Mid afternoon on Friday, January 2, the UUA (Unitarian Universalist Association) released the names of the ministers who are interested in becoming our next settled minister. Scanning the list and seeing about the same number that we saw last year, we knew it would be a very busy weekend.

From that afternoon until very late Saturday night, each of us pored over the Ministerial Records (MRs), a standard UUA form that ministers use to describe their backgrounds and perspectives on ministry.

On Sunday morning, the search committee convened to compare our individual impressions and select the ministers with whom we wanted to have personal conversations. We spent six-and-a-half hours narrowing the list.

During the next ten days we held nine video calls, each lasting about 90 minutes.

Then we invited four ministers to “pre-candidate.” Each minister enthusiastically accepted our invitation.

Now what?

Between now and the end of March, we will spend a weekend with each pre-candidate. We'll get to know one another. We'll discuss a wide range of topics about ministry, our congregation, and the Nashua area. We'll see each minister lead a worship service in a “neutral” pulpit — not ours, not theirs.

A note about neutral pulpits: Not all ministers tell their congregations that they are exploring a move. To respect the confidentiality of their searches, the neutral pulpit congregation has a “guest minister,” and the search committee attends the service incognito. That's the intent, although we have found congregants in the neutral churches often know what is happening, which puts the search committee in an uncomfortable position when some approach us winking and nodding. We can only hope that everyone will be discreet and honor the confidentiality of the search process.

By April, we'll have to make the challenging choice of which minister to ask to be our “candidate” to present to you, the congregation. Our formal offer will be extended at noon (EDT) on Thursday, April 2.

Assuming our candidate accepts, we'll schedule “candidating week,” two Sundays and the week between. The minister will lead the service both Sundays and spend the week meeting with the staff, church members, and individual congregants — as well as exploring the area and identifying housing options. Immediately following the second Sunday service, the congregation will vote whether to call the candidate as our next settled minister. Our bylaws require that at least 90 percent of the voting members at the meeting vote in favor. The minister may want an even higher percentage to accept our call.

You won't hear much more from us about the status of this process between now and early April. This is the time we earn the trust you've placed in us.

Falling in love

All of the ministers whose MRs we read and those we spoke with are well qualified for the ministry. All are devoted to Unitarian Universalism. All have gifts to share.

The challenge for any search committee is selecting a minister who is the best fit for their congregation, a process which quickly moves from the realm of objective decision making. We're looking for someone we (the congregation) can fall in love with, someone who will feel the same about us.

Our four pre-candidates have that potential. They have stirred something within us, a resonance that their ministries can help us deepen spiritually and better live our UU values, both individually and as a congregation.

The challenge will be picking just one.

Nevertheless, we're excited about the coming weeks. This is the best part of the search.

If you have questions about the search process, please leave a comment or ask one of the search committee members: Laurie Goodman, Kathy Grossman, Steve Hedges, Carol Houde, Donna LaRue, or Gary Lerude