Joel’s Jottings

You may have seen this one:

How many Presbyterians does it take to change a light bulb?

300. 12 to sit on the Board which appoints the Nominating and Personnel Committee. 5 will sit on the Nominating and Personnel Committee, which appoints the Property Committee. 8 will sit on the Property Committee, which appoints the Light Bulb changing committee. 4 to sit on the Light Bulb Changing Committee, which chooses who will screw in the Light Bulb–those 4 then give their own opinion of “screwing in methods” while the one actually does the installation. After completion it takes 100 individuals to complain about the method of installation and another 177 to debate the ecological impact of using the light bulb at all.

Hummm!!!???

In another place in The Communicator is an announcement from the Session to call a congregational meeting for April 26 after worship. The purpose of the meeting is to elect a Nominating Committee. This is done every year. But this year in addition to discerning who is called to serve as an elder at NDPC, the Nominating Committee will also propose a slate for the Pastor Nominating Committee to be elected by the congregation.

Why, you may ask, do we need a committee to elect a committee? So maybe the joke is not that far from the truth! J

I think it always good to be able to laugh at ourselves. Presbyterians are known as committee people. But beyond that, we are people that trust God works among us and not just within us. Most of the time an idea or a recommendation that has time to be aired and thought about by several people will be better than one that comes from a single source.

Using the Church Nominating Committee for this work also provides an opportunity to build trust. NDPC’s experiences over the past several years have been marked by difficult relationships and strained trust. You are the ones that have told me that. The apostle Paul used the metaphor of the church as the body. After a body has suffered a traumatic event, it must relearn how to function. That’s why someone who has surgery goes through therapy – so that the activities of daily living may be regained.

Please prayerfully consider nominations to the Nominating Committee. In order to nominate a person, please check with that person before hand. Four individuals from the congregation at large will be elected. The Session will appoint another three. A representative from last year’s Nominating Committee will also serve as a resource person along with the interim pastor. These provisions are in accord with our denominations Book of Order G-14.223-224.

One of the purposes of this transitional time is to regain the ability to function well as a church, part of the body of Jesus Christ. I don’t think that any committee should be trusted blindly. Trust is found as responsibility is shared with integrity. I’m pretty sure we ever get to perfection – but I do know that in building relationships in the community of faith we do find ways to strengthen our connections to each other and to God.

Joel