Covenant

Pastor Transition Process

Covenant Presbyterian Church is in a transition period as we seek a new senior pastor. This section of the Covenant website is updated with news regarding the pastor transition process. Covenant's Clerk of Sessin Joy Durrant explains the process for finding a new pastor in a video. Find out the next steps in the process and more by viewing this video on the Covenant Blog.

Covenant Welcomes the Rev. Dr. Paul H. Parsons as Interim Senior Pastor

Covenant Presbyterian Church welcomes our new interim senior pastor, the Rev. Dr. Paul H. Parsons, who is the unanimous nominee of our Interim Pastor Search Committee (IPSC). The Committee on Ministry of Mission Presbytery examined Paul and, upon a recommendation of the Session, approved his appointment. Paul began at Covenant on July 1, 2011.

Paul is a graduate of Johns Hopkins and the Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. He is not only a seasoned pastor, he also has extensive training and experience in interim ministry, having served as interim over the 500-member Westminster Presbyterian Church in San Jose, Calif., in the late 80s. More recently, he served in that capacity in the 2,000-member Colonial Presbyterian Church in Kansas City from 2006-08.

Paul comes to Covenant from First Presbyterian, Colorado Springs (FPC) where he was Senior Associate Pastor of Missional Strategies and Discipleship. There he served dual roles: He was the startup pastor for a satellite extension of the FPC (First Pres North), and also served as “shepherd” over the top four levels of leadership at FPC.

Paul, in his personal information form, wrote that he desires to serve a community of faith that is “teachable, humble, prepared to take the lower place for the blessing of the world, grappling with how to overcome the consumerist disease, and willing to live out the covenant loyalty to one another.” Paul conveyed that his strengths are the spiritual gifts of encouragement, mercy and coaching/teaching, as well as the ability to build communities and empower teams that love, grow and go together.

According to the IPSC, Paul had outstanding references. When Paul was thrust in the interim/head of staff role at Colonial Presbyterian upon the sudden departure of the senior pastor, he ably took over. According to Rev. Chad Herring who met him at that time, “Paul is deeply rooted in Christ, passionate about people, great in administration and a great preacher—always trying to grow in knowledge, love and passion for others.”

Another reference, Charles Spencer, Executive Presbyter of Heartlands Presbytery (Kansas City) said, “Paul is an individual of great honesty and integrity. In our work together, we have had hard conversations on difficult issues. One of Paul’s strengths is his ability to initiate such conversations and to keep them going with grace and good humor, encouraging parties from all perspectives to remain in fellowship with one another.”

Dr. Peter Barnes, Senior Pastor of Westlake Hills Presbyterian, has known Paul for 35 years. He said, “Paul has all the skills: excellent preacher, bright, interesting and interested, empathetic, and a great team builder.”

Paul, who enjoys mountain climbing, hiking, dogs and reading, grew up on the Eastern Shore of Maryland “sitting on the porch telling stories.” He comes to Austin as a single person in the process of an amicable divorce after 34 years of marriage. He has four grown children and two grandchildren.

Transition Notes: Many Qualified Candidates

Since Covenant’s founding 50 years ago, we have had five senior pastors and, during their transitions, four interim senior pastors. Each transition is an opportunity for Covenant to reassess how best to carry out God’s mission, and to discern who should serve as Covenant’s next senior pastor.

Interim Senior Pastor Paul Parsons has relayed to the congregation that he feels called by God to continue as an interim pastor and has therefore asked the PNC not to consider him for the position. Read more.

The Pastor Nominating Committee has closed the Pastor Information Survey. According to the PNC, the Covenant congregation’s key skill for a senior pastor is Biblical-base preaching. The PNC will provide a more complete survey summary in the next issue of Covenant Matters. The PNC has also been busy reading, discussing, and discerning more than 130 Pastor Information Forms. The PNC feels blessed and affirmed that Covenant is a sought after congregation by highly distinguished pastors from around the country. The PNC appreciates the congregation's continued prayers and support. 

Transition Notes: PNC Reviewing PIFs and Seeking Information

Since Covenant’s founding 50 years ago, we have had five senior pastors and, during their transitions, four interim senior pastors. Each transition is an opportunity for Covenant to reassess how best to carry out God’s mission, and to discern who should serve as Covenant’s next senior pastor.

