"For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." -- Jeremiah 29:11.
Rob Hess, Search Committee Co-Chair, addresses the 140th Annual General Meeting of the Episcopal Parish of St. John the Evangelist in Hingham Jan. 29, 2023.
Chosen by the Vestry to represent St. John's demographic diversity and a wide variety of its ministries, the Rector Search Committee was commissioned on November 20, 2022. The Rector Search Committee is co-chaired by Rob Hess and Elizabeth Moulds; its members are Jane Carr, Bill Carter, Barbie Dwyer, Dan Fickes, Matthew Ginn, Molly Powers, Caitlin Slodden, Sara Taylor, and Cathy Torrey. We are guided by a Diocesan search consultant, Elinor Horner, who was assigned to us in January, 2023. As outlined by the Diocese, our process includes prayerfully (a) creating and leading a parish-wide discernment about St. Johns' current status and future hopes, (b) creating a Parish Profile reflecting this feedback, (c) posting a job description and reviewing applicants, (d) and discerning which candidate God is leading to St. John's to recommend the Vestry to hire. Given the current employment climate, the search is likely to take between one and two years.
The Search Committee is currently in the discernment phase. We have contracted with Holy Cow Consultants to help us roll out a parish-wide, online survey at the end of this month. The survey will provide quantitative information about the range of views that exist at St. John's, as well as the congregation’s hopes for our future direction. After the survey closes, we will have opportunities for small group discussion to collect qualitative information. The more parishioners who participate in the discernment activities, the more accurate our parish profile and job description will be. We are working faithfully to see what good plans God has in store for St. John's, but finding the next rector of St. John's is the entire parish's responsibility, and we hope you will wholeheartedly support the search committee in prayer and by your participation in the discernment activities.