ourEliot

Facilitating Healthy Communications

OurEliot promotes and enables healthy communications as promised to one another through the Congregational Covenant. Differences of opinion within a large and diverse community, such as Eliot Chapel, are inevitable. Sometimes conflict (a difference of opinion plus tension) may arise. However, church conflict specialists agree that two key factors in handling differences and conflicts in a healthy manner are having rules of behavior in a covenant, and having a readily available "complaint" process.

Ground Rules

OurEliot can be contacted through email at ourEliot@eliotchapel.org.


No anonymous input will be accepted.


Sometimes you may be asked questions to clarify the suggestion, compliment, or concern; to identify the impact of the subject on you; to note previous communication you've had on the subject and with whom; and to determine the outcome you desire.


  • The most useful inputs arise from recent experiences that directly affect you.
  • While “venting emotion” via ourEliot is permitted, please understand that inputs already communicated to the responsible party or for which you have no specific desired outcome are not actionable.


You may be asked if you would consider communicating the input directly to the appropriate party. 

Process Description

OurEliot will forward inputs to staff, the ministers, or the Board, as appropriate. There will be coordination between ourEliot and responsible party. The process of responding to the input will be tracked, and the person making the comment will receive a response via phone call or email from the responsible party within one month.


OurEliot will review inputs for which for which congregants expressed desired outcomes to determine the disposition of each: whether additional input is needed, or whether the input is actionable or not actionable.


  • If additional input is needed, the ourEliot will re-engage the congregant to solicit missing information, and resubmit the input.
  • If judged non-actionable, the congregant will be thanked and told why the input is considered non-actionable.
  • If judged actionable, the input will be forwarded to the person responsible to develop and execute a plan of action to address the suggestion or concern. The congregant will be apprised of the plan and its implementation by the person responsible.


  • If the matter is judged to involve possible non-compliance with a Board Policy or Eliot Bylaws, the input will be forwarded to the Board as the responsible party.
  • At the minister’s discretion, internal or external authorities may be engaged for mediation if deemed appropriate for the situation.
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