A COVENANT BETWEEN THE REVEREND JOHN DOE AND THE CONGREGATION OF
THE FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
OF BRUNSWICK, GEORGIA
We, the members of the Congregation of the First Presbyterian Church of Brunswick, Georgia, and the Rev. John Doe, called to be Pastor-Head of Staff of the First Presbyterian Church of Brunswick, Georgia, understanding ourselves to have been called to enter into God's service in the City of Brunswick, Glynn County, Georgia, do hereby enter into the following covenant.
The conditions of this covenant will take effect January 1, 2000 and will remain in effect until the covenant is reviewed, amended or sustained as needed, after prayerful consideration and review by all parties involved in this covenant.
The Rev. John Doe, called to be Pastor-Head of Staff of the First Presbyterian Church of Brunswick, Georgia, embraces the Covenant for the pastor as presented by the Congregation and endorsed by the Committee on Ministry of Savannah Presbytery. We are in agreement regarding the terms of call for the Pastor, and declare our intention to review those terms of call on an annual basis. In this annual review7, consideration will be given to increases or decreases in the cost of living, as well as merit increases in the call as it is stated in The Book of Order G-10.0102m and G-7.0302a.
We understand that this covenant, in keeping with the biblical witness of covenants between God and God's people, to be a document:
1) Grounded in faith in God and God's gracious will for us;
2) Which takes into account our sinfulness and God's judgment on that sinfulness, as well as God's forgiveness; and
3) Which provides the basic structure for the relationship we will build with one another as we go about our respective tasks in leading and being a community of faith in this place.
We affirm our allegiance to God in Jesus Christ as God is borne witness to by the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) (CF. Book of Order G-2.0000 through G-4.0203) We subscribe to all the polity issues and theological affirmations as outlined in the Constitution of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). For the purpose of this covenant we draw particular attention to the Book of Order Sections G-6.0000 through G-6.0300, G-9.0000 through G-9.0106 and G-10.0000 through G-10.0103.
We consider ourselves to be partners in mission, "fellow workers for God" (1 Cor. 3:9) in the divine plan for creation. We take very seriously the commandment of our Lord Jesus Christ to "love one another" (John 15:12) even as Christ loves us. Our objective is to be faithful leaders of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), toward the end of having the Congregation worship, study, engage in mission, engage in fellowship, become responsible stewards and exercise pastoral care toward one another. Other primary objectives, identified as essential, are defined in Chapter III, "The Church and Its Mission," of the Book of Order.
We believe that preaching and leading worship is of fundamental importance in the life of a Presbyterian Congregation. The Pastor, the Session and the Congregation should take seriously this responsibility, by the pastor's diligent study and effort to communicate the richness of the Gospel clearly and forcibly, and by the Session's and Congregation's prayers for the Pastor and encouragement in this task. Likewise, we expect worship services to be both reverent and celebrative, allowing for the appropriate participation of the laity in the public worship of God. To achieve such worship services the parties to this covenant promise to study the theology of worship and the tradition of worship in the Reformed/Presbyterian tradition so that the worship services will have integrity and that God will be worshiped in spirit and truth.
We believe evangelism to be the presentation of Jesus Christ, and the power of the Holy Spirit, so that persons may be led to believe in Him as Lord and Savior, within the fellowship of the church. We expect the Pastor, the Session and the Congregation to participate equally in the sharing of Christ's Good News with the churched and the unchurched in the community and in the world inviting people into discipleship and community service in the name of Jesus Christ.
We expect the Pastor to exercise strong leadership in his relationship with the other members of the church staff, and the Session, creating a climate conducive to the delegation of tasks and shared leadership, and encouraging the professional staff and Session members to utilize their own ideas, gifts and skills in the service of God and God's People. We expect the Pastor as Head of Staff, to establish task priorities for the staff, to set regular, published office hours and to assume responsibility for the scheduling of vacations, sick leave, taking into account the possibility of family emergencies, etc. In establishing office policy, we expect the Pastor-Head of Staff to consult with and inform the Administrative Committee relative to such policies. We expect the Pastor to spend an adequate amount of time in administrative duties and the development/implementation of programs. However, we clearly state that the needs of the people constituting the membership and the constituency of the Congregation take precedence over any administrative and program-development duties. The Pastor may expect the Session to take appropriate responsibility for the program design / implementation process so that the Pastor's primary focus will always be sharing the Good News of God in Christ through, the preaching of the Word and the Administration of the Sacraments, and ministering to peoples' joys and sorrows, hurts and hopes.
