Case Study
An active parish seeks to open ministry opportunities and leadership positions to all.
St. John’s Episcopal Church, founded in 1790, is located in Essex, Connecticut, a historic waterside town at the mouth of the Connecticut River. Construction of the first church building began in 1793, and the building was consecrated in 1797. The church later moved to a more central location on Essex’s Main Street, and a new church, constructed of locally quarried stone in the Romanesque style, was consecrated in 1897. Its architecture includes Celtic crosses, rounded arches, an open-timbered ceiling, and multiple stained-glass windows. The church has an average Sunday attendance of approximately 150 people from towns across the Connecticut River Valley, and is led by our rector, the Rev. Kate E. Wesch, and a leadership team.
Our mission is four-pronged, focusing on engaging members and enhancing their spiritual lives through (1) artful and inclusive worship, (2) joyful and frequent fellowship, (3) targeted community outreach, and (4) extensive education, with a current emphasis on Bible study. Our community outreach focuses on specific ministries led and nurtured by our parishioners. These include external ministries supporting the local soup kitchen, incarcerated women, Habitat for Humanity, and Witness Stones, among others. Our many internal ministries focus primarily on parishioner pastoral care and stewardship.
While everyone who enters our church comes from a different place along their journey, we recognize that we all have a common desire to deepen our connection to God, to grow spiritually, and to participate in the community. Along the way, our needs and those of our fellow parishioners tend to evolve. At first, a parishioner might desire to feel beloved and engaged as part of a faith community. As this person’s connection to God and our community deepens, their desire to serve as a leader might become evident. Our purpose is to nurture and help manifest these spiritual longings, and our goal is to offer all people seeking leadership the opportunity to craft a ministry well-suited to their desires and life circumstances. As important, we are learning to make room in the leadership structure for new participation and new leaders. We are discovering what it means to give up power and to nurture the growth of others. And we have found that as our leaders grow, let go, and grow again into something new, our community also grows in both numbers and commitment.
Our style of identifying and engaging leaders has evolved over time. Listening to our parishioners in a profoundly personal way has been key.
1. Early on, we created a structure that worked for the parish and then did our best to match and recruit people to the need. We had established ministries that needed parishioner leadership, including various outreach ministries, hospitality committees, and worship guilds. We made it our mission to invite all people into service. In particular, we worked to eliminate territorialism and the appearance of locks on leadership, and instead to instill and embrace a culture of inclusivity.
2. In time, we began asking parishioners what they would like to do, instead of fitting them into pre-established structures or roles. We eventually developed a formal leadership transformation program: a structured dialogue between the rector and potential leaders that allows us to talk both about church needs and goals and about parishioner callings and gifts, to the mutual flourishing of all.
3. We now focus on publicly recognizing our faith leaders and their many contributions. We offer people titles that reflect that they are fully supported and endorsed as leaders in the parish. We note their role in our church communications so that they and their ministries are acknowledged. And we work to show that we all have the capacity to be skilled faith leaders, each with different, valued gifts, so parishioners do not perceive a hierarchy in our structure.
Twelve people enrolled in the pilot of our leadership transformation program. At a kick-off meeting, each was provided with a program outline and asked to create or update their own Rule of Life and then meet with our rector to review it. Together with the rector, each participant discussed their background, gifts, and leadership longings, and how those might play out in ministry and service to the church. These conversations not only helped address existing gaps, but also uncovered new ministries that would fulfill our leaders and help our church thrive. For example:
- A parishioner who is a published author will begin preaching from her experiences and writing articles for our quarterly newsletter.
- Another parishioner perceived a gap in our outreach leadership and suggested we form an Outreach Committee, which he will lead.
- A third parishioner plans to establish a monthly spiritual gathering for retirees.
- A fourth will fill one of our most significant gaps by creating structure around how we welcome newcomers.
- Multiple leaders asked to expand their role in worship, helping us meet one of our key goals: to break down a perceived barrier between clergy and congregation and to further an inclusive culture.
- Two parishioners sought to introduce a new service, Blue Christmas, which they will organize, develop, and participate in.
A critical piece to each of these efforts is ongoing conversation among parish leaders. Participants in the program are supported as they implement their plans, with constructive feedback provided to ensure success.
By establishing a leadership plan, we have significantly reduced tension in our system. Our rector can plan for the entire program year, enhancing coverage for all services and committees, and our leaders are assured that we are listening to them and that we value the contributions they long to make. Our rector has a formal structure by which she can delegate and manage her workload, and a broader group of people is taking ownership of our church’s successes and failures.
As we build on the success of this pilot program, we recognize that we still have work to do. We need to establish a robust framework in support of this more expansive leadership program. We also need to be more intentional about forming our young adults as church leaders. Whatever challenges we face, we know that by embracing lay leadership, providing leadership opportunities, and nurturing our leaders, we present ourselves to the world as creative and entrepreneurial Christians and inspire others to join us.