John Vonhof - The Pastoral Search Journey: A Guide to Finding Your Next Pastor

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THE
P ASTORAL S EARCH J OURNEY

Copyright 2010 by The Alban Institute. All rights reserved. This material may not be photocopied or reproduced in any way without written permission. Go to www.alban.org/permissions.asp or write to the address below.

The Alban Institute
2121 Cooperative Way, Suite 100
Herndon, VA 20171

Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America, and are used by permission.

Cover Design by Spark Design.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Vonhof, John.

The pastoral search journey : a guide to finding your next pastor / John Vonhof.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references (p. 167).

ISBN 978-1-56699-402-6

1. Pastoral search committees. 2. Clergy--Appointment, call, and election. I. Title.

BV664.V64 2010

254--dc22

2009050042

10 VP

This book is dedicated to the men and women who serve on pastoral search committees.

Conducting a search for your churchs next pastor is a serious task. Fortunately, those entrusted with this complex assignment do not make the journey alone. They can count on support from their church board and membership at every step. What else is necessary?

A lot, in fact. Many churches have not had to manage a pastoral search process for ten, fifteen, or even twenty years. Search committee memberstypically board members and actively involved lay membersoften do not understand the multitude of tasks that make up the search process. Could your congregation step up to the challenge?

This book was born in pastoral search committee meetings. As we struggled with the process in the mid-1990s, we learned much about what we did not want to do and about what we needed to do to be effective. We also often found ourselves in an undefined process in which we were on our own to choose what we did, how we did it, and in what order we did it. During our search I realized the need for a book about managing the pastoral search process. The Alban Guide to Managing the Pastoral Search Process, published in 1999, has helped thousands of congregations.

Now, by 2010, much has changed. We communicate differently. The Internet has redefined how we talk to one another and has given us access to information in ways we never thought possible. These changes can help a search committee. Committees now have more ways to inform others of their search and to connect with pastors. The committee has a greater ability to present its church in the best possible light through the congregations website. For that reason, this revision is needed. Every chapter has been revised, with new material added. A new introduction takes the reader through the search journey, and new chapters discuss interim pastors and the use of the Internet. And finally, new appendixes provide pastoral search resources.

But for the moment, lets get back to our basic question. Could your board and church begin the search journey if your pastor announced today that he or she had accepted a call and would be leaving in two months? Could you manage the journey with the capable effort it deserves? These are only two of the questions that face search committees. To further complicate the process, the pool of available pastors is generally not large enough to satisfy the demand. What are committees to do?

The committee has a complex task before it. To have a clear focus, its process must be well thought out and free from unnecessary distractions. This book is designed as a guide to enable church boards to understand how to form a search committee, and then to help the newly formed committee understand the strategy and the order of its multitude of tasks. With a clear understanding of the journey, all will realize that it cannot be hurried.

Serving on a search committee requires a deep commitment to the Lord and to the local church. Much time and energy will be required before the task is completed. The process will likely take a minimum of six months and perhaps as long as two years. How the search journey is managed can make a difference in securing a good pastoral match, in minimizing the length of the search effort, and in reducing the stress on all parties. Whether your church is in a metropolitan area or in the countryside, whether yours is the only church of particular denomination in a large area, a congregation in an area with multiple churches of the same denomination, or an independent congregation, your search must be managed with high standards of excellence. We are not allowed the luxury of sitting back, placing a few ads, sending out a handful of letters, and then waiting for pastors to beat down our church door asking to serve as our pastor. We need to conduct a deliberate, well-thought-out search that treats both pastors and the process with respect.

We need to be competitive and thorough in our efforts. You may not regard the words competitive or compete as appropriate in talking about the pastoral search process, yet consider that when one church becomes vacant, it becomes simply one more in a large circle of churches without a pastor. Every congregation is working to find the pastor with the ministry skills that best match their gifts and needs. All are using the best resources they can develop. All are trying to present their church in the best light possible. Several may ultimately issue calls to the same pastor. Whether or not you like the words, the process is competitive, and churches do compete for pastors. Committees do not need to focus on this aspect of the process, but they should be aware of it. Each church begins its search with its own unique set of strengths and needs, and the pastors it considers have their own special ministry gifts and skills. Both the church and the pastor must be involved in a process that will create the best match for each.

This book is designed to allow people with little or no experience to serve effectively as members of a search committee. It is best if each committee member has his or her own copy of this book. All committee members should read through it at least once. While it provides detailed information to the committee chair, it also offers committee members an understanding of how the process is managed and why. The full committee will then understand what its task is and how its members can conduct a competent search. Although the book is written as a guide for those managing a pastoral search, it can also serve a search committee looking for other staff members.