Done!  Done! and Done!

Well, not quite.  The decisions made at the two congregational meetings held this past week to follow the Church of St Paul and make the entire North Thompson Pastoral Charge into an Ecumenical Shared Ministry now need to go to the judicatories* for approval.

On Monday, November 10th, the Clearwater United Church congregation met.  After brainstorming, discussion, and prayer over the last six months, a name has been chosen for when it officially becomes an ecumenical shared ministry.  The choice (drum roll) is Trinity Shared Ministry.  The congregation then approved the North Thompson Ecumenical Shared Ministry Agreement and the Bylaws that pertain specifically to the congregation.

On Sunday, November 16th, the Church of St Paul congregation had its turn.  Of course, its name change had already occurred in 2010.  It, too, approved the North Thompson Ecumenical Shared Ministry Agreement that will replace its current Agreement as well as the new Bylaws that will govern the congregation.

The two congregations, the boards, and the Ecumenical Shared Ministry Committee of the Pastoral Charge now get a bit of a rest as the Agreement, the two sets of Bylaws, and the name change for Clearwater United Church go to our partner churches’ regional bodies for their consideration.

* Judicatories:  Anglican – Anglican Parishes of the Central Interior; Lutheran – BC Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada; United Church – Kamloops-Okanagan Presbytery