We see the Pastor's primary role in the education program to be that of teaching and working with other staff members, the Session and the Congregation in preparing them to teach and actively participate in the educational program. We see the same style of leadership shown in the educational ministry applying to the youth ministry of the church, remaining mindful of the fact that youth may or may not be members of the community of faith yet they deserve the same ministerial attention from the Pastor as any other member. Secondarily, the pastor and/or other staff members may be given authority by the Session to lead courses for new members, young people who wish to be confirmed and commissioned and church officers. The Session assumes ultimate responsibility for these areas according to G-5.0401 and G-10.0102 and may assume either joint responsibility with the Pastor, or total responsibility in these areas. The Pastor may expect that all members of the Session will affirm the importance of education in the church by actively participating in the educational program as resource persons, teachers, and/or class participants.
The Pastor should express everyday concern from members of the Congregation and constituents of the Congregation in formal and informal settings. He should also be cognizant of his responsibility to his wife, not as a minister, but as a husband, since this ministry is also ordained by God. The Pastor's wife shall enjoy the privileges and responsibilities of any member of the church, no more, no less.
Because the professional ministry demands a good deal of time emotionally, we expect that the Pastor will be a good steward of time and his own health. We strongly urge him to take at least one uninterrupted day off a week (normally Friday), and another day off a week at his discretion. We urge both the congregation, and Session to be sensitive to the pastor's work schedule encouraging him to take time for himself and his family.
The Pastor will have 4 weeks vacation and 2 weeks study leave per year. In general, it is expected that vacation will be taken a week at time, but it is understood that occasionally, single days will be preferable. The Pastor will advise the Administrative Committee of the Session of scheduled time off.
The congregation earnestly supports the Pastor's desire to pursue his Doctoral degree. We will be encouraging and helpful in this pursuit. To this end, we agree to allow the Pastor to accumulate unused study leave/continuing education time for up to 6 weeks.
General prioritization of pastoral care obligations, shared with the Session and the Deacons, will be as follows:
1) Crisis situations such as illness, death and hospitalization;
2) Prospective member visits;
3) Visits to members who are less than active;
4) Visits to active members.
To assist the Pastor in the pastoral care of the Congregation, the Session and Deacons will commit themselves to pastoral care of members under a format mutually decided upon by the parties to this covenant.
The Pastor should be available for counseling of persons who face personal and/or spiritual problems, all the while recognizing that he is not trained as a psychologist or psychiatrist. Ordinarily, he will restrict himself to first-line, short-term counseling, being prepared to refer the person or couple being counseled to a more qualified resource person once that first-line or short-term counseling has been passed.
We expect the Pastor to be a faithful Presbyter and to participate in the life of the community, maintaining an appropriate balance between work in this particular church, work in the larger church and work beyond the church. The Pastor will be supported in his investment of time in higher governing body work. Time for this work will be scheduled through the Administrative Committee of the Session.
From the Session, the Deacons, and the Congregation, the Pastor can expect:
1) Cooperation in fulfilling needed tasks, including, but not limited to:
-- the evangelization of prospective members;
-~ pastoral care of members, including visitation and/or counseling of members in members' homes, the hospital and other settings;
-- all other responsibilities of the Session and Congregation stated in the Book of Order [G-10.0102];
2) Encouragement in the exercise of the Pastor's gifts and strengths;
3) Understanding and patience of the Pastor's limitations and weaknesses;
4) Support and prayers;
5) A continuing alertness to the Pastor's own and his family's need for grace and ministry.
APPROVED BY THE SESSION ON NOVEMBER 1, 1999 AND BY THE CONGREGATION ON JANUARY 30, 2000.