Total Ministry
We are one of the first Total Ministry congregations in the Diocese of Northern California
TM Begins With Fulfilling Your Baptismal Covenant
Remember Your Baptismal Covenant?
“Will you proclaim by word and example the good News of God in Christ?”
“Will you seek and serve Christ in all persons, loving your neighbor as yourself?
“Will you who witness these vows do all in your power
to support these persons in their life of Christ?”
“Let us join with those who are committing themselves to Christ..”
How can we best fulfill our baptismal covenants?
Total Ministry is an approach to fulfilling our baptismal covenants
Total Ministry Offers:
Service to God in our everyday life
Discovering ministry in the gifts that we have
Church growth by building on personal experience,
and doing what each of us does best
Especially suitable for small congregations, poor congregations
Building a ministry team with joy and excitement
Bringing your congregation alive as a community
Renewed awareness of the guidance of the Holy Spirit
Growth in Christian maturity for all
Total Ministry is:
A program and a curriculum for congregations
A different way of looking at church
Working very well in our diocese
Similar to the church of Jesus’ time
Fun, empowering, and efficient
Custom fit to each congregation
Our Diocese Provides Total Ministry Gatherings
Open to all interested congregations
Providing an introduction to its many benefits
Telling success stories in our diocese
Will engage you in an educational dialogue
Total Ministry Will Help You to:
Have stronger, happier congregations
Be effective and efficient as a congregation
Support each other in your service to God
Dynamically grow existing ministries
Recover your sense of excitement
Testimony of an 83-year old cradle Episcopalian head of an Altar Guild
[About Total Ministry] “I can remember how reluctant I was at the beginning to realize I had to take on some of our priest’s chores. As an old time Episcopalian, I was used to coming to church, sitting, kneeling, taking communion and going home. Now I had to take on a bunch of responsibilities, some of which I didn’t know anything about. I bristled when I heard that we were about to lose our priest and we had to do something about it. It seemed to me that was the Bishop’s problem. But once I got the hang of Total Ministry, I found it makes church so much more rewarding and interesting to me--to have a role to be responsible for, to feel good about taking an active part in keeping the church so inspiring and comforting and so much more a part of my life. It’s hard to change old mindsets, but it can be done and everyone benefits from it.”
“The concept that roles and functions within the congregation are VOLUNTARY is particularly pertinent. Volunteering makes each person’s “gift” so completely suited to the individual who volunteers as opposed to having been assigned a particular ministry. To have a person in the congregation who is called to the ministry is a gift, indeed. How can our little group have such good fortune? I think it’s because we work hard for it, we have faith that God is on our side, and we’re willing to take responsibility as a team to keep our good fortune alive.”
“I think that’s the secret of Total Ministry—people who don’t sit back and let someone else do things for them, but who are willing to work hard for their faith in God and to spread that faith as far as they can through their ministry.”
A Presentation Describing Total Ministry at Saint Francis
to our Diocesan Committee on Ministry
Slide One Title Photo: contrast old and new churches
Slide 2 Who we are
Slide 3 Where we are.
Slide 4 Our Vision of Total Ministry
Slide 5 Total Ministry at St Francis (What is Total Ministry to us?)
Slide 6 Total Ministry Structure at St Francis
Slide 7 Circle Diagram one
Slide 8 Circle Diagram two
Slide 9 one whole slide to list functions we have filled
Slide 10 one whole slide to list all of our ministries
Slide 11 Saint Francis Today
Slide 12 Saint Francis Looking Back
Slide 13 St Francis: Looking Inward
Slide 14 St Francis: Looking Outward
Slide 15 St Francis: Looking Forward
Slide 16 What is Working Well
Slide 17 Challenge
Slide 18 What diocese-wide implementation of TM offers the COM
Slide 1 Title: Saint Francis in the Redwoods Episcopal Church
Pictures: Old church, new church,
Slide 2 Who we are Picture: Group Picture
Statistics and demographics: Congregation size (now, 5 years ago - when we began this process?, 10 years ago), ~30% are cradle Episcopalians (other previous faiths?), years in existence, # licensed ministries
Slide 3 Where the Heck is Willits? Maps
Map of the area showing extent of our congregation. The distances members are willing to drive to be part of Saint Francis
Slide 4 Our Vision of Total Ministry
- The presence and testimony of TM congregations will enliven the faith of all congregations in the diocese
- All ministries are important and essentially equal
- Finding and fulfilling one’s baptismal covenant through ministry brings joy, energy, and fulfillment
- A congregation full of healthy active ministries will grow in size and strength over time
- TM will make our congregation stronger. Our TM congregation will be seen as valuable to the Willits community
Slide 5 Total Ministry at St Francis
- Shared Responsibility. No labeling or blaming. Deficiencies/Shortcomings are an occasion for prayer and discernment. The quality of our association is becoming natural and almost unconscious
- Nearly everyone in the church has identified ministries, even those who have not been directly involved in the training
- We are well aware of and actively support each others ministries.
