Committees on Ministry can be valuable tools in your congregation--if well conceived and managed. They can help assess where you are in your work on mission and covenant; they can help you develop leaders, and can help build trust in your congregation.
2. A DOZEN GOOD IDEAS ABOUT
COMMITTEES ON MINISTRY
Rev. Barbara Child, Accredited Interim Minister
And host Lisa Presley, District Executive, Heartland
District,
MidAmerica Region
3. BROUGHT TO YOU BY
MIDAMERICA REGION
Central MidWest, Heartland and Prairie Star
Districts
6. A DOZEN GOOD IDEAS ABOUT
COMMITTEES ON MINISTRY
Rev. Barbara Child, Accredited Interim Minister
And host Lisa Presley, District Executive, Heartland
District,
MidAmerica Region
7. BROUGHT TO YOU BY
MIDAMERICA REGION
Central MidWest, Heartland and Prairie Star
Districts
9. IDEA 1: AGENT OF THE ENTIRE
CONGREGATION
Allows professional clergy, lay leaders
and congregation at large to work
toward fulfillment of mission and
covenant
Bylaws should support COM made up
of well respected persons
Regular rotation and term limits
Should not have adversarial approach!
10. IDEA 2: IDEAL MEMBERS
Members of COM are:
Active members familiar with
congregation’s history and culture
Generally respected by lay and clergy
Do not bring personal agenda
Able to focus on big picture of mission,
covenant and ministry
Skilled at communication
Commitment to well-being of whole
11. IDEA 3: COM IN THE
CONGREGATIONAL SYSTEM
Should be no overlap between Board
and COM
Engages more congregants in
significant leadership roles
Leadership training ground
Recipient of trained leaders
12. IDEA 4: COMMUNICATION
Good COM communicates constantly
Through every means
Regarding the state of the mission and
covenant
Keeps people from going to sleep,
becoming complacent, or forgetting
the church’s mission
13. IDEA 5: EDUCATE ABOUT COM
History of Ministerial Relations
Committees (MRCs) and COMs
Shift from support group to
congregational check-up
“Our COM,” not “Minister’s COM”
Which is yours?
14. IDEA 6: EVALUATION
Evaluation of ministry:
Everything done by professional
clergy, other paid staff, and congregants
involved in the ministry
Not just about the professional clergy
Agent
to monitor everyone’s
accountability over time
15. IDEA 7: TRUE FOCUS
COM helps congregation focus on true
reason for evaluation:
How are we doing on our mission
achievement?
Are we living within our covenants with
each other?
Helpcongregation know the mission
and covenant
16. IDEA 8:
POLICY AND MONITORING
Cleardistinction between work of
Board (policy-makers) and COM
(congregation monitors)
Board’s authority to make decisions
COM’s authority is power of
persuasion
COM invites people to mission- and
covenant-focused perspective
17. IDEA 9: CONSULTANTS
COM consults regularly with
professional clergy and other staff,
Board, task forces, teams, committees
involved in ministry
Will share impressions on how ministry
going
May make recommendations
Others decide what to do
18. IDEA 10:
CONFLICT MANAGEMENT
Engages in on-going conflict
management
Sponsoring workshops on
understanding systems and healthy
practices
Not arbiter or judge but encourages
responsible resolution
Never takes sides
19. IDEA 11:
MODELS SHARED MINISTRY
Model and teach value of shared
ministry
Educate about ministry in general, and
congregation’s ministry in particular
Help people understand short- and
long-term goals for congregation
20. IDEA 12:
TRUST AND ACCOUNTABILITY
Model and teach mutual trust and
accountability
Working with Board and professional
clergy
Fostering right relationship in accord
with congregation’s covenant
21. AND ONE CAVEAT:
Safeguard against COM being MRC
Should not be “palace guard” or
complaint bureau
Larger congregation may not need a
COM to be healthy
May not be for everyone but . . .
Well conceived and managed can
serve healthy shared ministry of
professional clergy and congregants
22. MAJOR RESOURCE
Robert T. Latham, Moving On from Church
Folly Lane: The Pastoral to Program Shift
(Tuscon: Wheatmark, 2006)
Addendum VI: The Committee on Ministry (an
Original and Workable Model), p 244-72
Can be ordered through www.mythinglink.com or
the UUA Bookstore www.uuabookstore.org
24. THANK YOU!
This
Webinar, and others, can be
found at:
www.midwestuuleadership.org
Editor's Notes
Welcome to all;I am DE of HL; lifelong UU; minister for 20 years; serving my 5th year in HL as DE (two stints) – delighted to welcome as our “subject matter expert” Rev. Barbara Child, Accredited Interim Min: Barbara, please intro self.May or may not intro everyone – depends on registration
Recorded webinar – will end up archiving on web for future reference; can use whenever you want; on demand throughMidwestuuleadership.org
Robert T. Latham, Moving On from Church Folly Lane: The Pastoral to Program Shift, Addendum VI, "The Committee on Ministry (an Original and Workable Model)," pp. 244-72 (Tucson: Wheatmark, 2006.) The book can be ordered from Robert's web site at www.mythinglink.com at sale price of $12.00 plus $3.50 shipping cost. It is not available through amazon.com.