Or, the sad truth about consumerism and The United Methodist
Church
The past
few weeks (thanks to two incredible young adults who are in leadership in our
congregations) the church I serve and another local congregation have
intentionally partnered on a couple of projects and it has been amazing. The
combining of resources and volunteer power has allowed both events to be
better. We have made a decision to strive to be truly connectional instead of
competitive. When churches compete, everybody loses. Competition feeds into the
consumerist nature that has become part of the culture. There is the feeling
that we have to keep up with the Jones’ church. If we were really serious about
being a connectional church we would intentionally connect and act as a single
body of Christ to bring about the Kingdom of God in our community. I think it
is time that in one town, city, or rural area all of the United Methodist
Churches actually decide to be “one body.” They need to strategically combine
pastoral leadership, staffing, and resources to maximize their impact. Rather
than having three or four congregations struggling with pastoral compensation,
missional responsibilities, leadership deficits and financial issues, one large
congregation, meeting at different locations around the community, could
provide worship options, mission impact, and demonstrate a willingness to
actually be “the body of Christ redeemed for the sake of the world.”
What if
three to five congregations combined resources to provide pastoral leadership
for the entire city? Two or three pastors could serve three to five churches,
providing preaching, pastoral care, and leadership expertise as a team far
better than they could separately. Each pastor would be better rested, able to
actually take a Sabbath because there would always be two others on call. This
would decrease burnout and extend the tenure and consistency of pastoral
leadership for the community. The gross percentage of resources dedicated for
pastoral leadership for each worshipping community could drop to less than 50%
with the goal being around 30% of annual budget allowing for funding additional
support and ministry staff. A collaborative team would be deployed to serve the
whole city, rather than just a small section or neighborhood. It is time to be
connectional and quit being competitive.
Imagine
what would happen if a significant portion of the newly released funds
previously used to pay a pastor could be missionally invested into the
community? Children could be fed, ministries started to address homelessness
and unemployment. The financial resources could be combined with the new
critical mass of lay ministers to be released into the community to act as
agents of change, rather than simply spending those volunteer hours keeping the
struggling church ministries going. The congregation with a strong men’s
organization could champion men’s ministry, a children’s ministry team could be
deployed to bring Christ to the next generation of disciples. Youth ministry
could expand and increase its impact across the school system. Mission impact,
if lead by the new pastoral team effectively, could multiply the voice of the
gospel in the community. It is time to be connectional and quit being
competitive.
Perhaps the
single greatest outcome is that the unity of the congregations in the city
would be a prophetic witness to the entire community. It would show that the
desire to do good and bear witness to the gospel far outweighs the cultural pressure
be competitive within the United Methodist Church. Isn’t that why United
Methodist Churches were previously divided in to “parishes?” It was to serve a
distinct geographic area for Kingdom reasons. It is time to rethink church, as
we so often say around the good old UMC. This time we will reclaim our heritage
to be connectional. We will unify resources, consolidate leadership, deploy
clergy and lay ministers for the sole purpose of sharing the gospel to the city
or community we are appointed to serve. It is time to be connectional and quit
being competitive.
I know that
what I am suggesting is radical, but it is time for a radical new direction for
the United Methodist Church. It is time for us to think like a team, instead of
like competitors. It is time that we live out the connection we talk about. I
am ready to live the connection. Are you? What do you think? Is it possible? Is
it practical? Is there a city or community that is willing to say that on this
day we will do everything we can do to share the gospel, and give up simply
consuming religious products? I remain:
Consumed by the Call,
Dr. Marty Cauley
No comments:
Post a Comment