Apply for the Position

At an All Parish meeting on Sunday, July 1, the Senior Warden Jennifer Stern announced that the Vestry had called the Reverend Wilma Terry Jakobsen to be our next rector. A letter from the Vestry and biography of Wilma were sent in the mail to all parish families.

You are welcome to explore our application process and materials below for assistance in your own parish's search or for your personal interest.

Before you Apply

Please explore our website for more information on our parish, and especially our Parish Profile. You may also contact Canon Brian Nordwick, Deployment Officer for the Diocese of El Camino Real, for more information on Saint Jude’s or the Diocese of El Camino Real. He can be reached on 831-394-4465 or via email at Brian@edecr.org.

Our call to a new Rector

Almost any St. Jude’s parishioner has an opinion about what we need in a new rector, many of which were captured in the parish survey. Moreover, the Profile Committee, Vestry, and Search Committee have all contributed to the picture. The composite vision which emerges from all these sources is complex and perhaps unachievable. We trust that the Holy Spirit will navigate us through the different and conflicting priorities, and even may lead us in ways that we have not anticipated!

We hope you are energized by the Challenges and Aspirations described in the Parish Profile, see yourself in some of the qualifications described below, and are called by God to be our next rector.

Experience and Skills

  • A flexible priest who can work in partnership with the lay leadership to discern God’s will for Saint Jude’s; who can help us refine and mature our Vision for the future; and who can walk next to us on the road that takes us there
  • A change-leader who can shepherd us out of our comfort zone and who is prepared to stick with us through difficult and lengthy transitions
  • A Christ-centered person whose own spiritual pilgrimage has developed the necessary emotional and spiritual maturity to interact with and build respect in a diverse group of parishioners
  • Somebody who is interested in, at ease with, and supportive of all ages and stages of life, of ethnic and sexual diversity, and of a wide range of spiritual belief and practice
  • An excellent preacher and teacher whose thought-provoking, multi-layered approach to sermons and spiritual formation programs inspires different people in different ways to greater spirituality
  • A spiritual guide who can show Christ’s Resurrection in all of us; who can discern, embrace, and nurture our spiritual needs and gifts, and who can motivate their use in the mission of the church

Shared Values and Style

Saint Jude’s is a community of people with certain styles and values. As you discern your call, please consider how your values and style might challenge or reinforce ours.

  • We love to listen to well-prepared, challenging sermons. We may resist and object, but in our hearts many of us recognize and respond to a preacher who can “distress the comfortable and comfort the distressed.”
  • We value youth, families, and young adults, recognize their special needs and challenges, and look for help in realizing our Vision to incorporate more young people.
  • At the same time, we respect and honor the contribution that our older generation continues to make, and are concerned about any lessening of commitment to their needs.
  • We value the leaders of our ministries among us and appreciate mutual respect and shared leadership. We respond to coaching and collaboration with somebody who is humble, but confident in their own skills, strengths, and abilities.
  • We have a strong tradition of financial stewardship and generous pledging (40% give 5-9% of their income, and 17% tithe). Our stewardship materials and our Vestry acknowledge that tithing is the standard of giving in the Episcopal Church. Our previous rector helped us transform our understanding so that we see stewardship and tithing as spiritual responses to God’s gifts to us.
  • We greatly value our “Spiritual Oasis” which we think of in both physical and spiritual terms. We have made it a high priority to develop and maintain our 3-acre campus with its historic orchard, and we see the external use of our “spiritual spaces” as being one of the ways we fulfill our Christian mission.
  • We take seriously James’ message that “faith without works is dead.” In fact, the emphasis on Social Justice and Outreach is a unifying theme among us, regardless of whether individuals see it as a Christian or non-Christian response to the suffering in the world.
  • We recognize the need for balance between work and leisure, an attitude that is in a minority in frantic Silicon Valley. We hope that our new rector knows how to relax and recharge!

How to Apply

To apply, please download the Application Packet, fill it out and return it electronically with the listed supporting documents. Your application document(s) should be emailed to Canon Brian Nordwick at Brian@edecr.org. Please enter "Candidate for Rector, Saint Jude's, Cupertino" in the subject line. Your application will be forwarded to the committee once all requested documents have been received, and will be held in strict confidence with the members of the Search Committee only. We will email an acknowledgement upon receipt of your completed application.

Checklist of Documents

  1. Cover letter to Saint Jude's Rector Search Committee
  2. Electronic copy of Church Deployment Office profile (URL to CDO website for your profile is also acceptable)
  3. Electronic copy of resume
  4. Two sermons that you have preached recently, one focused on a contemporary issue, and the other focused on a biblical event or message. (We would prefer to receive these electronically or through a link to your church website, either as written text or audio recording.)
  5. Application Packet with all areas completed:
  • Personal Information section
  • Contact information (including preferred hours)
  • Application Questions

Our deadline for applications was Monday, 19th March, 2012 so we are not accepting additional written applications for this position.

This written application is the first step in our discernment process.  Once the application deadline has passed, the Rector Search Committee will review all applications and create a pool of candidates for phone interviews and eventual visits.  The Rector Search Committee will contact you after the application review to convey our appreciation of your interest and the status of your application.

If you have any questions about the application process, please email me at jeffrey.pugh@sbcglobal.net.

Yours in Christ,

Jeffrey Pugh
Chair, Rector Search Committee

Whoever you are, wherever you are on your journey of faith, you are welcome here.