Dear All Souls,
Around this time last year, we launched Imagining Our Future – our church-wide goal-setting project. The Board hosted dozens of workshops that engaged over 300 people who provided over a thousand pieces of feedback about the future of the Church. Through that collaborative process, the Church voted in April 2022 to adopt seven goals.
The people of All Souls Church will use our time, talent, and treasure to:
- Become a multi-cultural, multi-racial, multi-generational spiritual community that is grounded in authentic relationships, trust, and belonging.
- Welcome all people of good will with radical hospitality and inclusion.
- Deepen our spiritual lives through learning and creative expression.
- Act accountably to dismantle racism and other oppressions in ourselves and our institutions.
- Connect with each other and our neighbors in new ways and in a well-maintained historic building.
- Serve the needs of those in our city in partnership with local organizations.
- Love and care for one another across the lifespan in times of joy, sorrow, and transition
Our work on this front does not end here. Now that the Board and Congregation have worked to identify our long-term Church Goals, the Executive Team, consisting of the Senior Minister and the Executive Director, must find ways to help us all live out those Goals. They do this through thinking about how to “interpret” our seven Goals. The Executive Team has been leading the staff in discussions of how these Goals might become integral to our congregational life. The Executive Team and Board have discussed potential priorities, such as building on our historic partnerships to serve people in the city, providing avenues for members to engage in direct service, and inviting each community to internally reflect on how they can embody the 8th Principle and then share that learning with each other. These priorities stem directly from the Church Goals that the Congregation committed to this past spring.
The Executive Team has been working with church staff to provide the Board of Trustees with a written interpretation of the Church Goals and Executive Limitations. Thus far, interpretations and strategic priorities have been considered for Goals #4 and #6. An interpretation and strategic priorities for Goal #2 will be considered prior to the end of the calendar year. This process will continue into 2023 for the remaining four goals. This effort to give life to our goals will run parallel to the processes of identifying a new senior minister(s) and placing the Church on more secure financial footing.
As we continue this work, we invite you to stay abreast of the Board’s work both in this area and other areas by participating as a spectator in Board meetings, reviewing Board meeting minutes, and providing feedback on the direction of the Church in both solicited venues and via self-initiated avenues. The Board typically meets every fourth Wednesday of the month. For more information about our meeting schedule, Board meeting minutes, or to provide feedback on this or any other matter, please contact us. You can find our contact information at https://all-souls.org/about-us/governance/bot/. We would love to hear from you as we explore the deeper meaning of each of the seven goals which will help guide us in developing our collective future.
In Gratitude,
The Board of Trustees