 The Senior Pastor Nominating Committee (SPNC) has begun receiving, and will soon start reviewing, Personal Information Forms (PIFs) from potential pastors. Additionally, the group is looking for congregational input through a survey. Take the survey at covenant.org/survey. As the PNC continues to seek the best senior pastor for Covenant, the group asks for the congregation’s continued prayers and discernment. 

Transition Notes: PNC Set to Finish Church Information Form; Covenant Matters, January 2013

Covenant’s Senior Pastor Nominating Committee (PNC) is working to complete the requirements for the Church Information Form (CIF). The team is in the final stages of ensuring that Covenant’s congregational profile and the requirements for the senior pastor are accurately represented in the document. PNC members ask the congregation to keep them in prayers and for wisdom and guidance from the Holy Spirit.

Transition Notes: PNC Growing as a Group; Covenant Matters, November 2012

Since Covenant’s founding 50 years ago, we have had five senior pastors and, during their transitions, four interim senior pastors. Each transition is an opportunity for Covenant to reassess how best to carry out God’s mission, and to discern who should serve as Covenant’s next senior pastor.

Covenant's PNC was elected in September, and since that time, the 11 members have been studying together and taking the time to grow as a group. As they delve deeper into the pastor search process, they appreciate the prayers of the congregation to help guide them to the ideal leader for Covenant.

Transition Notes: Covenant Elects Its PNC; Covenant Matters, September 2012

The Covenant congregation elected 11 members to the Pastor Nominating Committee (PNC) at Congregational Meeting on Sept. 9. The PNC includes: Joy Baskin, Diane Davis, Joe Denton, Allison Dwyer, Paulette Kern, Steve Martens. Nola Ross, Regina Schlotter, Joe Skraba, Julie Stillwell and Don Zappone. The team now starts the hard work of finding a senior pastor to lead Covenant. One of its first tasks will be to complete a Church Information Form (CIF), which outlines the kind of pastor Covenant will seek.

Transition Notes: Parsons Contract Extended

The Committee on Ministry (COM) is a committee of Mission Presbytery. The COM renewed the interim contract of Covenant's Senior Interim Pastor Paul Parsons for 12 months, effective Aug. 15, 2012.

Transition Notes: Task Force, Mission Study Underway; Covenant Matters, April 2012

Since Covenant’s founding 50 years ago, we have had five senior pastors and, during their transitions, four interim senior pastors. Each transition is an opportunity for Covenant to reassess how best to carry out God’s mission, and to discern who should serve as Covenant’s next senior pastor.

Session is currently working to create a seven-member Mission Study Task Force to draft the mission study. This document will spell out the mission of the church, where it intends to go to fulfill that mission and therefore, what kind of pastor is needed to lead the congregation.

Pastor Paul has recommended that Covenant’s mission study include, at least, the following categories: Covenant’s vision and identity, the history of the congregation, the city’s culture and demographics, and Covenant’s strengths, weaknesses and challenges. It should also address the kind of pastor that Covenant needs. Covenant hopes to have the task force in place and mission study completed by June 1. The study must be approved by Session and the Committee on Ministry of the Mission Presbytery, and then given to the Pastor Nominating Committee (PNC) to use as a resource for the Church Information Form (CIF).   

Notes: Looking Forward, Covenant Matters; February 2012

Since Covenant’s founding 50 years ago, we have had five senior pastors and, during their transitions, four interim senior pastors. Each transition is an op- portunity for Covenant to reassess how best to carry out God’s mission, and to discern who should serve as Covenant’s next senior pastor.

At this point in the process, we anticipate that Session will initiate a Mission Study soon after the Annual Meeting, which is Feb. 26. This study will lay out a demographic and the strategic foundation for the work of the Pastor Nominating Committee (PNC). Completing this study and getting approval from Mission Presbytery’s Committee on Ministry usually takes two to three months. During these same months, the Congregational Nominating Com- mittee will most likely be working on a list of potential nominees for the PNC, which could be formed by the middle of the year.

Mission Prebytery, the governing body with responsibilities for oversight of its ministers and 157 churches in its region, churches recommends taking as much time as needed to thoroughly complete these tasks. The timing of these events will happen as Covenant is ready.

