A Message From Your Minister
August 19, 2016
It's wonderful to be back to First Unitarian Church after a summer full of study, planning and vacation. During my weeks away from the church, I try to put plans in place to further our mission and ministries in the coming year. To begin with, I look at the mission of the church as the members have articulated it. How can we accomplish our mission in the coming year?
 
All the work you have done to articulate and approve a renewed mission for the church ties directly into my work as your minister. In my ministry, I try to stay focused on our mission and how I can best help the church achieve it. Our mission says:
 
In loving fellowship, we strive to honor the sacred, connect with each other, and serve justice.
 
In June, the Prudential Committee began the work of turning this big, ambitious mission into concrete goals. They are working on goals that move us toward this mission, goals which in five years' time we could look back on and say, "We got closer to where we were going." They are goals which will shape and organize my ministry and the work of our staff and lay leadership in the years to come. The Prudential Committee is completing the drafting of these goals now; look to read more about them in the weeks to come.
 
Concrete goals are the church's answer of "yes" to our mission statement. The next step, after saying "yes," is to answer "how." This is what I have begun turning my mind to this summer. How will we achieve our goals? What programs should we focus on and which let go? What new things should we take on? These are important questions that focus my work and the efforts of all our staff and volunteers.
 
In trying to answer those questions, I want to connect with as many members and friends of First Unitarian Church as possible. I want to explore our future together, as we did in the meetings where we told the stories that led us to our renewed mission. I want to bring to the community some of the questions I wrestle with as your minister, on the theory that we are more creative and thoughtful together than we are alone. I want to hear your questions and ideas for our church.
 
So this year I will be hosting monthly Ministry and Mission conversations to do just that. We'll start in early October with a conversation about worship, and move on with monthly conversations about the church's goals and other important areas of church life. I know it's not easy for everyone to get to church for these kinds of meetings. To include more people, each month's meeting will take place twice: once in person in the Chapel and once online in a video conference call. The agenda for each month's conversation will be the same whether it's in person or online. Whether person or online, we'll explore together what it means to live out our mission.
 
I'm thinking of other ways to deepen our connection with each other, as well. I plan to start hosting a monthly discussion of one sermon's theme during a gathering after church. I'm thinking about how we could institutionalize one-on-one missional conversations with each other. I'm wondering about outreach to the community through podcasts (we podcast sermons at http://firstunitarian.podbean.com/feed/) and advertising. I'm always thinking about our spiritual life together as a community and the work we do (and could do) for justice.
 
And a quick reminder about connection: I'm in the office on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays; and I check my e-mail every day except Saturday, which is my day off to spend with my family. That said, if you need my immediate attention, calling me at the church office can be faster than e-mail. And if you have an emergency, you can always reach me on my cell phone (available in the church directory).
 
The past, present and future of First Unitarian Church are close to my heart. As your minister, I explore them, admire them, wonder how they can be better, and plan for the best outcome I can imagine. I love this church and I love all of you, the people who make it what it is, the people who also treasure First Unitarian Church in your hearts. I give thanks for you, for those in our community who went before, and for the bright future I see ahead of us.
 
In faith,
 
Rev. Sarah Stewart


                                                         


First Unitarian Church | 508.757.2708 | 508.753.9332
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