Call Committee Process & Information
We ask for your prayers as we begin this important process of discerning a call to a new pastor to serve at Bethel. We will work in partnership with the Bishop’s Office of the Southeastern Minnesota Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA).
Process Update
• Over the last few weeks, the Call Committee conducted interviews with five different candidates, however, none of those candidates will progress further in the process.
• We ask the congregation to continue to reflect on exceptional pastors you’ve engaged with and submit names for pastoral candidate nominations via this form (Nomination Examples: a pastor you may have noted to be exceptional or whom you have heard deliver a meaningful sermon. This is not limited to geographical location. You could have been in another state and enjoyed a pastor’s ministry). The Synod continues to vet candidates for us to consider.
• Please continue to pray for guidance of Bethel’s pastoral call process and to bless the journeys of our past and future candidates.
Pastoral Job Descriptions
As part of Bethel’s Pastoral Team, the position of Associate Pastor- Generational Ministry relates to the two other full-time pastor positions. In the summer of 2020, Bethel established a “Pastoral Transition Team” in anticipation of the retirement of the Pastor Emeritus, Rev. Dr. Norman Wahl, and the beginning of Rev. Anjanette Bandel’s call to be Lead Pastor.
New job descriptions were crafted by the Pastoral Transition Team for responsibilities of the three members of the Bethel pastoral team: Lead Pastor, Associate Pastor-Education and Associate Pastor- Generational Ministry. You will see these job descriptions approved by the Personnel Team and Bethel Church Council in the fall of 2020.
Steps of the Call Process
Phase One:
The Transition ProcessPhase Two:
The Self-Study ProcessPhase Three:
The Interview ProcessPhase Four:
Welcoming Your New PastorCall Committee Members
The Bethel Church Council is pleased to announce the Call Committee for our third full-time pastor position, Pastor of Generational Ministries.
If you have any questions about the pastoral call process please contact any member of this team. The Call Committee will be diligent in communicating updates to the congregation in the following months ahead.