Transition Notes: Looking Forward; Covenant Matters; January 2012

Since Covenant’s founding 50 years ago, we have had five senior pastors and, during their transitions, four interim senior pastors. Each transition is an opportunity for Covenant to reassess how best to carry out God’s mission, and to discern who should serve as Covenant’s next senior pastor.

As 2012 gets underway, Interim Senior Pastor Paul Parsons marks six months at Covenant, and Session will renew his original contract for another six months. At this time, Paul will turn his focus to the future, and work with the Session and member input to: articulate our identity as a church, determine our response to Amendment 10-A, and develop a vision to help guide our actions and priorities. 

“We will build on our foundation of discovering who we’ve been, and now move forward to determine future opportunities,” Paul said. “It will be my job to help lead the Session and staff in this endeavor, as opposed to giving answers.”

Transition Notes: Where we are in the Process; Covenant Matters, November 2011

Our third round of Town Hall Meetings is underway. (If you haven’t attended one yet, please come Sunday, Nov. 20, in FE 200.) Through these meetings, we are seeking the congregation’s input about the identity of Covenant. The Session will take the information and work on adopting a statement about who Covenant is. Early in 2012, we expect to have the following: 

• A response to Amendment 10-A.
• The election of a Pastor Nominating Committee (PNC).
  
• A Mission Study and a Church Information Form, which are needed to begin the senior pastor search.
• A church vision to guide Covenant in the near future.

Transition Notes: Interim Plan Provides Guideline for Future, Covenant Matters October

Since Covenant’s founding 50 years ago, we have had five senior pastors and, during their transitions, four interim senior pastors. Each transition is an opportunity for Covenant to reassess how best to carry out God’s mission, and to discern who should serve as Covenant’s next senior pastor.

In September, Session adopted an interim plan that provide a guideline for moving forward. Five sections of the plan
include:

• Celebrate, learn from and grieve the past

• Discover a new identity

• Allow necessary leadership change

• Renew relationships

• Commit to new directions in ministry

This plan enables us to reflect on our past and prepare for our future. Members are providing much material for it at our
continuing Town Hall meetings. Doing this work together now brings us closer to each other and to God, and gives our yet-to-be-formed Pastor Nominating Committee (PNC) theinformation it needs to confidently seek a new senior pastor.

Transition Notes: Defining Our Mission; Covenant Matters, September 2011

Since Covenant’s founding 50 years ago, we have had five senior pastors and, during their transitions, four interim senior pastors. Each transition is an opportunity for Covenant to reassess how best to carry out God’s mission, and to discern who should serve as Covenant’s next senior pastor.

We welcomed our Interim Senior Pastor Paul Parsons in July and now are working to determine our vision (who we are
becoming for the sake of the world) and our mission (how we get to our vision). As part of this journey, we need to define our
position on the ordination standards. (Members are encouraged to attend a town hall meeting on either Sept. 7 or 12.) When we are able to articulate more clearly our identity as a congregation and the place we take in God’s Kingdom work in Austin, we will begin to seek our senior pastor. At that time, we will form the Pastor Nominating Committee.

Transition Notes: Congregation Nominating Committee to Form PNC, Covenant Matters June 19–July 2

Since Covenant’s founding 50 years ago, we have had five senior pastors and during their transitions, four interim senior pastors. Each transition presents an opportunity for Covenant to reassess how best to carry out God’s mission, and discern who should serve as Covenant’s next senior pastor. In the upcoming issues of Covenant Matters, we will update members on our transition process.

As noted on the front page, the Interim Pastor Search Committee (IPSC) unanimously nominated and the Session and Presbytery approved, the Rev. Dr. Paul H. Parsons as our interim senior pastor. While we are grateful to welcome our new interim, Covenant continues the transition process. The congregational nominating committee, comprised of Ashley Ellison, Julie Ann Hartman, Thais Kilday, Jim Weatherby, along with two Elders elected by the Session and one Deacon elected by the Diaconate, is now tasked to nominate a slate of members to form a committee of the congregation known as the Senior Pastor Nominating Committee (PNC). The PNC is then elected by the congregation, and works with Mission Presbytery, to identify, call and install a new senior pastor. This is a much longer process than that followed by the IPSC, and generally takes a year or more.
  

