A pastor shares his thoughts on the state of the American clergy in an Op-Ed to the New York Times.
In this transformation, clergy have seen their job descriptions rewritten. They’re no longer expected to offer moral counsel in pastoral care sessions or to deliver sermons that make the comfortable uneasy. Church leaders who continue such ministerial traditions pay dearly. A few years ago, thousands of parishioners quit Woodland Hills Church in St. Paul, Minn., and Community Church of Joy in Glendale, Ariz., when their respective preachers refused to bless the congregations’ preferred political agendas and consumerist lifestyles. I have faced similar pressures myself. In the early 2000s, the advisory committee of my small congregation in Massachusetts told me to keep my sermons to 10 minutes, tell funny stories and leave people feeling great about themselves. The unspoken message in such instructions is clear: give us the comforting, amusing fare we want or we’ll get our spiritual leadership from someone else. I don't doubt that Americans are demanding a McDonalized version of their church service: quick, cheap and easy. However, I also don't see anything wrong with keeping your sermons short, telling funny stories and making people feel good about themselves. Why would anyone want to attend a church that drags on for hours, includes boring stories and makes you feel horrible about yourself? Americans already have a 9-5 job, a spouse and a horrible economy that fills that role. What qualities do you dear readers look for in a pastor?
I know what I don’t want and the list is rather long, so I’m opting for no pastor right now thank you.
That said, I’ve observed some rather nice qualities in the pastor at the Good church that stand out (especially in comparison to KW):
teaches out of the Bible verse by verse…
humble and honest about himself without piety…
tells on himself all the time with great stories of what he’s gone thru or going thru which makes him pretty funny…
stickler for ending the church service ontime and if he goes over he says ‘sorry guys i went over 5 minutes-that won’t happen next time’ …
wears jeans and a shirt instead of the typical suit…
reminds us that God is actually nice and likes us (even Americans)…
doesn’t dwell on the offerings…
likes prayer without making it a chore (hopefully he won’t change this)…
Agreed, Detox. Our pastor is like this with the exception of clothing. I go to a liturgical church now, so the pastor wears a vestment.
You know what’s kind of nice about the liturgical Christians is that they’re not uptight about alcohol. Several families are having a group camp at a state park this week. For an adult activity, several men of the church (including the pastor) are touring the local wineries. (Yes, they’ve picked a designated driver).
Another family had a painting party for the outside of their house. The wife served sandwiches and margaritas. Nobody gets sloppy drunk, and it’s just fun.
I’m tired of the “I’m down to earth” vibe from pastors– it’s like someone trying to remind people of how humble they are. Subtract the pretend down to earthiness from the list of things I want in a pastor. I can smell that from a mile away.
That’s cool Anna – it’s nice to have that freedom in a church group!
Matricks, I think the down to earth vibe is ok if it’s authentically that person. If not then I agree with you, it’s contrived.
I’m totally fine if it is real deal.
My new pastor is so passionate, so full of life, and feels things very deeply. Certain topics have been known to choke him up. THAT is what I consider a real, down-to-earth pastor. He never mentions anything about being down-to-earth… he just is. He is very knowledgeable, organized, and excellent preacher, loves and cares about his congregation like I’ve never seen, and feels deeply about each topic he’s preached… some more than others. If I were to give a “talk” about family and how important it is, I would choke up. If I were to give a “talk” about unhealthy churches and leadership, I’d probably get loud, without shouting. If I were to give a “talk” about being true, being real, living for God – and not just being a show or reflection of someone else or a fake, I’d get choked up… because I’ve lived it. In other words, I’ve never seen that in City Bible. It’s all just talk – as if it’s okay to say “I’m real” and not actually show it… as if that’s “weak”. I want to learn and grow in the Lord under a pastor who is real from the very beginning. From the first 5 minutes of the services at my new church, I knew without a doubt that I had found my church family. It’s something I haven’t felt my entire lifetime at BT/CBC – though I think it used to be better when BT was under our former pastor.
One of the cautions some of us here have had since leaving a toxic church and going to one quite the opposite has been to appreciate the pastor but keep from elevating him too much. Part of the problem we had at the last church was borderline idol worship of the senior pastor. It was easy to do because of the frenzy, as well as the enterage surrounding him. That hype was generated by the other leaders inlcuding his wife and adult children. Looking back, we roll our eyes and cant believe we felt and thought the way we did about someone who, in the clear light of day, didn’t deserve that kind of hero worship.
So in the new church Free at Last has referred to our hiding behind the pillars which is a funny way to describe how we felt the first year or so we were there. Now it’s more of a safeguard. We can appreciate Bob from a distance but have resisted the urge to place him on a pedestal. Even if he were to ‘deserve’ it cuz of the kind of person he is, we just can’t go there again.
