Rev. Joanna Fontaine Crawford is going on Sabbatical from April 3 to August 31, 2022. Sabbatical is a time of paid personal leave with the intention of encouraging growth and development in the arts of ministry through education and spiritual renewal.

What is Sabbatical?

A sabbatical is a very old concept that relates to a period of rest, usually after four to six years. The root is from the word “Sabbath,” the biblical term, meaning the day of rest after 6 days of labor. A ministry sabbatical is a release from the routine of the call for the physical, emotional, spiritual, and intellectual well-being of the ministry leader. Like most full-time Unitarian Universalist ministers, Rev. Crawford works 6 days a week, and is on-call 24/7. UU Congregations grant their ministers a sabbatical period with full pay. Rev. Crawford is in her eighth year of ministry with us and this sabbatical is recommended by the UUA as part of what is considered Fair Compensation.

What Will We Do While She’s Gone?

This is an opportunity for us to move smoothly to the next stage of our development where leadership is shared by a larger number of members, allowing us to be less centered on one professional. This is called a “program church model” and is appropriate to our growing congregation size. One of the greatest ways for us to embrace this opportunity is to use Rev. Crawford’s absence to care well and often for each other. We can also reflect on our relationship with our minister and how we can best take advantage of her professional skills in the years ahead while meeting other needs ourselves. And of course, this is a wonderful time for us to celebrate each member’s work and commitment to our shared congregational life.

Will We Have Contact with Rev. Crawford During Sabbatical?

Sabbatical is a time for a complete break from ministerial duties. While Rev. Crawford is gone, she will not be reachable. She won’t check work email nor will she return phone calls. If there is a serious emergency, (e.g. death of a member), she will be notified by our Sabbatical Minister or the Church President. But without such an event, we will not see or hear from her until Sabbatical ends. She’s even signing off from Facebook!

That being said, Rev. Crawford will be staying most of the time in our area. If you see her at the farmer’s market or Rec Center, be sure to say hello! (Just don’t talk about church.)