President’s Blog – John Reschovsky: Sept. 2016

A Time for Change
As summer comes to an end, church is shifting into high gear. I hope your summer has offered some joy and relaxation. For me, it has been an intense time but with much joy as Sandra and I are just completing the renovation of our property in the Adirondacks.

The Board of Trustees has pressed on, over the summer, in collaboration with the Governance Task Force, to redefine our governance structure and policies. This task is proving to be very complex and time-consuming, but we feel that it is very important to make substantial progress before prospective ministers start to look at our congregation.

One of the most profound changes in governance will be the role of the Minister and his or her relationship to the Board and the Congregation.

If you look critically at how the church has managed its affairs, I must say that it has been somewhat disjointed. Some things are managed by the Board, others by other Councils and Committees. At the same time, the responsibilities and authority of the Minister have always remained a bit ambiguous. Sure, the minister was responsible for leading worship and pastoral care. But beyond that, we have not encouraged our ministers to really take charge, driven by a well-articulated vision for the future. The result has been that our Society has sustained itself year to year but has not really thrived or moved forward.

Too often, the Board, Councils and Committees have become too consumed with day-to-day management, leaving little time or energy to define the broad goals and mission of the Society, let alone evaluate how we were doing in achieving them.

I hate to be so harsh in describing our past. It’s nobody’s fault. We just followed a pattern developed over decades. But it is a time for change. And so, as we develop our policy-based governance structure, we choose to enhance role of the Minister, with the responsibility and the authority to lead both paid staff and volunteers, directing their efforts toward the fulfillment of the Society’s Mission and Vision. The minister becomes the head of staff and chief executive of the Church. Under his or her leadership, teams are recruited and guided to fulfill all of the programmatic affairs of the church – everything from RE to building maintenance fall under his or her purview. In today’s jargon, this is the “ministry” of the church.

The Board then backs away from managing so much. Supported by several advisory committees, it spends its time setting policies, approving budgets, defining goals and vision, and evaluating how well we are doing in achieving them.

All of this change will force many of us to learn new ways to act as we fulfill our roles in the Congregation. It will be, at times, difficult to change and the path forward may be tough to follow. But if we are to thrive in a time when many religious institutions are floundering, there is no other option. The changes that we are embarking on follow the accepted best practices for church governance and will surely propel us into a brighter future. May it be so.