I guess keeping everything and everyone in proper perspective is part of the maturing process. Church is what it is and it’s great but in the end our walk of faith can’t be too heavily dependent upon it. We are in fellowship wherever two or more are together and the Lord is faithful to help us stay in fellowship as we are led by him. The Bible doesn’t say, where any two of you gather in my name you are having church; it says “For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them.†(Matthew 18:20)
All that to say, it can happen with or without a pastor who fills all of our various criteria.
Fair warning, and a good reminder. I’m not about to “worship” or adore my new pastor… and I was probably one of few of never did that at CBC… just because it never felt right. The whole “Pastor Frank, Pastor Frank” hip movie the youth put out was a deterrent for me, and I’m sure, all the visitors at CBC. I was embarrassed that they’d behave that way, but maybe that’s something in my own heart that needs to change.
I’m just excited at the genuineness and knowledge – and true relationship, this pastor has with the Lord. And from what I’ve heard from the other members in the congregation, he lives simply (even though it’s a big church), is genuine off the stage and on, and spends more time with the people in his flock than the other shepherds around him or in his staff. CBC is always having so many “meetings” and required services and “impartations”… they spent more time with the “elite” than with their actual congregation members or ministering to those in need. It just seems unbalanced to me – and neglecting the hand that feeds them = how can they neglect those God has called them to reach out to in the first place?
I don’t really know about everything that goes on at CBC, but I will say this: Jesus spent the majority of his time with 12 guys. Did he minister to the masses? Yes. Did he go out of his way to heal and give words of knowledge to random people? Yes. But most of the stories you read in the Word about Jesus healing people lasted maybe all of 15 minutes, whereas the rest of his 3 years in ministry were centered around the disciples.
I have been in a situation church-wise where I wanted to be a part of what you call “the elite”, but my pastor didn’t have the time to pour out to another student. Was I upset about it? Yeah, it sucked. But the reality is that a pastor/leader only has so much time. That’s why they pour into other leaders. They do it so that those leaders will, in turn, impact others, and so on and so forth. You’re under the assumption that “church” is about reaching the masses. “Church”, or I should say, church services, should be more about equipping for the mission field. My guess is that CBC has small groups. The purpose of most small group ministries IS to minister to the average congregation member.
I could be wrong about this, but at the end of the day, leadership is about increasing spheres of influence, which means that you have to pour into other leaders. The only way to do that is to spend the majority of your time pouring into a few people and giving them more responsibility so that they in turn can do the same to others.
Point taken, PJD. There is a biblical model for mentoring.
BUT!!! Those who were successful (like Jesus, Moses, Paul), were known for their humility. The only character attribute Jesus used to describe Himself was “I am meek and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” Moses was described as the meekest man on the earth. And Paul was able to say “Follow me as I follow Christ” because he had learned through great hardship how to be content with whatever position he found himself in.
I don’t know where you came up with that “pour into” verbiage. It sounds very Damazio-esque, like from “The Making of a Leader” or something. It totally reeks of self aggrandizement, and when a man starts “pouring” that into his sycophants, then you have a mess.
Also, it’s not just a matter of how much time is spent with people, it’s how accessible the leader is. Jesus allowed pretty much anyone to approach him — children, the ailing, the lady with the expensive perfume.
So don’t go comparing pastoral royalty attitudes with true biblical leaders. The model may be a good one, but a lot of the leaders I’ve watched have a long way to go before they can fill those shoes.
I could be wrong about this, but isn’t this really about increasing numbers which IS a good model for business leaders? Seems like half of what MFI came up with was leadership rhetoric my husband was taught years earlier in the business world. Much of what we heard at Capital was rehashed rebaked business phrasing passed off as original thought by KGW.
Then there’s the Apostolic Reformist ppl who do the same. They’ve totally ruined the phrase ‘paradigm shift’ for me. And if I hear one more person say that God has just downloaded something from heaven I’m gonna hurl.
“But, I digress”, as the blogger saying goes.
Yes, pouring into your 2nd in command team is something that works. Business and military leaders have proven that. But it’s also a convenient way for pastors to separate themselves from the people–people that pastors are supposed to be caring for as part of the pastor package, instead of passing them off to someone else.
For crying out loud! If pastors would simply direct their parishioners to an objective, generally accepted standard–like the Bible–and tell them what they ought to expect of them, there would be so much less discontent. Parishioners expect pastors to meet their arbitrary whims, when Bible clearly indicates what’s expected in 1 Timothy 3 & 5 and Titus 1.
The trouble now is for pastors to rely on the grace needed to actually live like that.
I’m still looking for a pastor to simply preach the gospel, the teachings of Christ, and to baptize people on a Sunday morning.
Where do I come up with such demands? Matthew 28:18-20.
“Well, I know everyone always says sense of humor, but I’d really have to go with breast size”
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This is what my pastor does. Gospel, Jesus, Baptisim, Community, and Service…that’s the focus, Sunday after Sunday. There are out there, just have to look really hard.
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Mine too! Mine too!
I’m so thankful.