Transitional Pastor Oakland City Church

Reformed Church in America; Oakland (CA); Hybrid; USD 62,000 - 72,000; Part time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Retirement plan

Study leave

Vacation time

Job summary

Oakland City Church, a small RCA congregation in Oakland, CA, seeks an intentional Transitional Pastor to guide us through a period of transition and discern our future. Responsibilities include facilitating organizational discernment, budget stewardship, worship leadership, and pastoral care, while fostering inclusive, diverse community and partnerships with local churches.

This part-time role offers 26–29 hours weekly, six to twelve months with a six-month review, and compensation of

Qualifications

• Ordained Minister of Word and Sacrament in RCA or eligible denomination (City Classis approval).
• Experience in intentional interim/transitional ministry preferred.
• Boundary training current or completed early in term.

Responsibilities

• Intentionally shepherd the congregation through transition and discern future.
• Develop sustainable rhythms for volunteers and staff; manage budget and resources.
• Preach 1–2 Sundays per month; oversee liturgy and worship with worship leader.
• Support staff and volunteers; provide pastoral care and oversight of formation.
• Assist with administration alongside administrator and foster partnerships with city churches.

Skills

Pastoral leadership

Interim ministry

Boundary training

Education

Ordained Minister

Job description

Transitional Pastor

Oakland City Church — Reformed Church in America — Oakland, California

Status

Part-time, 26-29 hours/week

Term

6–12 months, with a mutual review at six months

Compensation

$62,000–$72,000 annually plus insurance and allowances — see “What we offer”

Accountability

Serves with and reports to the OCC Consistory, under the care of the City Classis

Note

In keeping with transitional-ministry best practice, the Transitional Pastor will not be a candidate for our settled position.

Who we are

Our mission statement has always been:

“People who don’t belong together, gathered around Jesus, for the sake of those who don’t belong.”

We are a small Oakland church—about 20 households on a typical Sunday—whose greatest strength is in our community, both close knit and open to all. The kind of congregation that is difficult to quiet down while “passing the peace” during a Sunday service and stays long after the final benediction. We are people of different races, ages, incomes, orientations, and politics who might not naturally belong together, held together by Jesus and rooted in the Word. A community that genuinely enjoys and values differences of belief and opinion, living at the intersection of inclusivity and spiritual rigor. People who want to see the transformational power of the Gospel concretely shared and practiced around dinner tables, in personal times of need, and in the streets of their city.

A little about us:

• Most of our congregation is in their 30s-50s, and many of our families have young children.
• LGBTQ+ members have served as elders. We are openly welcoming and affirming and welcome candidates of any gender and orientation.
• We continue to have new people come through our doors and be drawn in, often those who feel they don’t quite fit in other congregations.
• Our congregants come from a variety of religious and denominational backgrounds and appreciate the richness that diversity brings.
• We value funding and volunteering for missions within our city and practical outreach to unhoused and at-risk neighbours.
• We are led by a five-person consistory (2 elders, 3 deacons) and supported by four part-time staff: an administrator, a facilities coordinator, a children’s ministries coordinator, and a worship director.

Position Overview

We are seeking an intentional transitional pastor who can shepherd a congregation at a crossroads, helping us to honestly face and process the challenges of transition, discern the future of our church, and navigate next steps.

Specifically, a major goal for our church is to “right-size” the stewardship of our resources in order to more effectively and sustainably serve our congregation and community. This work would include helping us to: develop sustainable rhythms for volunteers and staff; manage a responsible budget; build relationships with like minded Oakland churches, including in consideration of church merger options; maintain connections with missions partners; support family and child enriching programming; and create time and space for spiritual growth and discipleship in our congregation.

Who we’re hoping for

• Education and Experience
  • An ordained Minister of Word and Sacrament in the RCA — or in a denomination eligible for approval by the City Classis, including our Formula of Agreement partners (PC(USA), UCC, ELCA) and the CRCNA
  • Training or experience in intentional interim/transitional ministry (Interim Ministry Network or equivalent) strongly preferred, though not required
  • Boundary training current or completed early in the term
• Skills and Attributes
  • Wholehearted ease with who we are: welcoming and affirming, anti-racist, city-rooted. We warmly welcome candidates of every gender, race, and sexual orientation
  • Expertise and wisdom to build sustainable organizational rhythms and model healthy limits in their own pastoral ministry
  • A kind and confident manager and shepherd of staff, volunteers, and congregants who empowers others towards their callings and effectively distributes responsibilities
  • Open embrace of our unhoused and at-risk neighbours and comfort in the work of a diverse city church
  • Enthusiasm for relationship building and collaboration with our ministry partners and other church pastors and communities

Key Roles and Responsibilities

• Intentional transitional work (25%)
  • Self-study, history and identity work, structural review
  • Organizational discernment guidance and support
  • Budget and personnel stewardship
  • Regular Consistory meeting attendance and moderation (monthly up to weekly depending on organizational needs)
• Preaching & worship (20%)
  • Preach 1–2 Sundays/month
  • Coordinate pulpit supply (from our already strong pulpit supply relationships)
  • Weekly oversight of liturgy and worship in coordination with our worship leader
  • Sacraments, weddings, and funerals as requested
• Staff Support and Management (20%)
  • Weekly check-ins, oversight, feedback
• Discipleship & Formation (15%)
  • Assess and strengthen formation for adults and children
  • Equip lay leaders to teach and lead
• Pastoral Care (10%)
  • Visitation, crisis response, counsel
  • Support a sustainable, shared congregational care model
• Essential administration (alongside our administrator) (10%)

What we offer

• Compensation: $62,000–$72,000
• Retirement: 11% of compensation contributed to the RCA 403(b) Retirement Program (or to your own denomination’s plan if you are ordained in a Formula of Agreement denomination or the CRCNA, per RCA Board of Benefits rules)
• Insurance: Life and long-term disability coverage per RCA requirements; medical coverage or a health stipend negotiated to fit your situation (single, family, or spousal-coverage offset)
• SECAoffset: Payment of one-half of self-employment tax, in keeping with our commitment to fair treatment of those who work for the church
• Time away:4 weeks per year vacation (prorated Sundays), plus study leave of at least one week per year with a continuing-education stipend per the Book of Church Order; mileage at the IRS rate
• A congregation that will love you, feed you, and pray for you

Oakland City Church does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, or disability.