Tuesday
Jun082010
Denominational Election
Tuesday, June 8, 2010 at 08:41AM
I’ve just been elected President of a denominational group.
I belong to to one of the oldest, and smallest, Protestant denominations in America. It’s called the Unitarian Universalist Association. It was created by merging two smaller groups that had been important during the American Revolution (the membership list reads like a “Who’s Who” of Founding Fathers and Mothers of our nation). The Unitarians were urban and the Universalists were rural, but mostly they believed the same things.
The big thing that separates us from other Protestants is that we do not have a Creed that everyone has to agree to. Instead, each congregation votes a “Covenant” about how people will behave with each other as members of that congregation. Typically, the Covenants say that we don’t all have to agree on everything but can still get along. As my wife’s congregation puts it: “not as agreeing in opinion, but as seekers after truth and goodness.”
Therefore, we’re a denomination for people who like to ask questions, rethink beliefs and argue (politely). We’re an educated group with more than 80% of us holding a Graduate Degree, but that also means we are, and will always be, small.
In my denomination there are three “tracks” for ministry. The first and largest is for Parish Ministry. This requires at least a Master’s Degree, plus an internship, a period of clinical training and passing a comprehensive examination given by our Ministerial Fellowship Committee.
The second track is for Ministers of Religious Education, and requires everything a Parish Minister has plus special classes in education. Typically, such ministers run the “Lifespan Religious Education” programs in our churches.
The final track is for Community Ministers. These are clergy who work with the larger community rather than just a local congregation. Community Clergy are pastoral counselors, chaplains, faculty at theological schools and universities, community organizers, etc. Community Ministers have the same training as Parish Ministers, plus specialized training and credentials such as a counselor’s license, a chaplains certification, the scholar’s Ph.D. or the community organizer’s street cred and network. I’m a Community Minister.
The Unitarian Universalist Society for Community Ministries is the Professional Association within my denomination that represents the interests of Community Clergy. This is the organization that has just elected me President (unanimously). I will serve for three years.
I’ve got my work cut out for me. There is tension between the Parish Ministers and the Community Ministers. Nether group really understands the other and Parish Clergy often feel threatened by the presence of a Community Minister in the congregation. A Community Minister can do everything a Parish Minister can do, plus has specialized training. Sometimes that sets off people who feel uncertain.
We’ve tried for decades to resolve this tension without much success. There really is no reason for a Parish Minister to feel threatened by a Community Minister. The latter does not want the job that belongs to the former. If he or she did, he or she would just have stopped training earlier and become a member of the Parish Clergy. But this fact has not helped much.
The problem is made worse by a scheduling problem. Community Clergy typically work on a different schedule than Parish Clergy. The Parish folks work on weekends when the Community folks are off. Therefore, getting these two groups together to built trust and understanding has proven difficult.
In my case I was a Parish Minister for 13 years as I completed my education to become a Community Minister. I’m also married to a Parish Minister. Therefore, I’ve got a foot in both camps and I understand the issues. Hopefully, we will find a way for the Parish and non-Parish camps to co-exist without friction. I’ve always believed, as Robert Frost said, that “good fences make good neighbors.” I will be about the task of fence-building soon.
I belong to to one of the oldest, and smallest, Protestant denominations in America. It’s called the Unitarian Universalist Association. It was created by merging two smaller groups that had been important during the American Revolution (the membership list reads like a “Who’s Who” of Founding Fathers and Mothers of our nation). The Unitarians were urban and the Universalists were rural, but mostly they believed the same things.
The big thing that separates us from other Protestants is that we do not have a Creed that everyone has to agree to. Instead, each congregation votes a “Covenant” about how people will behave with each other as members of that congregation. Typically, the Covenants say that we don’t all have to agree on everything but can still get along. As my wife’s congregation puts it: “not as agreeing in opinion, but as seekers after truth and goodness.”
Therefore, we’re a denomination for people who like to ask questions, rethink beliefs and argue (politely). We’re an educated group with more than 80% of us holding a Graduate Degree, but that also means we are, and will always be, small.
In my denomination there are three “tracks” for ministry. The first and largest is for Parish Ministry. This requires at least a Master’s Degree, plus an internship, a period of clinical training and passing a comprehensive examination given by our Ministerial Fellowship Committee.
The second track is for Ministers of Religious Education, and requires everything a Parish Minister has plus special classes in education. Typically, such ministers run the “Lifespan Religious Education” programs in our churches.
The final track is for Community Ministers. These are clergy who work with the larger community rather than just a local congregation. Community Clergy are pastoral counselors, chaplains, faculty at theological schools and universities, community organizers, etc. Community Ministers have the same training as Parish Ministers, plus specialized training and credentials such as a counselor’s license, a chaplains certification, the scholar’s Ph.D. or the community organizer’s street cred and network. I’m a Community Minister.
The Unitarian Universalist Society for Community Ministries is the Professional Association within my denomination that represents the interests of Community Clergy. This is the organization that has just elected me President (unanimously). I will serve for three years.
I’ve got my work cut out for me. There is tension between the Parish Ministers and the Community Ministers. Nether group really understands the other and Parish Clergy often feel threatened by the presence of a Community Minister in the congregation. A Community Minister can do everything a Parish Minister can do, plus has specialized training. Sometimes that sets off people who feel uncertain.
We’ve tried for decades to resolve this tension without much success. There really is no reason for a Parish Minister to feel threatened by a Community Minister. The latter does not want the job that belongs to the former. If he or she did, he or she would just have stopped training earlier and become a member of the Parish Clergy. But this fact has not helped much.
The problem is made worse by a scheduling problem. Community Clergy typically work on a different schedule than Parish Clergy. The Parish folks work on weekends when the Community folks are off. Therefore, getting these two groups together to built trust and understanding has proven difficult.
In my case I was a Parish Minister for 13 years as I completed my education to become a Community Minister. I’m also married to a Parish Minister. Therefore, I’ve got a foot in both camps and I understand the issues. Hopefully, we will find a way for the Parish and non-Parish camps to co-exist without friction. I’ve always believed, as Robert Frost said, that “good fences make good neighbors.” I will be about the task of fence-building soon.
Reader Comments