Minister shortage!

The first signs of the much rumored minister shortage may be appearing.

Look at Opportunities in Ministry. This is late May! How many of those congregations will have an interim by GA? Not enough applications for interim positions to fill them.

Many small and potentially great congregations outside of commuting distance to Boston had only a few applications for their settled positions. Some are going into a second year of search hoping a good prospect will apply.

Most aspiring newly fellowshipped ministers have a hard time finding their perfect settlement, but that has always been the case. James Freeman Clark went West not because he was a pioneer. He needed the experience to compete for all the little First Parishes back home.