Transition Notes: Interim Pastor Search Continues; Covenant Matters, June 2011

Since Covenant’s founding 50 years ago, we have had five senior pastors and during their transitions, four interim senior pastors. Each transition presents an opportunity for Covenant to reassess how best to carry out God’s mission, and discern who should serve as Covenant’s next senior pastor. In the upcoming issues of Covenant Matters, we will update members on our transition process.

During the last week the Interim Pastor Search Committee (IPSC) has made calls to several candidates to assess both their compatibility with and availability for the interim senior pastor position at Covenant. God is good. He has provided excellent candidates and conversations continue with those who seem most suited to lead during this season in the life of Covenant. This week, members of the IPSC will continue to listen to sermons, explore more deeply with candidates and be in prayer for God to make clear his choice for Covenant.

 

Cornerstone June/July 2011 Update

Greetings from the Interim Pastor Search Committee (IPSC) which, during May, has been busy seeking an interim senior pastor for Covenant. Not only are we are praying for a capable preacher, but also someone who will serve as a leader and friend to our staff, members and visitors. We pray for patience—both ours and yours—for we are confident that God, in His impeccable timing, will show us the person whom He has already chosen to lead Covenant.

Our goal is to have an interim by July 1. In order to reach that, the IPCS (Billie Fay Grayson, Christy Green, Joe Muck, Larry Rieber, Linda Southwick, Kathy Willis and I) set parameters to guide our search process. Many names have been suggested, have been approved by Mission Presbytery Committee on Ministry (COM) and are now being contacted by IPSC members.

The interim process differs from calling of the next Senior Pastor for Covenant. Steps include the following:

• IPSC establishes search parameters for Interim Pastor

• IPSC solicits and receives names of candidates

• COM approves potential candidates for contact by IPSC

• IPSC prayerfully ranks candidates with interest and availability

• One candidate becomes the IPSC consensus choice

• IPSC finalizes details of the interim contract between the Covenant and the Interim Pastor (This is usually a one-year contract with month-to-month extensions thereafter.)

• The Interim Pastor’s name is submitted to Session for ratification and hire

• The Interim Senior Pastor arrives and begins ministry at Covenant

At the same time the IPSC is at work, your Covenant Nominating Committee (CNC) will begin its efforts to prayerfully select the Pastor Nominating Committee (PNC). It will be this new PNC that will seek the new Senior Pastor that God has already selected for Covenant.

We are truly blessed to belong to this community of believers. Please pray for all who are involved in these committees. We are praying, and we need your support.

In his name,


Harold Skaggs, Chair IPSC

Transition Notes: Covenant Matters, May 15–29

Since Covenant’s founding 50 years ago, we have had five senior pastors and during their transitions, four interim senior pastors. Each transition presents an opportunity for Covenant to reassess how best to carry out God’s mission, and discern who should serve as Covenant’s next senior pastor. In the upcoming issues of Covenant Matters, we will update members on our transition process.

During the first two weeks in May, our Interim Pastor Search Committee (IPSC) – made up of outgoing elders Kathy Willis, Linda Southwick, Billie Fay Grayson, Larry Rieber and Harold Skaggs, and active elders Christy Green and Joe Muck – worked to define the parameters that will guide the search process. The group has also begun to receive the names of potential interim candidates. The Mission Presbytery Committee on Ministry (COM) has named Elder Wally Warrenburg of Westminster Presbyterian Church as our liaison in this process.

Covenant associate pastors and guest pastors are scheduled to deliver sermons through July 1, 2011. It is the prayer of the IPSC to have our Interim Pastor in place by that time.

Cornerstone May 2011 Update

Greetings from the Session, on whose behalf we are writing to tell you about plans for an orderly transition following Senior Pastor Rick Murray’s acceptance of a new call to pastor in California.

Understandably, the transition to a new senior pastor is a time of many emotions—a time of sorrow, a time of reflection, and a time to celebrate Rick and Kathy’s service to Covenant during their five years with us. Since Covenant’s founding 50 years ago, we have had five senior pastors and, during their transitions, four interim senior pastors. Each transition presents an opportunity for Covenant to reassess how best to carry out God’s mission, and discern who should serve as Covenant’s next senior pastor.

