Senior Minister Search Committee Update | October, 2021

THERE’S A SWEET, SWEET SPIRIT IN THIS PLACE!
AND WE KNOW THAT IT’S THE SPIRIT OF THE LORD!

Greetings Riverside Church Family:

As the Senior Minister Search committee has met with you over these past several months, our listening tour has taught us that the people of Riverside LOVE Riverside. We are truly blessed to have found our home here at Riverside. On September 19th we experienced a Homecoming like no other, for it was a TRUE HOMECOMING! We hadn’t gathered together in person for over a year and a half. It was a time of celebration for the church, and indeed, “How pleasant it is when the family gathers together in UNITY!” The sweet spirit was felt by all who attended in person and online. On October 10th, the Search Committee hosted our final Open House Listening Tour Session. We heard from you about your dreams and hopes for the future of The Riverside Church as together we journey on the road to find our next senior minister.

During our tour, we hosted over fifty gatherings in person and on Zoom. We met with our lay leadership, members of The Riverside Church staff, clergy from local congregations, along with our own clergy, both past and present, and members of our community and neighborhood. Most importantly, we heard from the many diverse voices of our congregation. We heard from YOU! Listening to you will aide us in developing a church profile as we discern who we understand ourselves to be as The Riverside Church. Who are we? Who is our neighbor? Who is God calling us to become? What is the life and mission of our congregation? The church profile will not only help us identify the qualities we at Riverside hope to find in our next senior minister, it also prepares our next senior minister to discover who we are.

As the Search Committee proceeds in the work ahead, we ask that you keep us in prayer as we begin this process of creating the church profile. Working with our denominational executive and conference ministers, this month we will gather together for a retreat and prayerfully develop the profile in a spirit of discernment. We are excited to approach this next stage in the process as we pull together all that we have heard during our eighteen-week Listening Tour. So we ask again that you continue to hold the Senior Minister Search Committee and our church in your prayers. Pray for the harmony of mind and spirit within this committee and the congregation as we engage on this journey.

AND WE KNOW THAT IT’S THE SPIRIT OF THE LORD!

Grace and Peace,

The Senior Minister Search Committee

Alexa, Andrea, Annie, Beth, David, Emily, Hylda, Karissa, Lee, Lisa, and Mark