Categories: uncategorized
Date: 23 June 2006 08:19:03
This weeks Baptist Times has an interesting article on pastors or leaders . The main thrust of the argument it gives is that churches need leaders who change rather than pastors who simply maintain, but that this often brings resentment amongst church members who want the "safe" option.
Obviously these articles are written to be provocotive and take a particular stance in the argument (much like alot of academic work) and should be read in this light. However, it does raise some interesting questions, primarily, how many of our expectations come from the language we use in relation to those who head up the work in our churches? Within Baptist churches there are a range of terms interchangeably used (minister, pastor and church leader), but each one has its own significant meaning as this article indicates. It is interesting he chose not to include the term minister which is the main term used by the denomination within the article. Whilst I guess that the term minister was probably originally used in relation to its meaning of giving to those in need I think within our denomination it is now more commonly used to refer to pastors who lead.
In this situation we are talking about those who love and give security to those in their care, and respect tradition (pastors), but also question, challange, motivate and enthuse to move forward (leaders). I believe it is the combination of these factors which lead to an effective minister.
It is interesting within the article that the writer identifies himself to an extent as a leader and at the end identified as soon moving into a church which appears to formally use the term pastor, (although it always makes me giggle when they do verbally because it sounds too much like pasta). I hope and pray all sides of the equation will view his role as that of a minister, encompassing both aspects of pastoring and leading.