I've been reading a lot of church profiles recently and this op-ed in The New York Times from United Church of Christ pastor G. Jeffrey MacDonald is spot on:
THE American clergy is suffering from burnout, several new studies show. And part of the problem, as researchers have observed, is that pastors work too much. Many of them need vacations, it’s true. But there’s a more fundamental problem that no amount of rest and relaxation can help solve: congregational pressure to forsake one’s highest calling.The pastoral vocation is to help people grow spiritually, resist their lowest impulses and adopt higher, more compassionate ways. But churchgoers increasingly want pastors to soothe and entertain them. It’s apparent in the theater-style seating and giant projection screens in churches and in mission trips that involve more sightseeing than listening to the local people.
As a result, pastors are constantly forced to choose, as they work through congregants’ daily wish lists in their e-mail and voice mail, between paths of personal integrity and those that portend greater job security. As religion becomes a consumer experience, the clergy become more unhappy and unhealthy.
A church recently expressed interest in my profile (a profile is basically a giant resume or CV with background information that both clergy and churches put together). When they listed the qualifications they wanted in a minister they listed only duties that related to internal pastoral care of members. The ability to give humorous sermons was one of the most important qualities they were seeking in a pastor (something I see in a lot of profiles - thank goodness I'm so darned funny). They listed nothing about their minister or congregation being involved in the larger life of the church or the world. I read it and thought they want an entertainment director and not a minister. As you might imagine, I told them we wouldn't be a good match. I'm thankful most of the profiles I've read have been far better - some even darn right challenging.
Worship shouldn't be all serious all the time. There is a place for laughter and lightheartedness.
But when churches become social clubs for members-only not only do pastors burn out but the churches die. Deservedly so. At one church I served a couple of members actually asked me not to preach on serious or controversial subjects. They left the church.
The job of the church is do God's mission in the world. Sometimes that just isn't fun or funny.
Rev. MacDonald concludes by writing:
Ministry is a profession in which the greatest rewards include meaningfulness and integrity. When those fade under pressure from churchgoers who don’t want to be challenged or edified, pastors become candidates for stress and depression.Clergy need parishioners who understand that the church exists, as it always has, to save souls by elevating people’s values and desires. They need churchgoers to ask for personal challenges, in areas like daily devotions and outreach ministries.
When such an ethic takes root, as it has in generations past, then pastors will cease to feel like the spiritual equivalents of concierges. They’ll again know joy in ministering among people who share their sense of purpose. They might even be on fire again for their calling, rather than on a path to premature burnout.
Amen.
