Here’s the highlights of what has happened so far:
● The Standing Committee formed the Sabbatical Team in March 2023 and charged us
with helping to plan for the 2024 sabbatical time (January 22 – May 13, 2024).
● We continue as we began, coordinating with Rev. Lara to see how we can best support
her sabbatical experience and plan for a rich time here in the congregation.
● In April, we presented our budget recommendations to the Standing Committee, the SC
voted to accept our recommendation and a cottage meeting was held on April 30 for
anyone interested in learning about the projected costs of sabbatical.
● At the 2023 Annual Meeting, the congregation voted to adopt the proposed budget that
includes celebrations for beginning and ending the sabbatical time as well as a half-time
Sabbatical Minister.
● We were delighted to have such a large and involved participation in the Worship
Workshop we presented in May to learn a bit about how to do worship services and
brainstorm some potential topics. We’re happy to announce that there were more than
enough ideas generated and people willing to carry them through that the Deacons have
a list long enough to cover not only the sabbatical time but the entire year of planned lay
services!
● The Deacons embraced the task of developing a congregational charge to guide the
spiritual direction for our time without Rev. Lara. It is below.
● Over the summer we put together a job description for the Sabbatical Minister we seek.
We are already so inspired by all the creativity and contributions to this process – from the
Standing Committee, the Executive Team, the Deacons, everyone who has attended our events
and said yes and, of course, from Rev. Lara. We are so grateful and look forward to keeping you
up to date as we go forward. You can check out the existing information and look for future
updates on the FCU website in the “Sabbatical” area under the Beloved Community menu.
Sabbatical Team members Jackie Clement, Debbie Eston, Mike Pilman and Monica Pilman, ET
Liaison
