Blogging about ordination
Monday, August 20, 2007
In the past week, there have been several blog posts about the issue of the candidacy and the ordination process in the UMC. If you are interested in what has been said elsewhere, check out:
-- This Methoblog post that I wrote on Friday, basically summarizing what I said a couple of days earlier on Gen X Rising.
-- This impassioned and poignant post from Gavin Richardson (who, by the way, may be the hardest working blogger in show business). Gavin offers a few good examples of how bad candidacy can really be. It wasn't nearly this bad in my own experience, but I have certainly heard stories of the kind Gavin shares.
-- This post on the United Methodist Reporter's new blog, written by Amy Forbus. Amy mentions on the Reporter post that Rebekah Miles' op-ed piece is going to come out in the Aug. 31st edition of the Reporter. Keep an eye out for that. The Reporter's general website address is here.
I will link to Dr. Miles' Reporter article when it appears. In the mean time, you might be interested in seeing this report on clergy age trends, compiled by the Lewis Center for Church Leadership at Wesley Theological Seminary: youngumclergy.pdf. It is filled with fascinating and shocking statistics, most of which are related to the aging of United Methodist clergy. For instance, did you know that in 1985, over 15% of clergy were under the age of 35?
Want to take a guess what it is now? Try 4.69%.
Correlation does not prove causation, as psychologists like to tell us. And I have no doubt that there are many reasons why younger folks are not answering God's call to ordained ministry in nearly as high numbers as they once did. But I also do not doubt that the length and complexity of our candidacy process does not help.
posted by Andrew C. Thompson at 5:51 PM
3 Comments:
Andrew--
Sometimes I find it difficult to take in the "length and complexity" parts of the reasons why younger people are not going into ministry. I think those things *in combination* with others things are probably to blame, but not on their own.
Why else would so many people my age be willing to spend a minimum of *8* years and a LOT more money trying to become a doctor? I don't think we're so much scared by the time as by the return on the time spent. Plus, we have given up on campus ministries (I have heard that several conferences have completely cut conference money for campus ministry) where students can learn about and explore if not answer a call to ministry.
I also wish we could get rid of everyone who uses the phrase "if you can do anything else, do that". At its best, I suppose it's meant to warn people that ministry is a potentially difficult path and should only be followed if you have an actual calling. But at its worst, it just brings to mind the 8 other careers that it would be possible (if not lucrative) for me to follow.
I'm going to check out the Wesley stats, though because I would be curious to see how many of the "under 35 in 1985 clergy" are actually still in the ministry. Is it such a great stat if the dropout rate of those clergy skyrocketed? I don't know what kind of retention we get for 4.69%, but would like to see that stat for those under 40 after 10 years of ministry and under 50 at 20 years of ministry. I think things might even out a bit.
Speaking as one of those 4.69%, a probationary elder, I also object to the notion of "length and complexity" for the same reasons cynthia does.
I comment on the shift from ministry being the work of the people to professionalism. With the role of pastor being a "jack or jill of all trades" role (theologian, preacher, counselor, biblical scholar, advocate), persons who feel strongly in one of those areas now have professional areas of expertise that they can pursue. I can name about 10 seminarians out of my graduating class of MDivs that have chosen social work or advocacy in social agencies over the muddled hodgepodge of pastoral ministry. Which is great for them and their ministry, but a loss to the Church's ordination system.
I think this professionalism gives clarity and focus in other areas of ministry, while the role of the pastor is still ambiguous and all-encompassing, and thus, unappealing to a culture of students whose parents push us from day one to make something of ourselves.
Wow. I think the comments of Cynthia and Cross+Flame are right on, here. Thanks for your qualifying remarks about the "length and complexity" issue. I guess what I mostly meant was "length and complexity" in relation to the impersonal, bureaucratic feel of the whole thing. For those going through the process, the number of 'hoops' you have to jump through seems excessive at times. On the other hand, I don't think anyone does or would object to hoops that seem to have a useful purpose.
I felt this way about the clergy and lay/clergy accountability groups that I was required to take part in over the three years of my probation. Time consuming? Yes. Sometimes difficult to fit into an already-busy schedule (especially when travel was involved)? Yes. But worthwhile? You bet.
The neglect of campus ministry that Cynthia points out is absolutely on target. Whether it is our Wesley Foundations or our church-related colleges, not nearly enough attention and resources are devoted to helping college aged-students. And it's not just about calling into ministry; it's also about keeping them connected in the community of faith during a difficult period of life.
I also agree with the 'cultural shift' that Cross+Flame identifies in relation to the professionalization of various aspects of ministry. I went to a divinity school where probably half of my graduating class did not go into pastoral ministry. It is a problem when seminary students see the local church as the one destination they want to avoid after graduation. But what do we do about that?
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