[Magdalen] Epiphany

[James Oppenheimer-Crawford]

I think this is essentially the way the Methodist Church operates.  Their
executives gather and decide where the ministers will go in the coming
year.  At the same time, if a minister is doing reasonably well, they won't
want to move them.

Actually, the minister I was talking to is AME Zion, so they may do things
a bit differently.

Sounds a bit unstable for a minister with a young family.

James W. Oppenheimer-Crawford
*“A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved,
except in memory. LLAP**”  -- *Leonard Nimoy

On Sat, Jan 9, 2016 at 2:36 PM, Mahoney, W. Michael <wmmah at stoneledge.net>
wrote:

> On Thu, Jan 7, 2016 at 10:21 AM, Judy Fleener <fleenerj at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> > Please pray that we at St. Paul's, Muskegon have not picked incorrectly.
> > Not only are we experiencing discomfort with a change in liturgical
> styles,
> > but also a seeming inability to get work done in a timely fashion.
> >
>
> It may be that its a rocky start and that eventually things will work out.
> We can hope and pray.  But it is certainly consistent with my belief that
> the Church ought make much greater use of the "Priest-in-Charge"(PIC)
> approach.
>
> With the PIC approach, a priest is hired with a two to three year
> contract.  The contract provides both for periodic evaluation and *no fault
> *termination or non-renewal.
>
> There are many good reasons why rectors should have tenure.  But they are
> not sufficient to grant it to a priest the day he or she arrives.  It
> doesn't happen in the academic world; it doesn't happen it the private
> sector; it doesn't happen in other denominations; and, it shouldn't happen
> in the Episcopal Church.
>
> The literature on "transition" is extensive.  But you will find little if
> any discussion of the plain fact that a "call" is ultimately a crap shoot.
> Prayer and hard work may improve the odds but they don't eliminate risk.
> The PIC approach does not eliminate risk either but it does lower the cost
> when things do turn out badly.
>
> We are in the midst of a transition in my parish.  I kid our search
> committee that if our eventual "call" works out wonderfully, we will all
> say it is the work of the Holy Spirit.  But if it turns out to be a
> disaster, the search committee will get the blame.  I am not just kidding,
> though,  We need more explicit recognition that the hiring process, like
> most human things, is an uncertain business.
>
> Mike M.
>
> Mike M.
>