Congregation Cluster Report

Congregation Cluster Report

Our new cluster system incorporates three primary functions under the umbrella of the Congregation Cluster; they are discipleship, worship and parish life.  We’ve tried to attend to each area with due diligence and without neglecting any part of our responsibilities.  It has sometimes been a challenge during the first year of implementation, but the group has moved forward and accomplished much during 2008.

Logistically we addressed the challenges by continuing to focus on the three areas as three distinct groups.  The former Christian Education members convened a working task force which include church members and friends not in the cluster to attend to the Sunday School and related issues.  Most notably, this group convened a search committee and hired Kathy Noble as our new Director of Sunday School. The accomplishments of that group are included in the reports submitted by Kathy Noble and Elizabeth Smith.

Issues of Parish Life were brought to the Cluster when necessary.  Often the tasks of this group that we have come to love (i.e. the Round Robin Dinners and the Souper Sundays!) were planned with a task force convened by Nan Fritz.   Details of the Membership and Parish Life Task Force are reported in the Annual Report.

The deacons struggled with the structure of four ordained deacons actively working in the Cluster, and have come to the conclusion that we need six deacons actively working at any one time.   This new plan will be implemented in 2009.   Four deacons will actively participate in the Congregation Cluster; and two ordained deacons will serve outside of the Cluster.  All deacons will continue to support the pastor in the week-to-week devotional practices of our community and participate in longer-range planning which concerns the spiritual life of the congregation at large.   The deacons plan to meet with Carrie monthly outside of the Congregation Cluster meetings.

Implementation of quarterly Big D pot luck suppers and meetings was successful.  These gatherings of current and former deacons have proved to be a valuable time to draw on the experiences and expertise of all former deacons.  We’ve discussed the role of deacon in our church, discussed and experienced prayer with a Sufi leader, planned with Carrie a worship service, and enjoyed wonderful fellowship.  We plan to continue these gatherings quarterly.   At two times during 2008 we supported Carrie in beginning a prayer group.  Though there is continued interest in an experiential prayer group, the timing has been problematic.

Goals for 2009 will include items that have been before us in the past and some new focus, too.  They will include these goals:

• More fully integrate issues of education, membership/parish life, and deacons to ensure that we better serve the congregation as a whole, and serve individual members.
• Address the three issues discussed at our December 2008 meeting, all of which have been brought before the Cluster in past forms.  If these are a priority to the 2009 Congregation Cluster and the congregation at large, we’ll keep them on our priority list.  Those issues are addressing men’s activities/participation in our church;  integration of worship, children/youth programming, and outreach ministry; and increasing membership and participation in general.
• Supporting the initiative of the meeting house gatherings so that they reflect the deeply held tradition of the First Congregational Church of Williamstown’s effort to serve the wider world, as well as our own spiritual community.