Mission Presbytery in San Antonio is one of three higher governing bodies of our church. We follow the rules of the Constitution of the Presbyterian Church (USA) of which we are a member congregation. The presbytery outlines the steps we follow to discern the call of a new senior pastor. Typically, the process leading to the call of a new senior pastor can take anywhere from nine months to two years. During that time, Session identifies and calls an interim senior pastor to serve Covenant. There is no set amount of time that each step takes. Briefly, our next steps are as follows:

1. The Session has formed an interim senior pastor search committee comprised of Session elders Billie Fay Grayson, Christy Green, Joe Muck, Larry Rieber, Harold Skaggs, Linda Southwick, Tom Sunstrom and Kathy Willis. This committee of the Session, in collaboration with Mission Presbytery, will identify and interview candidates and make a recommendation to Session for a candidate to be called to serve as interim senior pastor. Upon Session approval, this interim senior pastor will serve until the congregation elects a new senior pastor.

2. Until an interim senior pastor is in office, Sunday worship leadership and preaching—under Session’s supervision—will be shared among qualified pastors, including our two associates Jill Williams and Tom Mitchell, and guest preachers, including Mark Roberts of Laity Lodge.

3. Until an interim senior pastor is in office, Session meetings will be moderated alternately by Associate Pastors Tom Mitchell and Jill Williams.

4. The congregational nominating committee taking office on May 1 comprised of Ashley Ellison, Julie Ann Hartman, Thais Kilday, Jim Weatherby, along with two Elders elected by the Session and one Deacon elected by the Diaconate, will be tasked to nominate a slate of members to form a committee of the congregation known as the Senior Pastor Nominating Committee (PNC). The PNC is elected by and accountable to the congregation and works in collaboration with Mission Presbytery to identify, call and install a new senior pastor. Once elected by the congregation, the PNC is tasked to (i) prepare a comprehensive statement of information describing Covenant, its mission and the minimum qualifications Covenant is seeking in a new senior pastor, and (ii) identify and interview prospective senior pastor candidates and recommend to the congregation the election of a new senior pastor.

This is a well-thought out process and one that we believe will lead to the election of a senior pastor uniquely qualified and called to serve Covenant Presbyterian Church. The process compels us to reflect on what we believe and why we believe it, and encourages us to rededicate ourselves to our church and to our mission.

Importantly, this is a collaborative process that encourages all the voices of the church to be heard as we come together as one voice to move forward. It is a time to look to our future and maintain our commitment to Covenant’s ministry and mission of spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ to Austin and the world.

Yours in Christ,

Judith A. Thorburn
Immediate Past Clerk of Session

Dr. Marvin Hackert
Clerk of Session
 

Steps to a Call: From Interim to Senior Pastor

Listed below are the steps to calling an Interim Senior Pastor. Covenant has started the process, and we hope to quickly hire an interim pastor.

• Organize:The Session has formed an interim senior pastor search committee (IPSC) comprised of Session elders Billie Fay Grayson, Christy Green, Joe Muck, Larry Rieber, Harold Skaggs, Linda Southwick and Kathy Willis.

• Explore: This committee of the Session, in collaboration with Mission Presbytery, will identify and interview candidates.

• Recommend: The IPSC makes a recommendation to Session for a candidate to be called to serve as interim senior pastor.

• Call: Upon Session approval, this interim senior pastor will serve until the congregation elects a new senior pastor.

The following steps are those that we follow to elect a Senior Pastor. This is a much longer process, and could take up to two years.

• Form: The congregational nominating committee, comprised of Ashley Ellison, Julie Ann Hartman, Thais Kilday, Jim Weatherby, along with two Elders elected by the Session and one Deacon elected by the Diaconate, will nominate a slate of members to form the Senior Pastor Nominating Committee (PNC).

• Explore: The PNC designs and implements methods for input from the congregation, Session and staff.

• Create: The PNC writes the Church Information Form (CIF), produce job description, compensation range and descriptions of our congregation, mission and ministry. The Session and Prebytery’s Committee on Ministry (COM) must approve the CIF.

• Search: The PNC uses all appropriate methods to publicize the opening, follow up on referrals and network for recommendations.

• Consider: The PNC prayerfully evaluates each suitable candidate's Personal Information Form (PIF), available sermons, books, and papers, and schedules initial phone interviews.

