The Appointive Cabinet of the New Mexico Conference are in prayer and discernment for the 2025 Conference appointment year. We invite the clergy and laity into this discernment by reviewing the clear appointment opening announcements and praying for God’s wisdom in guiding the appointment process.
To view the NM Conference Clear Openings Postings webpage, CLICK HERE.
To view Appointments for 2025, CLICK HERE.
Posted Clear Openings
Churches in need of a new pastor through a retirement, ending of an interim period, or change in appointment status will be listed as a clear opening.
The listing includes a brief description of the churches’ ministry settings. Specific statistics about a church and community are available through the Annual Conference Journal and MissionInsite. You may obtain MissionInsite data from your DS.
The appointive cabinet will update the list on the Conference website regularly to reflect appointments made and new openings that become available. Occasionally, an appointment opening may not be listed due to time constraints or other considerations which make a post not possible.
Process of Clergy Inquiry
Clergy are encouraged to spend time in prayerful discernment about their call, service, and the listing of clear openings. If the Spirit gives clear prompting, then proceed with an inquiry as soon as possible after the clear opening is posted.
CONFIDENTIALITY IS CRITICAL. Pastors who are considering putting their names forward as an inquiry must not contact people in their own local churches, nor the pastors or laity of the churches in which they have interest, as this has the potential to harm current church appointments. The Cabinet will hold all inquiries in confidence.
Current clergy members of the New Mexico Conference who experience the call by God to put their names forward for a specific opening are to contact both their current DS and the DS overseeing the clear-opening church. They should send to both DS's a statement sharing their call to the appointment and what experience, gifts, and skills they have that are needed by the church.
Clergy not under appointment or members of another conference or denomination who experience the call by God to put their names forward for a specific opening are to contact Rev. Ross Whiteaker: email.
The Bishop and Cabinet will deeply discern the gifts and graces of the clergy members putting their names forward, and the needs of the mission fields and the local churches. A clergy inquiry may not lead to that specific appointment.
Expectations
The Cabinet will be in prayer to deeply discern the match between the mission field, the local church and the gifts and graces of the pastor asked to serve.
Bishop, Cabinet, Pastors, and SPRCs are all committed to seeking appointments based on the match between:
- the local communities and churches,
- the gifts and skillsets of the potential pastors alongside their personal needs,
- the larger ministry context of the New Mexico Conference.
The DS will share with a pastor and SPRC the considerations leading to the discerned appointment.
For clergy, there is also an expectation of an open itinerancy, and if a clergy person cannot move because of significant family issues, we will enter a “Covenant of Limited Itineration,” whereby full-time appointment may not be possible, as we discern what is available in any given local area.
Contacts
Bishop Carlo Rapanut is the Bishop of the New Mexico and Desert Southwest Conferences. To contact Bishop Carlo, please contact his Executive Assistant, Alli Newsom email.
Rev. Dr. Pam Rowley is the El Paso District Superintendent and serves as Co-Provost. Her area of coverage is the southern half of NM, El Paso, Odessa and parts of SW TX. Contact: email
Rev. Ross Whiteaker is the ABQ District Superintendent and serves as Co-Provost. His area of coverage is Albuquerque, all of NM north to the Colorado border, as far south as Portales, and a small portion of Navajo territory into AZ and UT. Contact: email