- Decision making is pretty fast and effective. Decision making always involves collaboration and group problem solving. The builders of our church were surprised at how fun and effective it was to work with a committee
Slide 6 Total Ministry Structure at St Francis (1)
- TM at Saint Francis doesn’t rely exclusively on assigned roles. Roles and structure of our congregation are unique, and are arrived at by prayer and common consent
- Vestry manages the business of the church as an important ministry, and has oversight over all ministries
- Other aspects of church life are managed by members of the congregation as their ministries, reporting monthly to our mission committee. This has proven to be the best and most effective management imaginable
- Roles and functions within the congregation always come from voluntary ministries. Volunteering makes each person’s “gift” completely suited to the individual as opposed to having been assigned a particular ministry.
- Priest-in-charge
Involved with ministry team and vestry
Provides encouragement, guidance, and direction as needed
Our Link to the Diocese
Slide 7 Circle Diagram one. What does TM look like at Saint Francis?
Slide 8 Circle Diagram two What does TM look like at Saint Francis?
Slide 9 one whole slide filled with church functions we have filled
Slide 10 one whole slide packed with a list of all of our outside ministries
Slide 11 Saint Francis Today
- We are a vibrant happy congregation that is growing
- Outsiders who enter our doors are welcomed, impressed, and transformed
- We have taken on a huge building project and have very successfully completed it
- Our city and our community are proud of what we have accomplished. They are favorably disposed towards us and what we do
Slide 12 Saint Francis Looking Back
- After learning about TM at convention, Mary Fisher urged us to consider it for our continuing life together after her retirement
- Learned about/discussed Baptismal Covenent with facilitator
- Agreed to a covenant to explore further
- Learned more about gifts, what is TM, etc
- Agreed to enter process, called team and possible priest
- Studied 6 areas of TM curriculum
- Assessment by COM members
- Commissioning and ordination
Slide 13 St Francis: Looking Inward
What within the congregation made/makes Total Ministry a good thing for this congregation?
- A history of self-reliance and getting by without a regular priest. Mary never let us forget this!
- An orientation towards service to the community and a hunger to grow this
- A strong basis in faith
- Having experience prove that collaboration and group problem solving always leads to better results
What needs does it meet in the congregation?
- Allows us to live strongly and happily in Christ
- A means to celebrate the Eucharist every Sunday
What joys does it bring?
- Nearly everyone has found their bliss in some ministry
- Our interdependence has brought about joy in each other
How does TM grow the congregation?
- Newcomers have found the opportunities offered by TM attractive
- Our group efforts have produced a beautiful new church that is attractive to newcomers
- Our collaborative nature has involved the community in building this new church
Slide 14 St Francis: Looking Outward
How did the community setting impact the decision or path to Total Ministry?
- Willits people in general are experienced at working as a team for the good of the community
- Our location as a downtown church has caused us to be collaborative with our community
- We host the local AA/NA meetings. They have been a good model for TM
How has being a Total Ministry congregation impacted the surrounding community?
- We cannot see this yet. Too early to tell.
- People are intrigued by our non-hierarchical way of doing things
Slide 15 St Francis: Looking Forward
What’s in the future?
- Growth in the size of our congregation
- More and better involvement in the life of our diocese, especially TM
Where is Total Ministry going?
- Our congregation overwhelmingly feels that TM is the best thing that ever happened to us
- Several members have said, “If you do not want rural churches to die, implement TM”
How is it morphing?
- It has been morphing into increased trust and cooperation, less ego, and more fun
- From our experience, TM leads to a better quality of religious experience
What has been the impact of new members?
- New members have added depth and richness without changing the essence of what we are
Slide 16 What is Working Well
- We are working hard and having a lot of fun
- We are learning to trust God and “not be afraid”
- We feel the warm embrace of the Holy Spirit when we get together
- We have excitement over each others ministries
- There is a high degree of interest and excitement from visitors to our congregation
- Our leadership and evangelism for TM in our diocese has been effective and wonderful
- How well TM has come together in our congregation can make us smile
Slide 17 Challenges
- Potential Burnout, but we insist that everything is voluntary and always have backups
- Developing an effective (consistent) way to add members to our TM group
- Keeping this wonderful part of our faith lives alive and well in our diocese
- Realizing that it takes time to change a lifetime’s experience of the church
Slide 18 What diocese-wide implementation of TM offers the COM
- Rural churches that are stable, happy, and growing
- Small churches that need little long-term support, and eventually become growth centers, freeing up diocesan resources for other projects
- Vital fulfillment of the baptismal covenant across the diocese
- Under TM priests are free to do what they were trained to do, most likely with less stress