• Select: The PNC conducts interviews, visits top candidates in his/her own environment, and follows up on references. The committee then prays, confers with the COM, and extends a call to one candidate. COM examines candidate for membership in presbytery.

• Nominate: The PNC reports to Session and the congregation. Following approval by both the congregation and the Presbytery, terms of the call are finalized.

• Celebrate: The church installs the new Senior Pastor.

Frequently Asked Questions

Covenant Presbyterian Church is in an interim period—the time between a Senior Pastor departing and a new Senior Pastor being called. Our transition period began on May 1, 2011, and will continue until the congregation calls our new Senior Pastor. These Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) are designed to help members and friends understand what to expect during this interim time.

What do all the acronyms stand for?

• PC(USA) — The Presbyterian Church (USA), the denomination to which Covenant belongs.

• Presbytery — The local governing body for PC(USA) churches in our area. We belong to the San Antonio Presbytery.

• COM – Committee on Ministry, the Presbytery committee that works with us during the interim time. The COM helps with the interim pastor search, and – during the senior pastor search – is asked to approve the Mission Study Report, the CIF, and the Call that will be extended to our next Senior Pastor.

• CIF — The Church Information Form, which lists information about Covenant and the job description for the Senior Pastor position.

• PNC — Pastor Nominating Committee, elected by the congregation and works with mission presbytery to find a new senior pastor.

• IPSC — Committee formed by the session to select an interim senior pastor

• PIF — The Pastor Information Form; this is a pastor's resume or curriculum vitae.

When will we have an interim senior pastor?

We hope to have an interim in place early in July. The interim senior pastor is chosen by the Interim Pastor Search Committee (IPSC). The IPSC follows the steps below:

• IPSC establishes search parameters for Interim Pastor.

• IPSC solicits and receives names of candidates.

• COM approves potential candidates for contact by IPSC.

• IPSC prayerfully ranks candidates with interest and availability.

• One candidate becomes the IPSC consensus choice.

• IPSC finalizes details of the interim contract between the Covenant and the Interim Pastor. (This is usually a one-year contract with month-to-month extensions thereafter.)

• The Interim Pastor’s name is submitted to Session for ratification and hire.

• The Interim Senior Pastor arrives and begins ministry at Covenant.

What happens during the interim period?

After an interim pastor is called, the Covenant Nominating Committee (CNC) nominates a slate of members to form the Pastor Nominating Committee (PNC). The PNC is elected by and accountable to the congregation and works in collaboration with Mission Presbytery to identify, call and install a new senior pastor. Once elected by the congregation, the PNC is tasked to (i) prepare a comprehensive statement of information describing Covenant, its mission and the minimum qualifications Covenant is seeking in a new senior pastor, and (ii) identify and interview prospective senior pastor candidates and recommend to the congregation the election of a new senior pastor.

How long will it take to hire a new senior pastor?

It is unknown how long the PNC will take to extend a call to a new Senior Pastor. Typically, the entire process usually takes about two years after the departure of the last Senior Pastor.

Who leads Covenant during this time?

Until we find an interim senior pastor, Sunday worship leadership and preaching—under Session’s supervision—will be shared among qualified pastors, including our two associates Jill Williams and Tom Mitchell, and guest preachers, including Mark Roberts of Laity Lodge. Once we hire an interim, that person assumes the responsibilities of senior pastor.

Will an interim pastor or associate pastor be allowed to become the next installed pastor of the congregation?

The proposed new Form of Government maintains the standards of our polity while making room for adaptability in meeting those standards, allowing councils to determine how best to serve their mission and ministry needs. With regard to the possibility of associate pastors and interim pastors succeeding as the next installed pastor, the clearly expressed standard of proposed G-2.0503a and b is that such succession is prohibited. However, presbyteries are permitted, pursuant to proposed G-2.0503c, to grant particular exception to this standard if the presbytery’s mission needs require it and the presbytery approves the specific exception by a three-fourths vote.

Where do I go for the most up-to-date information about the interim period?

Covenant plans to communicate the latest information about the search to members through all of our communication vehicles, including the website and other digital media, our printed publications Cornerstone and Covenant Matters, and updates from the pulpit.