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For the greater good: how long-term ministries benefit Unitarian Universalism

Unitarian Universalist congregations suffer from short-term ministries, requiring focus on transition rather than faith development and congregational vision. This thesis suggests that long-term ministries are advantageous, and explores factors contributing to effective long-term ministries. The method was to interview clergy serving eight or more years in congregations and following other long-term ministers. Interviewees were then brought into dialogue with leadership theory, theology, and past studies of the topic. The analysis reveals benefits for Unitarian Universalist long-term ministries, including increased stability, trust, vision, resilience, and spiritual maturity. The thesis concludes with proposals to support long-term ministries more widely in Unitarian Universalism.

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:bu.edu/oai:open.bu.edu:2144/22615
Date22 May 2017
Creatorsvon Courter, Wendy
Source SetsBoston University
Languageen_US
Detected LanguageEnglish
TypeThesis/Dissertation
RightsAttribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International, http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/

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