is wiser than men and the weakness of God is stronger than men (I Corinthians, Chapter 1), it feels a bit presumptuous to imagine answering this question with clarity or authority. Yet we do not lack for guidance: The Ten Commandments, the Beatitudes, the lessons of the parables the life and sacrifice of Jesus and the Acts of the Apostles to name some point the way. We imagine that God is calling us, the people of Second Congo, to live and act out these ancient wisdoms and timeless truths in our church, our community and the world. Perhaps God is calling us to strive toward a perfection we cannot, in all our human foolishness and weakness, understand or achieve completely. We believe that we must approach this question openly and with prayer that we may have eyes to see and ears to hear. We believe that God calls us, individually and collectively, to bring alive our motto of being a beacon of faith, love and service. Doing so means looking inward to strengthen our own faith as well as nourishing congregational fellowship within the church. Upon that rock, we then must also work outward acts of love and service. God is calling us, we believe, to make use of the array of talents embodied in our congregation: Some can help others (and our own church) remain in good shape through building and repairing and upkeep; others can comfort the afflicted and succor those in need; a few have special musical gifts and talents; some have a talent for humor and keeping things in perspective; a few may be peace builders and fence menders and others make important lay contributions to liturgy and worship. LOCAL CHURCH PROFILE 2017 PAGE 9

10 We believe that God calls us to have hearts grateful for the blessings bestowed upon us and to go forth as cheerful givers of ourselves. And that we should do so humbly and knowing that we are the instruments and not the composer or musician: I am the true vine and my Father is the gardener. I am the vine; you are the branches. The one who remains in me--and I in him-- bears much fruit, because apart from me you can accomplish nothing (John 15: 1, 5). Describe how God is calling you to reach out to address the emerging challenges and oppor tunities of your communit y and congregation. Currently we are at a crossroads when it comes to missions and outreach. We have long had a sound outreach program both locally and internationally, and our congregation is quick to respond to disasters. Our previous minister helped establish an Appalachian Service Project program that engages youth and adults from not only our congregation, but throughout our surrounding communities as well that has been running successfully for 25 years. On the other hand, we have just updated our 20-year-old mission statement and created a first time motto and vision statement. During this year our interim minister has lead us into creating a visitation team, book and study groups, strategic planning committee, passing of the peace during worship service and re-introduced a congregational vision and planning session (called re-gearment day) all of which have been met with great enthusiasm. In addition, we have been encouraged as a congregation to personally reach out and greet visitors and share a welcome/contact card with them rather than assuming that that is a Deacons role solely. As a church family many, but not all of us are awakening to the fact that we have become complacent in our beautiful community and church facility and in that in our complacency we have not been the welcoming congregation that we perceives ourselves to be. We feel both invigorated and frightened by our collective awakening to our needs as a body of Christ striving to keep our almost 200 year-old church relevant and thriving in the 21st century. Our congregational leaders are determined to seek God s guidance and listen for God s voice as we move forward. Our strategic planning team is meeting frequently to create a multi-year strategic plan and we see our efforts leading us to revitalization of our sacred community at SCC. Here in our coastal community we seek to let the beacon of our light shine in our community as a place of learning, encouragement and refuge to both our members and those in our geographical region currently without a church home. LOCAL CHURCH PROFILE 2017 PAGE 10