01 September 2009

Office and Personalities


Excerpt from an article by a former president of Concordia Lutheran Theological Seminary, St. Catharines, Ontario (Lutheran Church-Canada), Rev. Dr. Jonathan F. Grothe:

CONCLUDING THOUGHTS … of Diagnosis, Prognosis and Proposal: What’s going on … and what to do?


Has this always been a problem in the Church? I suspect so. Has it always been as bad as now? I cannot know and could only guess.


A. WHAT IS THE CAUSE? Sin … . Sin that invades and corrupts hearts of ministers and laity. So it has probably always been a problem, and probably as bad as now. Sometimes people point to the widespread “lack of respect for authority” and general conditions in society as contributing factors to the removal of pastors. I don’t think so. Most of our congregations are strongly inclined to respect their leaders. But I do think there are some contributing factors that have exacerbated the problem. They come from the Ministerium itself: We have contributed—greatly, I would say—to the conditions in which bad situations develop and are dealt with poorly.


1.) We have promulgated—or acquiesced while others promulgated—an Übertragungslehre [transferral doctrine], a distorted view of the relationship of Lord, Church, and Ministry. We have let it be taught and caught that the Lord gave “ministry” to the Church, that is, to the local congregation, which can order and delegate to its chosen representative such functions of ministry as it wishes. What therefore the congregation (supposedly) gives, it can (supposedly) also take back again. The transparochial Church is lost sight of, as is any personal minister representing it: any “bishop” is already deposed. Synod is “only advisory”; the “real stuff” is between pastor and congregation, and the District President better watch his step. Thus we have helped set up the situation in which a congregation acts on its own, for its own reasons, and thinks it has the full right to do so.


2.) We pastors and church leaders have also contributed to the conditions where this happens by spreading—or agreeing with— all kinds of nonsense about the human skills needed for “effective” ministry. I’ve done this much myself in the Scriptural Standards and Ecclesiastical Expectations document, which N. Nagel criticised aptly, as looking too much at the vehicle, not enough at the Giver of Gifts.17 When we talk about how it’s so “different” in the parish today (a “new world”) and what kind of communications and counselling and cross-cultural skills today’s pastors have to have. … And when we rely on Personal Information Forms and interviews and all kinds of human psych-soc. stuff to get a good “fit”, a round peg in a round hole, etc … . And when we marvel at the “effective” ministry in growing churches … WE RAISE CONGREGATIONAL EXPECTATIONS SO HIGH that they would be “satisfied” with only a small percentage of the current clergy—and only with them till they hit about (age) 55.

Leaving out the need for “the right attitude”, for love, forbearance, trust, thanksgiving for God’s gifts—all attitudes which arise from spiritual sources, we focus on talents and training. We scare the daylights out of the humbler seminarians, and we raise the hopes of congregations that they can get a Renaissance super-hero for a pastor and have a booming, effective “ministry”. And what happens? People see: things aren’t booming here, this ministry is not effective. What (we think) should be happening here, isn’t. In disappointment, and with good intentions for the “mission and ministry of the Church in this place”, the congregation removes the pastor. Perhaps the District President may even let this happen—even without demonstration of godly causes—because he wants “effective” (successful) ministry, or perhaps because he suspects the man should be deposed but has no desire (or thinks he hasn’t the power?) to effect the deposing.


Either way, in trumping up the pastors’ needed skills, we sow the seeds of discontent and disappointment which can come to fruition in congregational removal from office.

3.) Finally, we in the ministerium contribute to all of this happening because of a certain kind of “professional courtesy among lone rangers”.

pp.24-26. “Deposal And/Or Removal: Principles, Practices and Proposals” in Lutheran Theological Review, Volume VII:1&2 (Fall/Winter 1994 & Spring/Summer 1995) published jointly by the seminaries of Lutheran Church-Canada, Concordia Lutheran Theological Seminary, St. Catharines, Ontario and Concordia Lutheran Seminary, Edmonton, Alberta.

13 comments:

University Lutheran said...

Not sure I see a recommended solution here. What would we do to attempt to fix this problem?

in Christ,
jWinters.com

Reformationalist said...

Well jwinters.com, it's too early for recommendations and fixes. First, there needs to be an agreement about the malady. I, for one, agree with Dr. Grothe. The bedrock evil in this matter is, indeed, Übertragungslehre, and its impact on the LCMS in particular that gives root to the other sad developments among us that Dr. Grothe lists.

I have no solution or fix for our synod hiding in my pocket, ready to be sprung upon the discussion should agreement on the malady emerge. In fact, what is hiding in my pocket is a simple note, which reads: "requiescat in pace, lcms."

Robert. [Schaibley]
reformationalist@gmail.com

University Lutheran said...

How much agreement is needed to work on a problem? Synod wide? District wide? Region wide? Circuit wide?

