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just love studies. I love them even more when I have to keep asking myself questions about them. This study leaves me asking quite a few questions. So, I thought I would share my questions here…with anyone who cares. Basically the study reports that the reason the UMC has declined over the past 40 years are because of ineffective clergy. Now, I’m not questioning that there are ineffective clergy. I’m not even questioning that ineffective clergy are a ‘drain’ on the time and energy of the Bishops and DSs. What I am question is the belief that this is the cause of the UMC’s decline. I believe that are deeper issues regarding the decline in the UMC. Ineffective clergy don’t help the situation, but I’m not sure they are the main problem. I want to post several blog entries discussing some of the deeper issues I see. To be honest, I’m not even sure where to begin with all of this. Perhaps I should start by admitting that I do not believe that I have the answers. I do have questions though. For this first post, my question is: Could there really be such a simple cause?
Simple solutions…you have to love them. I forget where it was, but I learned that complex problems, many times, have complex causes. So why does it seem like this answer is kind of…simple? There’s been a decline in the UMC for 40 years…the cause? Ineffective clergy. If we can get rid of the ineffective clergy, then it should be smooth sailing…right? The answer is to get the right pastors. But, what is the report saying here? The UMS has been in decline for 40 years. Don’t miss the timeline. 40 years! That’s a long time. Over 40 years each church would have had anywhere from 2 (very long pastorates) to 20 (short pastorates) pastors with 10 probably being the average. Since most of our churches are in decline are we saying that all 10 clergy were ineffective? I don’t have statistics (wish I did… but I just don’t have time right now), but, we know that most of the UM churches are in decline. Most have had multiple pastors. It seems to me that we must have more ineffective pastors than effective pastors for the decline to be so long and so broad. Here’s a thought: Are there situations where a pastor was successful at a church, went to a new church and wasn’t successful? Or, he/she was unsuccessful at one church and went somewhere else and was successful? I know of specific situations where this has happened. I don’t have general statistics though (Again…wish I did). What I am hinting at is this: Sometimes the match between a pastor and church can be important. Does this mean the pastor was ineffective and then suddenly got it figured out? Or, did s/he have it figured out and then become ineffective? I doubt it. My point? There is more going on than simply being effective or ineffective. While it is simple to say, it is the clergy, I’m not sure the length of the decline bears this out. I think the issues are deeper than simply being ineffective and it is time we start discussing those issues. Next time: Does low salary cause effective pastors to find other careers? |
