Joel’s Jottings

Back to School and Such!!

It is hard to believe that it is now August! At least it is hard for me to believe that is August! The school calendar begins for children and youth. Colleges start up for young adults. And many of the things that mark our summer observances – mission trips, visits with family, going to the pool or even “staycations”, begin to morph back into a “routine.”

Here at the church we will remain on the “summer” schedule through the Labor Day weekend. That means worship will be at 10 a.m. on Sunday. Sunday School will start on Rally Day, September 13. And committees will begin their own “regular” routine.

During the summer of 2009 things have been moving forward, even in “summer mode. ” This summer I have met with many of the Session committee chairs and talked about the way the church governance works.

North Decatur Presbyterian Church is governed by the Session. Session members (known as “elders”) are elected by the congregation for three year terms. There are three “classes” or groups of elders so that each year one-third of the Session “rotates” off and a new “class” comes on to join the others.

Two years ago the Session and the congregation decided to reduce the number of elders from 8 in each class to 6. This would be done in a phased in manner as one “class” ended its service and a new class began. When this decision was made in 2007 the number of elders was 24. With the election of the class of elders who will begin in January 2010 the number of elders will be 18.

A practical reality is that this means there are fewer active elders to chair committees. But the number of committees has not decreased. In fact they have increased! Neither of these things is necessarily a bad thing. However, they are realities that need to be talked about.

I’ve spent a good part of my summer talking to the active session members about this. We haven’t reached any hard and fast conclusions, but we are aware of the challenges and opportunities that are present.

A question that I’ve asked during this time is: how can we better do the work of governance of the church? The reason to ask this is not to produce a “new” structure. The reason to ask is so that we may think about how to do the ministry of the church so that it remains vital and engaged.

If you have ideas to share, please call me at the church: 404-636-1429, or email at joel@ndpc.org.

Peace, Grace and Thanks,

Joel