July 1, 2021
Dear Members of the Congregational Church of Salisbury, UCC,
It is our honor to joyfully convey to you our unanimous and heartfelt recommendation to call the Rev. Dr. John A. Nelson to be our settled pastor.
We came to this decision after carefully reviewing and deliberating over relevant information from a wide variety of sources including:
- Summaries of reports on both of the phone outreach to everyone in our Congregation that was conducted over the course of the past year and a half by the Board of Deacons;
- Participation as individuals in the congregation-wide survey, the Holy Cow Congregational Assessment Tool (CAT);
- Participation as a Committee in the June 7, 2021 meeting with Church Council and UCC consultant, the Rev. Dr. Tom Clough who provided the report and analysis of the survey results with implications for future planning and desirable attributes, talents, experience and qualities necessary from Church leadership in the coming years.
- Review of an extensive packet of materials submitted to us by Pastor John, including:
- A letter from Pastor John, expressing his deep interest in the position and the reasons for it;
- A Statement of Ministry;
- A Self-Appraisal Statement;
- Written recommendations from seven qualified individuals giving testimony regarding Pastor John’s character, experience, talents, and suitability to be pastor of our Church;
- His CV, citing more than 20 years of professional and volunteer leadership experience in the ministry in the U.S and Guatemala, and earned degrees from Middlebury College and Union and Chicago Theological Seminaries.
We also had the great advantage of having observed, worked with and come to know Designated-Term Pastor John during his more than two years as our Pastor, as he led us in navigating through a difficult pastoral transition and a once-in-a- lifetime pandemic that turned all of our lives, and the life of our Church, on end.
In addition to the two-hour meeting on June 7th to review and discuss the survey results with Church Council and Consultant Tom Clough, our Committee convened on three other occasions, each with a focused purpose:
- June 9, 2021: To discuss the survey’s results on the health of our Church, the quality of worship and the effectiveness of leadership and governance, with particular attention to the implications for hiring our next Settled Pastor;
- June 16, 2021: To review the materials submitted to us by Pastor John and discuss his potential as our Settled Pastor;
- June 23, 2021: To interview Pastor John and formulate our recommendation regarding whether we would call Pastor John to our Church or embark on a wider search in which he could still be a candidate.
It took us less than 15 minutes to arrive at the unanimous and joyful decision to recommend to the Congregation that we call Pastor John to be our Settled Pastor.
Why were we unanimously united and joyful in making this recommendation?
All of the above information that we gathered and reviewed indicates that our Church – under Pastor John’s leadership – affirms that we are emerging from a very difficult transition to be a strong, healthy, flexible, high-energy congregation that will endure. We care deeply about our worship services and the quality of our music and both are highly-regarded.
In the results of the Holy Cow CAT survey, we are described as “Transformative” (able to adapt to change) and “Pastor-Centric” (which requires a pastor who can take on a heavy load for a long time and be warm and available). The survey also describes us as a “Magi” church (one that is inclusive, has dreams for the future, and is open to doing things differently if there is good reason to do so).
When we reflect on this analysis of who we are as a Church and think about Pastor John’s gifts, we believe we have found a remarkably strong match in having him as our Settled Pastor. We’ve experienced his deep love and knowledge of scripture and ability to offer inspiring sermons. We know how he led us through the early days of the tumultuous transition with calm, steadfast courage and grace, accomplishing the difficult tasks assigned to him by the Trustees. We’ve been there when he demonstrated how willing a learner, as well as a teacher, he is.
We are well-acquainted with his integrity, creativity, understanding of good governance, respect for others, and knowledge of the UCC policies and regulations. We are grateful for his ability to innovate, adapt and support us throughout this pandemic. His years of study and service in Guatemala touched him deeply and enrich his capacity to help this Congregation address broader issues of social justice and inclusion that are so important to him and to us. The Zoom Sunday Worship services that he and our music minister design and implement are regarded by our consultant and others as among the best.
In short, we believe that Pastor John Nelson – while imperfect as are all of us – is remarkably well- qualified and suited to be our Settled Pastor at this point in our history. And Pastor John dearly wants to serve in that capacity.
We, the members of the Designated-Term Pastor Search Committee listed below, strongly and unanimously recommend that we call the Rev. Dr. John A. Nelson to be the next Settled Pastor of the Congregational Church of Salisbury, UCC.
The Church Council calls our congregation to meet on Sunday, September 12, 2021, following our 10am in-person worship service, in order to vote on this recommendation.
Respectfully submitted by the members of the Designated-Term Pastor Search Committee:
Janet Accardo
Barbara Collins
Lorna Edmundson, co-facilitator
Emily Elliot
Abby Gackenheimer
Dave Heck, co-facilitator
Janet Kaufman
Jason Larson
Charlie Noyes
Karin Noyes
David Rich