by Martha Harris, FCC Board Co-Chair
Yet another chapter in the 148-year history of First Christian Church Minneapolis begins this month as Rev. Benjamin Masters starts his work as our Intentional Interim Minister. He will be with us for at least nine months and possibly longer, guiding us through a time of self-reflection and discernment of our needs for the future.
The FCC Transition Team (David Cobb, Lu Griffin, Margaret Hutchens and Martha Harris) began its work in June. We decided on three main goals that we would ask the Interim Minister to work on: 1. Help us reflect on, question, and examine ourselves as a congregation to better understand how to move forward, building on our strengths and acknowledging what might be holding us back. 2. Help us reflect on our worship, spiritual, and community life. 3. Bring “fresh eyes” as we work to envision how FCC Minneapolis can be a vital and thriving congregation as we move into the future.
In an interview with the Transition Team, Ben talked at length about his experiences as an Interim, how he approaches building relationships with a congregation and coming to know and understand its culture and its needs, how he will approach working with Associate Pastor Dan, and how he helps support the various ministry teams in a congregation.
In his Personal Discernment Profile, Ben says this about himself and how he answers God’s call: “Gifts like energy, optimism, and curiosity make me an encourager, especially to small congregations with big hearts. I lean on empathy and camaraderie to build relationships in and beyond the church.”
It is our hope that Ben will be able to meet and interact with every member of our congregation in some way – in worship, in committee meetings, in fellowship time together and in other ways and venues. He will also get to know us as he combs through the work we have already done through our 2023 congregational survey and small group meetings, and through the Narrative Budget that built on the data from the survey and meetings. Our last Interim Minister was Rev. Bob Brite. At the end of his Interim work, First Christian was ready to welcome a new Senior Pastor into our new life as a church in the ground-breaking partnership of SpringHouse Ministry Center. Our hope is that FCC will be a strong, healthy and forward-looking congregation ready to begin its next phase of life with a new Senior Pastor. We are confident that Ben Masters can steer us toward that moment.
