On Being Too Comfortable in Ministry

This week marks the second week of the 2012 General Conference for the United Methodist Church. The General Conference meets every four years and is the only body of the UMC that can establish polity (make rules) for the church as a whole.  The GC consists of about 1000 delegates elected from local conferences, about 50/50 lay to clergy proportion from all over the world.

One of the issues they tackled this year was security of clergy appointments (a.k.a guaranteed appointments).  Until this GC, every ordained elder in good standing must be appointed by a bishop.  Some say that this balances the fact that UM clergy promise that they will go wherever they are sent while the church promises they will always have a place to serve.  Others point to the fact that this guarantees a place for women, minorities, and prophetic voices within pastoral leadership of the local church. The problem is that both effective and ineffective clergy alike must be appointed under the previous rules.

Yesterday, the security of clergy appointments was eliminated from our polity; no longer are ordained elders guaranteed an appointment.  (For a detailed discussion of the specifics, I refer you to this interview with Rev. Ken Nelson of the SC Conference ).  To borrow from the Facebook post of another colleague, Rev. Michael Hood placed the following caption and picture together...

I felt a great disturbance in the Force... as if thousands of United Methodist pastors suddenly cried out in terror

 I agree that United Methodist clergy can become complacent and too comfortable with mediocre ministry.  There does need to be a system of mutual accountability to ensure that the mission of Christ is being fulfilled through the life and ministry of each pastoral leader. There should be a process in place where we identify and transition clergy into opportunities to recapture God's passion, God's Spirit, and God's vision for ministry in the always changing culture of today. Now that some accountability has been put in place for clergy, this begs the question, "Are there any other people within the body of the United Methodist Church that have become too comfortable in their ministry?"

I believe that the answer is "yes." As the General Conference affirmed a bishop's ability to appoint ineffective ordained elders in less than full time, transitional appointments, the Conference affirmed that episcopal office is for life.  Should we not have the same process for bishops that we do for clergy?  If a bishop is deemed ineffective in ministry, should that person be assigned an Episcopal Area or be placed into a process of transition? There should be a process in place where we identify and transition bishops into opportunities to recapture God's passion, God's Spirit, and God's vision for ministry in the always changing culture of today.

But before you think that I am picking on bishops, I wonder if members in the local church can also become complacent and too comfortable with mediocre ministry.  Should there be a process in place where we identify and transition laity into opportunities to recapture God's passion, God's Spirit, and God's vision for ministry in the always changing culture of today?  What might the church look like if we were all held accountable to holy living?  What if every part of the Body of Christ that we call the United Methodist Church were to burn with the fire that raged through the Church on Pentecost?

I agree that United Methodist clergy should be subject to accountability for their ministry. I welcome the opportunity to engage in true reflection of the effectiveness of my leadership within the Church.  The process can be helpful and insightful.  Mutual accountability is one of the founding principles of the early Methodist movement.  However, accountability that is not mutual and that is not done in the spirit of love is simply judgmental.

Dare I suggest that the same accountability for clergy be extended to all parts of the Body of Christ from laity to episcopacy? What about if general boards and agencies were also held accountable for effectiveness especially in reaching today's younger generations?  Only as we begin to hold every United Methodist accountable to the high calling to which we have been called will the Church be transformed into the active, vital Body of Christ for the world.  As we are reminded in the letter to the Ephesians:

 Therefore, as a prisoner for the Lord, I encourage you to live as people worthy of the call you received from God.  Conduct yourselves with all humility, gentleness, and patience. Accept each other with love,  and make an effort to preserve the unity of the Spirit with the peace that ties you together.                                  --Ephesians 4:1-3 (Common English Bible, 2011) 

 In the Name of the One who calls us,


James