June 2025 Newsletter Pastor’s Page
Greetings friends,
As we enter June, many of you are getting busy in the garden! If you grew up on or near a farm, you know that farmers will occasionally allow a field to lie fallow or go unplanted for a season. During this season, the soil is given the chance to rest and regain nutrients so that during the next season it will continue to be productive and useful. This same idea is useful for us as we navigate through the seasons of life.
In July, I will enter a new season for a short time. I will take a four-week renewal leave from July 1-28. Last December I proposed this idea to our Leadership Board. In March, I submitted a formal plan to the Board, and they approved my request. Our DS Lynn Miller Jackson and Bishop Kristin Stoneking have also approved my request.
What is renewal leave? In our Book of Discipline, United Methodist clergy may request different types of leaves from ministry. My upcoming renewal leave is defined described in Para 350.2 of our Discipline: “A clergy member’s continuing education and spiritual growth program shall include professional formation leaves at least one week each year and may include at least one month during one year of every quadrennium.” Renewal leave is an investment in self and congregation to stay physically, emotionally, and spiritually healthy.
Why am I taking renewal leave? This July I will complete my 5th year as your pastor and 11 years as an appointed clergy. United Methodist clergy are appointed one year at a time, and typically for multiple years in a row. Last fall, I sensed a deep need in me for rest, renewal, and rejuvenation. I was appointed to CFUMC in the midst of a pandemic. I have pastored you through divisive elections, community changes, and lots of grief. With the help of many of you, I have put a lot of energy into administrative restructuring, building projects, worship design, outreach, and new ministry. During my renewal leave, I plan to take a break from regular ministry to continue my education, renew my personal and vocational life, and grow spiritually. To do this:
- I plan to read: Practice the Pause: Jesus’ Contemplative Practice, New Brain Science, and What It Means to Be Fully Human by Caroline Oakes, Ordinary Mysticism: Your Life as Sacred Ground by Mirabi Starr, and Your Perfect Right: Assertiveness and Equality in Your Life and Relationships by Alberti & Emmons.
- I plan to renew my meditation and prayer life.
- I will also participate in a retreat at The Abbey of Our Lady of New Clairvaux in Vina, California July 11-13, 2025.
Renewal leave is a privilege that I do not take lightly. I believe these activities, as well as unstructured time with my wife and children, will help me feel rested and renewed to continue regular ministry at CFUMC. With the help of staff, teams, and individuals at CFUMC, I have arranged for pulpit supply, as well as lay and clergy pastoral care coverage during the leave. This congregation has been a blessing to work with since 2020. My request for this leave comes from a desire to rest and renew my personal and vocational life.
Leadership Board Chair/Lay Leader Diane Elliot and I will present this to the congregation during worship on June 8. I will return to regular duties on July 29. If you have questions before or after that date, please reach out to either one of us.
Grace & Peace,
Pastor Jared