Annual Report for Commission for Spiritual Life

The Commission for Spiritual Life is called to listen “to God who speaks to us as we journey together”…to celebrate “the spirit of Jesus Christ alive in our midst. This is indeed a powerful call and charge! At our monthly meetings we have wrestled with our call to deepen and broaden the spiritual life of churches and the Maine Conference, and of individual church folk, while at the same time tending to the practical details of program planning.

This Commission focuses on areas of ministry relating to God through: Christian study and nurture; leadership development and renewal of clergy and laity; pastoral care; worship life; theological education; church and ministry; interim ministry; in consultation with the Coordinating Council, new or emerging ministries.

Members attend eight (8) meetings per year to be held in Waterville on Saturdays from 9:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. with a working lunch. Members are asked to do some subcommittee work. They participate on occasional task force assignments as member’s schedules permit. Regular commission members also report back to their own Associations on a regular basis.

Spiritual Development –Strengthen and encourage spirituality in our churches by developing a Spiritual Life Team. Plan special conferences on spirituality. Plan workshops and retreats, and see that leaders are identified. Keep an up to date listing of resources for spiritual development, guidance and growth. Visit as many churches as possible.

Clergy Support- Provide counseling to clergy when needed and someone to talk to in between. Support clergy spouses and families by providing retreats, or whatever It takes. Improve clergy-conference relationships with pastoral and family support. Provide conflict management training for pastors dealing with parishes.

Seminarian Support- Support seminary students spiritually and financially. Promote higher and more consistent standards, more adequate training, Encourage and support better communication between the students and the Maine Conference.

Clergy-Lay Relations- Increase opportunities for clergy and lay leaders to engage in mutual dialogue/conversations about significant issues. Involve Church and Ministry Committees to encourage mutual understandings of the workings of the church. Provide training for lay-clergy teams to work with churches before the crisis stage through retreats, multi-session workshops etc. Encourage congregations encountering problems to engage outside consultants and provide some of the funds to help finance these engagements.

Interim Ministry- Develop standards for Intentional Interim Ministry with more financial assistance for training. Training pastors for better care of churches in transition and conflict and facilitating congregational input for future decisions. Develop guidelines for those who want to be ordained as an intentional interim.

Christian Education- Promote all aspects of Christian Education within the Maine Conference.

Small Church Support-Continue and expand grants from the Small Church Development Team. Provide lay leadership training and/or seminary training for lay leaders to augment small church ministry. Create ongoing education for Church and Ministry committees to think imaginatively and work creatively with small churches.

Upcoming Meetings: “Church and Ministry” Chairs, Sept 15th at Waterville. The Annual Meeting of the Maine Conference of UCC, Sept. 24-26th, at Sunday River, ”Seminary day” October 20th at Bangor Theological Seminary, “ The Church Leaders Convocation,” April 9,2005 at Westbrook Warren.

Respectfully Submitted,
Judy Hubley-chair