Bethany Mennonite Church
Interim Pastor Job Description
Details
- Bethany Mennonite Church is a rural church in Bridgewater, Vermont. We are searching for an interim pastor to support the congregation as it processes the transition and undertakes a pastoral search to replace its previous pastor who served the congregation and community very well for 24 years. Once this search begins, we hope to complete the work in 12-18 months.
- The congregation is capable and comfortable being lay-led for some months and seeks an interim to serve on a 3/5 basis, preaching 2 Sundays per month and supporting church administration and pastoral care as needed.
- Bethany intends to pay according to denominational recommendations and provide housing via a rental in nearby Woodstock.
About us
- We are an open and affirming congregation, and have spent a season learning together and shaping our Welcoming Statement in 2020 and ‘21. While this is an unsettled issue in our conference and denomination, our statement was adopted by consensus and with conviction. In a similar vein, we invite all to celebrate communion with us regardless of background or affiliation.
- We are a small church with a long history in a rural community. While a Sunday service may only see 30 – 45 attendees, many in the surrounding towns are part of our extended church family.
- The regular attendees are an engaged group that share the work of “doing church,” rotating weekly through willing Worship Leaders, Song Leaders, Children’s Story readers, and Messages. These messages are followed by an open time of response and reflection that is characterized by honesty, vulnerability, and trust.
- At Bethany we treat faith formation as a continuing journey. We welcome questions and new sources of spiritual enrichment. We embrace new perspectives like we embrace new hymnals, celebrating what is new to us while treasuring familiar songs, prayers, and poems.
- Membership at Bethany is open to all, in the form of an annually affirmed covenant signed by the willing, based on personal reflection and commitment.
Questions we hold
Current questions that shape our practice and may become part of the work we do with support from an interim pastor include…
- As an open and affirming congregation, we wonder if there’s a place for us in Mosaic Conference?
- Our policy as a congregation is to make decisions by a consensus process, but that has been taxing and difficult at times. Is it still appropriate, and how might we improve?
- What does a transition look like following a pastor who was with us for 24 years? What do we hope stays the same and what changes will we embrace?
- We wonder how our relationship with the Mennonite congregation in Taftsville will evolve. We have peacefully coexisted 13 mi apart for 60+ years, and belong to the same conference.
For more information and to apply, please email:
Steve Kriss
Conference Minister
skriss@mosaicmennonites.org