Calling a Leader to the Brooklyn Society for Ethical Culture
“This is a call to the living, To those who refuse to make peace with evil, With the suffering and the waste of the world. This is a call to the human, not the perfect, To those who know their own prejudices, Who have no intention of becoming prisoners of their own limitations. This is a call to those who remember the dreams of their youth, Who know what it means to share food and shelter, The care of children and those who are troubled, To reach beyond barriers of the past Bringing people to communion. This is a call to the never ending spirit Of the common man, his essential decency and integrity, His unending capacity to suffer and endure, To face death and destruction and to rise again And build from the ruins of life. This is the greatest call of all The call to a faith in people.”
- Algernon D. Black, 1901-1993, a teacher and the leader emeritus of the New York Society for Ethical Culture
The Brooklyn Society for Ethical Culture (BSEC), a 101 year old religious and educational fellowship situated in the heart of Park Slope, seeks to “call” a clergy Leader to work alongside its strong and committed lay leadership and membership to nurture and grow a community dedicated to promoting ethical relationships in all aspects of life. By “call”, we seek to attract a Leader who is compelled by the vision articulated in the above statement by Algernon Black, and who understands the Leader’s special role in affirming that vision. A formal job description accompanies this call notice. More detailed information about the Society – its organization, governance, activities and resources, can be found on our website, www.bsec.org.
Ethical Culture was founded in 1876 in New York City by Dr. Felix Adler as a religion based on ethics. It seeks to affirm each person’s inherent worth and dignity, elevate deed over creed, recognize each person’s ability and responsibility to act so as to create a more humane world, while remaining free of dogma and welcoming of multicultural and multicontextual diversity that allows Ethical Culture to respond to its times. The motto inscribed in our meeting house reads, The Place Where We Seek the Highest is Holy Ground. Ethical Culture’s supreme ethical rule postulates “that in working with others to bring out their best, we will be challenged to bring out our best.[1]” BSEC belongs to a federation of Ethical Culture and Ethical Humanist Societies and Fellowships in the U.S. known as the American Ethical Union (www.aeu.org).
We seek a Leader who will partner with us to further develop a multigenerational, multiethnic, diverse, caring and compassionate community dedicated to advancing our understanding of ourselves and our world and increasing each member’s and our collective ability to realize our ethical values.
Interested candidates should provide a cover letter, curriculum vitae, writing sample, references, audio/visual of recent talks and other helpful materials to the BSEC Search Committee atbsecleadersearch@gmail.com. Application deadline is January 31, 2010. Applications from current or past BSEC Leaders, Fellows, staff and members are discouraged. No phone inquiries will be taken.
[1]Felix Adler Today, by John Hoad, Ph.D., Ethics to Live By blog, 11/1/ 2002
FLSA Status: Exempt, initially a 20 hour/week part-time position with the potential for greater hr/week commitment
Pay Rate: Salary is negotiable and includes health benefits and manse (housing) allowance
Contract length: Three years with annual reviews
Anticipated starting date: June 2010
Reports to: The Board of Trustees
Role and Responsibilities:
Summary: The Clergy Leader is the spiritual leader of the Society, who is called to nurture and administer to the congregation, deepen its understanding and practice of ethical and Ethical Culture values, advise, develop and support lay leadership, provide a public face for the Society and at times represent the Society within the Ethical Culture movement; and seek common cause with its membership to grow and strengthen the Society.
Essential Functions:
· Prepare and deliver an average of two monthly Platforms and preside at Platforms
· Chair the Sunday Task Force, which is responsible for core programming of membership activities on Sundays
· Collaborate with the Children’s Sunday Assembly Director, staff and the Society’s Education Committee to provide quality education for the young members of our community that develops their ethical fitness, social skills, civic and environmental awareness
· Work with the Board of Trustees to provide responsible governance and leadership of the Society, including fundraising and membership development
· Work alongside the Administrative Director and other management personnel
· Be available to meet with members who desire pastoral care and respond in that capacity to members and their families in need
· Attend regular meetings of the Metro Leaders group and the National Leaders Council (the federation of Ethical Culture Leaders)
· Develop and coordinate educational programs to meet the needs of the congregation
· Collaborate with the standing committees and working groups of the congregation
Qualifications
· An advanced degree in theology, philosophy, social science, the sciences, or the humanities
· Pastoral or other training and experience related to performing pastoral work
· Experience leading a spiritual community where members share common values yet may hold varying beliefs relative to theology
· Demonstrated experience motivating member volunteers and staff, and organizing and sustaining small groups
· Experience that demonstrated an ability to work effectively and caringly with volunteers and staff
· Experience collaborating with multiple stakeholders and diverse multicultural and multicontextual communities
· Leader certification from the American Ethical Union or a willingness to enter Ethical Culture Leadership training (for more information, visit www.aeu.org)
Physical Requirements and Working Conditions:
· Must be able to maintain regular office hours
· Must be able to travel locally and at times, to different areas of the U.S. for conferences, etc.
· Must be able to navigate three floors, presently accessible by stairs only
· In an emergency, be willing to handle the set up and break down required for Society events
Core Competencies:
· Possess an ability to build cohesion within the congregation and nurture healthy community
· Be an inspiring and dynamic speaker familiar with current religious, philosophical, scientific, economic and political literature, and able to provide sound ethical comments about the dilemmas in these fields
· Be supportive of inquiry and social activism, and provide focus and leadership that leads to successful formulation and completion of projects which engage the congregation and the wider community
· Be approachable and able to maintain genial relationships and communicate clearly with BSEC staff, leadership and members
· Have computer proficiency, including email, internet searches and word processing
· Have ease and skill in communicating by phone, in person, in writing and email with various constituencies
· Comfort with divergent opinions and an openness to multiple expressions of progressive values
Results expected: The Brooklyn Society for Ethical Culture enjoys a 100+ year history as a religious and educational community in Park Slope that provides its members and neighbors with an opportunity to explore what it means to live an ethical life and to act collaboratively so as to create a more humane world. Our expectation is that the BSEC Clergy Leader will expand on this legacy by modeling and inspiring the further development of a caring and compassionate, multigenerational, multiethnic, diverse community dedicated to advancing our understanding of ourselves and our world and increasing each members and our collective ability to realize our ethical values.
