Posting for Interim Pastor
First United is an Open and Affirming, More Light, welcoming church. Our church has strong mission programs and partners with local charities including close relationships with those providing hunger relief, and housing options for the homeless. Our beautiful English Gothic building serves as a tool for these ministries, including the Beyond Hunger food pantry, the First United Church Nursery School and Learning Edge tutoring program. In addition to mission, we are committed to strong youth programs. Youth are integrated into the full life of the church, including serving alongside other church leaders on the Council and teams. First United Church of Oak Park is a union church located in the heart of the historic Village of Oak Park, IL. We are members of both the national Presbyterian Church USA and United Church of Christ denominations. Our congregation is seeking an ordained clergyperson to serve as a full-time Interim Pastor (with Intentional Interim training) as we transition to a settled Lead Pastor. The position is currently open, and the starting date will be as early as can mutually be agreed upon. This Interim Lead Pastor would be under a twelve-month contract, with possibility for extension.
Interested candidates should contact either the Illinois Conference UCC or the Chicago Presbytery for application information.
Why Do We Need an Interim Pastor?
Before embarking on a search for a settled senior pastor, our Interim Pastoral Search Team will put together an initial draft of our Church Profile. It will form the basis for decisions around who we nominate as our interim. He or she will guide us during this transitional period between John Edgerton and our new settled senior pastor. We will need to spend some time considering what we have learned about “who we are, who is our neighbor, and who God is calling us to become.” An intentional interim pastor is trained to help us through this discernment. He or she will be our guide through this next transition in the life of First United Church of Oak Park.
A Few Nuts and Bolts About the Interim Pastor Search:
- We want to find our interim pastor as quickly as possible, ideally within a few months, but we don’t want to sacrifice quality just to get someone quickly.
- While we are searching for the interim pastor, our two Associate Pastors will cover the pastoral duties.
- Interim pastors generally serve church for one to two-and-a-half years. During this time, a Pastoral Nominating Committee will refine the Profile that we have drafted to search for our new settled lead pastor.
- Your input is important to us! Over the next couple of months, you will have the opportunity to share your thoughts about the qualities and concerns that we need to consider before selecting our nominee for this interim pastor position.
- Even if we find an awesome interim, we cannot offer the settled pastor position to our interim pastor! The UCC and Presbyterian Church policies and practices strongly discourage or forbid it.
Updates from the Team
The Interim Pastoral Search Team will keep you informed about our progress, but please understand that it is important to protect the privacy of potential candidates. We will not be sharing confidential information from our meetings with the church community. Click the dates below for new updates:
