The following was posted to UPCPastors_helper, a Yahoo group designed for Pentecostal ministers, in May, 2007. I felt that it was something that merited a place in this blog. Being new to "blogging," I am uncertain as to whether or not anything I write will be of any real value to those who might read the material. I certainly hope that the reader finds it worth their time invested in reading it.
Thank you for sharing your time with me. Now, here is that post on Ministerial Ethics...
I could not help myself. I just got through reading the opinion page in the newest Perspectives magazine and I had to write.
You see, it seems to me that ministerial ethics as it relates to members of another church attending one's local church has become outdated. Correct me if I am wrong but it seems to me that very few pastors today practice this old-fashioned form of ethics.
For instance, one pastor writes, "God has not given me the authority to place ownership on His property: a soul. The doors of His church are open to whomever and it is God who will lead and direct that soul to his or her destination spiritually." This same person does not believe that it is necessary for a wanderer to have a letter from a previous pastor, because "individuals have the option to worship wherever they may choose and wherever they feel that they will spiritually grow."
First of all, ethics as I understand ethics is NOT ownership of a soul. It is what it is. When a member of a neighboring church attends services at the church I pastor when he or she should be in his or her own church, ethics stipulate that the pastor of the church visited call their pastor. It may be that the individual visiting (wandering) is doing so because his or her pastor actually sat them down and taught them a lesson in, say...ADULTERY AS A SIN. Wouldn't you agree that it is a sin for a man or a woman to commit adultery? Of course, that individual may not like the fact that his or her pastor still believes that adultery is a sin, and he or she decides to find a church where they will "grow."
Really, it could be any subject or doctrine to which we may refer. What about a scenario where the wanderer's first pastor sat them down from the keyboards because he or she would not pay tithes. Perhaps you would agree (then again, maybe not) that anyone in a leadership position such as musician, board member, Sunday school teacher, or any other such position should certainly pay their tithes. Of course, if we just accept that person into our local fold without informing their former pastor, we wouldn't know that - at least not until we have to do the same for the same reasons.
Allow me to give you an example: I know a man who was a very good drummer, but because of his affinity for minors, his pastor sat him down. Of course, this guy was not happy. How could his actions with minors have anything to do with his drum playing skills during worship service??? He left. Went to the church located less than 15 miles down the road. A very short time later, the first pastor attended a service in the neighboring church and was surprised to see his old drummer sitting comfortably upon the neighboring church's drum set. That pastor told me, "You know, I'm not even going to tell Bro. Neighboring Pastor about drummer boy's affinity for minors. If he were really concerned about the man's character, he would have called to tell me drummer boy's family had visited and desired to change membership locations. Then I would have told him what he was getting."
Whether the wronged pastor was correct or not in his decision to keep such pertinent information to himself, I will not judge. I will say, however, that if the second pastor had any ethics, he would have had some insight into the drummer's character before putting him in such a visible ministry.
Another pastor wrote that the letter of transfer should contain "limited information such as how many years they attended and what positions they held. It should be limited to the basics." I certainly agree with that, but I sincerely HOPE that the receiving pastor will have the decency, and the wisdom, to contact the former pastor and inquire as to the character of the transfers. I would never put in print (letter of transfer) disparaging comments concerning the transferee's character, but I would let you know in a phone or face-to-face conversation if that person has a questionable character. That is only right! At least the receiving pastor will have enough foresight to help him determine whether or not he can use the transferee, and if so, in what capacity.
Listen, I've been on both sides of this issue (some have left our church; some have come to our church from an area church). What I find, however, is that only a VERY SMALL PERCENT of our pastors practice this part of ministerial ethics. And I have to be honest; a pastor who will not be ethical is a pastor I likely will not trust. Not only will he "receive" transfers out of your church, it is very likely he will do everything he can to entice members in your church to leave you and join his church. Crucify me if you like, but that is the simple truth. As for me, I still CALL the wanderer's pastor the first chance I get. If the individual desires to change membership to our local church, I ask him/her to get a letter of transfer, which offers both parties at least one more opportunity to sit down and iron out their differences if there are any. If that pastor informs me that the wanderer is rebelling against Bible doctrine or has a bad attitude about something the pastor has changed or said and has not spoken with that pastor about the issue, I would encourage the person to return home and sit down with the first pastor.
I understand that there are personality differences. I understand that there are dingbats who somehow get elected into a pastorate. I understand that the pastor can be wrong or have the wrong attitude. In fact, the pastor could be the one living in sin! None of this, however, negates the necessity of ministerial ethics. That pastor is still deserving of a call from the neighboring pastor to find out what his side of the story is.
Is this an unrealistic expectation? NO. What if the visited church is somewhat large? I am sure they have a system that "catches" visitors and discovers from where they hail. What if I am so new I don't know who is a visitor and who is a member? Do what I did: inform the ushers, the hostesses, the Sunday school department, media ministries, and anyone else you can think of to let you know if someone from a neighboring church was in service with you. They know! I've already made one phone call for this reason. The visitor, however, came to see his parents (who are members) while his pastor was on vacation.
Background checks? When I was starting out (almost 25 years ago) this was NOT a common practice, but I am sure that SOMEBODY was doing it. Today, I think it is an absolute necessity. I have run background checks on ALL of our Sunday school help (and that would include our youth pastor, whom I've known since he was a child). Before they elected me as pastor, they should have (and probably did) run a background check. I have no problem with that. I have nothing to hide. This will protect the church and it will protect the individual being checked out. Besides, I think that Church Mutual (which charges $6.00 per background check if they do it) will give the church a break in insurance rates.
Thanks for letting me vent!
Blessings,
Tim Kelley
