Introduction

PART I. THE IDEA

The History, Philosophy, and Impact of Interim Ministry
Margaret Keip

A Different Country
Judith Walker-Riggs

PART II. STORIES FROM THE FIELD

Following the Interim
Nathan Detering

Following Two Different Interim Ministers
Alison Miller

Serving as a Lay Leader During Interim Ministry
Ed Rockman

Mining, Minding, and Making Stories
Pam Blevins Hinkle

PART III. THE WORK

Coming to Terms with History
David Keyes

The Interim Minister as Systems Analyst
Richard A. Nugent

Working with Staff
Heather Lynn Hanson

Changes in Leadership
Andrea La Sonde Anastos

Strengthening Connections Beyond the Congregation
Roberta Finkelstein

The Interim Minister’s Role in Ministerial Search
Evan Keely and Lisa Presley

Bringing an Interim Ministry to a Successful Conclusion
Fran Dew and Martha L. Munson

PART IV. CHALLENGES AND SPECIAL CASES

Predictable Roadblocks
John Nichols

The Temptation to Rush the Search
Robert Latham

Large Congregations
Maureen Killoran

Small Congregations
Karen Brammer

Size Transitions
Suzanne Redfern-Campbell

Congregations with a History of Misconduct
Deborah J. Pope-Lance

The Interim Assistant Minister
Carlton Elliott Smith

PART V. A BROADER VIEW OF MINISTERIAL TRANSITION

Options for Ministerial Transition Other Than Interim Ministry
Nancy Bowen

Jump-Starting Ministerial Transition
Barbara Child

A Jump Start with a Twist
Olivia Holmes

Changing Work in a Changing World
Keith Kron

Afterword
Resources
About the Contributors
Index

As I drew my conversations with interim ministers to a close, I wanted to know what they believe lies ahead and whether they see reasons to be hopeful about interim ministry in the future. Clearly they are hopeful about their generally shared vision of the future of the church and the role of interim ministry in it. Above all, they are clear that the church of the future will be a missional church, focused on working for a better world, not focused merely on congregants’ own personal needs. That does mean that more and more of church life will happen outside of any “bricks and mortar” church building and will happen every day of the week, not just on Sunday. They agree that if churches are to thrive, nothing, especially worship, dare be boring. But they also see plenty of evidence of people willing to work hard in new ways to put Unitarian Universalist values into action to change themselves, their congregations, and the world. And interim ministers can provide a great service by helping congregations discover new ways to do this. The congregations that make such discoveries during their interim years and act on them will clearly be the congregations most appealing to ministers in search.

—Keith Kron, “Changing Work in a Changing World”