I recently attended a meeting led by Bishop Willimon introducing prospective Board of Ordained Ministry members to the purposes of the board and to its current challenges in North Alabama. It was no surprise that “young pastors” was among the list of challenges (the average age of the incoming ordination class for the NA Conference is 44 years). With only about 30 probationary and ordained elders who are 35 and younger in the conference, the need for more young clergy is pretty obvious. What isn’t blatantly clear is how to increase the numbers.
Possible solutions include seminary recruitment, pastors and congregations identifying young adults with gifts for ministry leadership, re-working the probationary process (now Residents in Ministry for the NA Conf.), offering challenging/rewarding appointments to young clergy, etc.
In reading Andrew Thompson’s post on the coming work of General Conference this year, I noticed a direct connection with my notes from the meeting with Bishop: “simplify and streamline” the ordination process. This scares some people who see this as potentially making it “too easy” to be ordained, but pair this prospective change with the move away from “guaranteed appointments” and it looks different. Those who might be frightened by a shortened ordination process can see an out here. If the Conference Boards of Ordained Ministry ordain someone through this faster process who turns out to be wholly ineffective in ministry, there isn’t a clause that says they have to keep the person in the system.
Not only will a streamlined ordination process attract younger clergy, but I think a system with accountability built into the time AFTER ordination (i.e. no guaranteed appointments) will further attract younger clergy. I mean, what we are really after here is a group of effective, long-term clergy persons, right? How can you attract effective leaders of any age into a system that continually supports dysfunctional members at the expense of the church’s ministry? If we create a healthier and more effectively functioning conference AND make the entrance process less tedious, I do see more hope for the future of the church. If the ministry of the conference as a whole is effective, then motivated, effective people will want to be part of it.
~ Julie Holly
6 comments:
Julie,
One more issue we face as a denomination, though N. AL seems well ahead of the curve is "competitive salaries". Young people want to work for non-profits, but they also want to know that they will be paid fairly, and treated with kindness and respect.
While I agree that we need to simplify and streamline the ordination process, I worry that we might think that this change will bring in a stampede of young people. Changing the ordination process is only one step in a larger undertaking. If the church is going to attract young people, it is going to have to change in ways to numerous to list here but include how a successful ministry is determined (it's not just about numbers) and refocus the church on global issues such as poverty, climate change, disease, etc.
I'm worried about the language of 'effectiveness' because we can be really effective at bringing people into the church, but doing a poor job leading and teaching them (i.e. making disciples). All we need to do to understand this is to look at many of those Big Box Churches (ala Willow Creek, etc.)
What we have lost is faithfulness, not effectiveness. If we remain faithful to Jesus, our numbers wont dwindle. People will be attracted to the ministry. Money will come in, and people will share the gospel message in word and deed.
Our UMC has become too institutionalized, and we think effective programs will save the church--here's a clue, only Jesus will save the church. Humans can only respond to God, we can't build the church because it's not ours to build, it's Christ's Church. Christ will build it when we're faithful to him. If we think we can build it, then we have made it an idol.
Thanks for the post, I enjoyed reading it.
I happen to think that the current language in the Discipline is adequate regarding guaranteed appointments. It states that all effective elders shall receive an appointment by the Bishop.
If the Council of Bishops could interpret just what 'effective' means, then they would have the authority to deny those deemed ineffective the chance at appointment while maintaining the guaranteed appointments for those who are effective.
I am a little concerned at giving the Bishops and Cabinets of the Conferences a blank check to determine who will receive appointments. What is to keep an untrustworthy cabinet from denying an older clergyperson the ability to maintain their years of service for retirement?
I'm afraid the petition allows for too much freedom, with little in the way of checks and balances, to ensure the appointment of clergy who are effective while still allowing for those ineffective clergy to be allowed time off for spiritual/personal renewal and possible re-appointment at a later time.
At a time when I see the salary gap between minimum salary pastors and the leadership of the conference widening to look like that of a corporation (CEO's and workers), I am concerned the temptation could be great, to cut clergy out of rotation to maintain the sometimes astronomical salaries of the conference leadership.
I have a question. You state in the opening paragraph that there are "... only about 30 probationary and ordained elders who are 35 and younger in the conference...." My question is thus: how many student, full-time, and part-time local pastors and lay supply pastors under the age of 35 are there in the North Alabama Conference? We cannot rule these men and women out.
Julie, we used the word regulations here at our district minister's meeting. We regulate the beginning pastor to death.
Post a Comment