Rector Transition

We are blessed to have a parish with so many gifts and talents! Thank you to everyone who has expressed interest in serving on the discernment committee to find St. Paul’s Indy’s next settled Rector. We anticipate the application to join the discernment committee being launched at the end of summer, 2025. A specific date cannot be provided at this time as discussions between Vestry and the Diocese continue to assure the approach is thoughtful and intentional. As the Wardens noted in their January forum, this process can easily take 18-24 months. We are calling our next pastor, not recruiting to fill a position, requiring us to be slow and intentional about the process. For now, we are focused on making sure an interim rector is identified and successfully integrated into our parish life. Please see below for ways you can help in the meantime.

We need you! The engagement of laity in parish life is essential and helps to assure we are ready to do the holy work of discernment. Please take a look at the ministry guide - let us know if there is anything that speaks to your interests. You can help by making sure your directory information and a photograph are up to date in Realm. Also, wearing nametags is a great way to help in creating a welcoming environment! All of these actions will help us create a culture of hospitality and warm welcome in this interstitial time. 

It might seem like that, but it’s important to consider that we aren’t posting a traditional job and conducting recruitment. Rather, we are calling our next Rector to join and lead our community. The Wardens mentioned at the January forum that it’s sometimes compared to a marriage - that’s apt because as much as we are evaluating the fit of an applicant, they are doing the same. What we must discern cannot be identified solely on paper and certainly not overnight. This process is designed to offer a period of shared discernment and to be sure both parties are prepared for the joining of the Rector to the parish and vice versa. So yes, it is lengthy and it needs to be so we don’t make hasty decisions.  

An interim rector’s job is to help us sustain parish life and prepare for the work of discernment. In some ways, an interim’s role is double duty. They have the obligations of all that a Rector’s typical duties include (pastoral leadership, liturgical supervision, etc.) plus the work of guiding the path towards discernment and calling our next settled rector. From a practical standpoint, a parish of our size needs regular leadership from a Rector and a healthy rotation of preachers. 

We just completed the annual budget process and are continuing to address regular business. The show goes on - our agendas are still full and we remain engaged in the business of the parish. For us, the next steps of discernment are identifying what the budget impacts will be for the overall process, how to set ourselves up for success with the interim and settled rectors, and securing a consultant to help advise us and the discernment committee. The consultant will ultimately work for the discernment committee, but we will be asking them for assistance in helping us appoint the discernment committee based on best practice and their experience working with other episcopal parishes in the diocese. 

That’s okay! Your feelings are valid and we want to hear about them. The Wardens (Jeff Kelsey and Shane Hatchett) are happy to chat with you. If your concern is more pastoral or anxiety-related due to the transition, one of the clergy may also be available to chat with you. In short, we are here for you and we want you to feel heard. 

Our work must continue and we must answer the call to be Christ’s heart and hands out in the world. Having an interim rector will help ensure we don’t unintentionally pull back from our ministry while we do the work of discernment.