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Halfway through October! There are some important dates coming up.
On Sunday, October 20th, everyone has the opportunity to meet Pastor Janell Monk. There will be an open house from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. Come, share some refreshments, and meet the person who will be the subject of the congregational meeting on Sunday, October 27th.
On Sunday, October 27th, there will be a special congregational meeting for the purpose of voting on whether or not to extend a call to Pastor Janell to be the pastor of Our Savior’s Lutheran Church. In Lutheran theology, God’s call to the role of ordained ministry is something that has to be mutually discerned. The individual prayerfully discerns whether or not God is calling them to be the pastor in a particular role in a particular place; and the people of that place prayerfully discern whether or not God is calling that person for the role. The Holy Spirit has an essential role in this process of discernment.
We have congregational meetings because the Holy Spirit has an essential role. In a meeting, those present have an opportunity to share their perspectives and people can listen and seek to discern how the Holy Spirit is speaking through others. Of course, in this process, the Call Committee shares what they have learned of the candidate and explains why they have recommended Pastor Janell; but any voting member of the congregation has the opportunity to speak. It is because of this dimension of the process that absentee voting is not allowed at any congregational meeting.
At a meeting to vote about extending a call, paper ballots are required. There will need to be a two-thirds majority to approve extending a call. In other words, at least two-thirds of the people present will be stating, “I believe that God is calling Pastor Janell Monk to be the pastor of Our Savior’s Lutheran Church.” The ballots will be counted immediately. A phone call will be made to Pastor Janell. If the vote is to extend the call, paperwork will be completed and forwarded to the Synod office. Bishop Laurie will sign it and forward it to Pastor Janell. She will then have thirty days for more prayerful discernment. In most cases, the pastoral candidate has already completed their discernment and is ready to give a verbal “yes” to the phone call before the official paperwork makes its way through the steps.
Again, this is all about both the pastor and the congregation discerning that God is calling this particular person to this particular place. The role of the bishop has been to assist this process by carefully sorting through initial profiles and staying in touch with the congregation’s Call Committee. Certainly, Bishop Laurie seeks to prayerfully discern which profiles to forward to call committees, but it is not the role of the bishop to determine whether or not a particular pastor is the “right” pastor for a particular place. It is the congregation’s role to extend a call.
Prayer has been important throughout this entire process. Prayer continues to be crucial during these steps. And prayer will continue to be central in the future. God is at work. God has been at work throughout these three years of interim time. God will continue to be at work in the life of the congregation and in the lives of each person.
Peace,
Pastor Sue
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