Retirement

PWR: My dad just retired.

ALS: From what?

PWR: His job.

ALS: But he's a minister. They can't ever retire, right? Aren't they always in the Lord's service?

PWR: Not in Scotland.

ALS: So who's the new minister in Elgin? And how are you going to keep up with the town gossip?

PWR: They haven't replaced him yet. They just formed a committee to choose a committee to find a new minister. So they send out a call to available ministers, and then they listen to them preach.

ALS: So it's like a pastoral audition?

PWR: You could say that.

ALS: So they hear them perform, and then pick the best one?

PWR: Uh huh. The process takes about 6 months.

ALS: So who's preaching in the meantime?

PWR: They have some travelling preachers that fill in.

ALS: It seems odd to me that didn't have a replacement ready for when your dad retired.

PWR: That's just the way they do it. I guess it gives them time to reflect on what they're looking for.

ALS: Like they might go with a project manager instead of a minister? And how are you going to keep up with the town gossip now that you can't listen in to the parishioners spilling their family secrets over the pastoral dinner table?

PWR: I'm subscribed to a web site that alerts me to all the gossip.