The purpose of an interim, or transitional, time in a congregation is for the church to prepare itself for new pastoral leadership. Given the importance of pastoral leadership in a congregation, the goal of the transitional time is to lay the groundwork for a good, healthy, faithful, and “successful” tenure by the next leader. This preparation involves looking inward at ourselves, our systems, priorities, patterns in the exercise of power, resources, and hopes. It also involves looking outward at the context in which we now live and serve…