We can structure the compensation package depending on the needs of the individual Rector. The structure is negotiable within our $100,000 budget for this position.

Holy Comforter provides two Sunday services: an 8:15 am Rite II spoken service and a 10:30 am Rite II service featuring organ music and a full choir. During Lent, we observe Rite I. Our services are grounded in tradition, following the liturgy of the Book of Common Prayer, with occasional use of text from the Scottish Psalter and New Zealand Prayer Book. Music is vital to our 10:30 am worship service, drawing primarily on The Hymnal 1982 and supplementing with additional styles as appropriate for our congregation.

In addition to Sunday services, we have traditionally offered a weekly healing service, as well as occasional Evensong and Compline services.

One of our supply clergy recently noted our "good energy," a sentiment we wholeheartedly share at Holy Comforter. For well over 100 years, we've been a place where people worship and serve Christ, minister to one another, and support their community with great passion.

We're pleased to see a resurgence in our service attendance, which has rebounded to pre-pandemic levels. Additionally, we have a dedicated group of individuals who continue to worship remotely via YouTube, maintaining a strong connection with our community.

Our children and youth programming has seen remarkable growth, with participation in children's programming blossoming in the last two years. We offer engaging Godly Play programming each Sunday, along with opportunities for involvement in Children's Choir, special events, community service projects, and acolyting. Our ECW group is very active, and we have a dedicated group of men who meet weekly to enjoy breakfast and a speaker.

Holy Comforter has a longstanding reputation for strong community connections and outreach. Some highlights of our ministries and partnerships include:

• A meaningful partnership with an underserved elementary school in our neighborhood. Our volunteers support programs like our Literacy/Tutoring Project, aimed at improving reading, writing, and spelling skills, as well as a Backpack Program, providing food each weekend for 65 children facing food insecurity, with plans to feed additional children in the works.

• When a local Methodist congregation sought a space to feed the hungry each week at their community breakfast, we gladly opened our kitchen, gathering, and storage spaces to them. Today, approximately 100 people enter our doors each Sunday for a hot breakfast, program, and fellowship.

• Years ago, our parish played a vital role in founding Allied Churches of Alamance County, a non-profit organization that provides emergency shelter, an Empowerment Center, and a community kitchen for the hungry and homeless. We continue to actively support Allied Churches through monetary and in-kind donations and volunteerism.

Our commitment to worship, service, and community engagement continues to grow, reflecting our enduring dedication to our faith and our neighbors.

Like many churches, Holy Comforter continues to seek expanded financial support so that we might enhance, not just maintain, our outreach programming and personnel support. Holy Comforter has also faced the pandemic's challenges, followed by our Rector's unexpected retirement. However, our parishioners have rallied together, demonstrating strong lay leadership that has enabled us to thrive during this transitional period. While we are pleased to see familiar and new faces filling our pews again, we acknowledge that our membership roll is not as large as it was 10-20 years ago.  As we look to the future, our primary goal is to find a new Rector who has experience growing a parish and will embrace Holy Comforter with the same love and passion as our congregation, guiding us into the future.

Parish website:  https://www.holycomforterburlington.org/

OTM portfolio:  https://bit.ly/3wXZmvZ

MISSION STATEMENT “To worship God, revealed to us as Creator, as Jesus the Christ, and
as the Holy Spirit, and experience God’s presence within the church family, nurturing each
other through a comprehensive parish program while affirming each other’s individual
ministries and responding to Jesus’ continuing call to minister to others.”
We, the people of Holy Comforter, though very diverse politically and socially, care for each
other and care deeply for how our faith is manifested in the community. We believe all people
are equal in God’s hand. Our nurturing congregation has an appreciation for diverse
perspectives and opinions. We grow through a continually evolving and questioning discussion regarding our faith, God, and society. We welcome all, without reservation, into our Christian body to be part of a loving and sharing family.

Interested applicants should submit the following materials to Canon Catherine Massey (catherine.massey@episdionc.org)in order to be considered:

• A cover letter  addressed to the Vestry, Mr. Mark Thomas, Sr Warden
• Current resume
• OTM Portfolio
• Deployment questionnaire for clergy positions (Download and save the form to your computer before filling it out.)