Missouri's problem isn't lack of pious critics, it's that those pious critics do nothing but criticize.

Keep the tombstone in your pocket and repent of the "ubertragungslehre" of victimization.

in Christ,
jWinters.com

Pr. Thomas E. Fast said...

So....how much agreement is needed to work on a problem, jWinters.com? And what are the problems and solutions which you have such clarity about and apparently have hidden away in your pocket?

University Lutheran said...

The name of this article is "....What's going on ... and what to do?"

Sadly, the "what to do" isn't posted. I would love to see what the prescriptions were.

While I appreciate the invitation, asking me to put forth my cockamamie list of complaints and solutions, it is such a lengthy list that I wouldn't want to burden this post (plus, it's not very germane). Perhaps in another setting?

I defer to Rev. Frahm who initially posted this with my initial question: What are/were the proposed solutions to these enumerated problems?

in Christ,
jWinters.com

Pr. Thomas E. Fast said...

Reformationalist,

Do you realize that you have been called to repent by a url? How does that make you feel?

Pr. Frahm,
Thanks for the post. Grothe was an excellent professor and his humility is an example for us all.

Reformationalist said...

Well, brother Fast, sinner that I am, I've been called to repent by many persons in many circumstances, so, this is, I guess, is the latest. Of course, if I'm to be held to repent, they're going to have to actually reach me with their call!

Thanks for the heads up!

Robert. [Schaibley]

Pr. Thomas E. Fast said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Reformationalist said...

Dear brother (I assume), it was not my intention to belittle your recent response to Dr. Grothe’s post. Apparently, I did so in your eyes, and for that I apologize to you. My concern is not to “endlessly” engage in complaints. My purpose was to get a clear understanding of Grothe’s key insight, the centrality of “Übertragungstheorie” (I refuse to grant it the status of “lehre”) as the source of our current synodical mess. I was taught this theory at the sem in the 60s as the nature of the relationship between the holy office of the ministry and the congregation. It is, I believe, the father of our current confusion over the Office and the congregation. But, one person’s plea gets nowhere; so I sought to stir up discussion and perhaps a coming together to then ask the precise questions you raised in your post – basically, where do/can we go from here?

Again, I apologize for causing you pain by my post.

Cordially,

Robert. [Schaibley]
reformationalist@gmail.com

Chad Myers said...

This is OT, and I'm really sorry. Please feel free to delete this comment, but only after you've answer it for me:)

I can't seem to find the best way to contact the wonderful folks who operate this site (I say that sincerely, not sarcastically).

Is there a good place to email a contact form?

I have some questions about how to be a better Lutheran that I think you bloggers and even the commenter could knock out of the park and would help some of my relatives, who are practicing LCMS Lutherans, to deepen their faith. If I can't convince them the errors of Luther ;), I'd at least like to help them become more fervent and dedicated Lutherans according to their own tradition.

Whom should I contact and how about maybe having a few "Ask the Pastor" blog post Q&A's done for my edification and the strengthening of the flock?

Again, I'm sorry that this is in the totally wrong spot for this type of communication, but I'm a loss for the proper way.

If you don't like posting email addresses, then I'll post mine. Could someone contact me directly and give me the scoop?

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!

chad *dot* myers AT gmail *dot* com

University Lutheran said...

Dear Robert,
I too apologize. My posts yesterday were concrete examples of the error and sin that can come out of frustration. I ask humbly for your forgiveness for my brash and hurtful tones in responding to you.

I'm a young pastor, which of course means I have much to learn. As I was coming through the seminary and as I read most of the "confessional" blogs, I find myself disheartened by a quickness to complain (most often about the actions of others) and a sloth to put pure Lutheran theology into action. Additionally, I hear many others [quite strangely with seeming joy] embracing the death and demise of a church that I thought pure and true enough that I joined, and even am called a pastor in. These and a few other things cause the frustration in me that led to my brash words and breaking of the 8th commandment.

Again, I apologize and ask for your forgiveness.

in Christ,
Pastor Jay Winters
(and my apologies for the apparent scuffle that I caused by signing my url which I commonly consider enough of an identifier)

Pr. Thomas E. Fast said...

I had the privilege of sitting at John Kleinig's feet this past weekend at a Doxology event. He spoke about keeping power distinct from authority. Power is a limited commodity and so one person (or set of people) is always trying to take it away from another. Authority, otoh, is Divine permission to give heavenly gifts which is unlimited. The whole idea of authority is to give to others. Noone needs to snatch anything. And noone needs to fear losing anything. Kleinig encouraged us to exercise authority faithfully without recourse to power grabs. Very helpful admonition and advice, so far as I'm concerned. I need to hear it regularly.

Still, the question remains: why are we so interested in power and why do we let power grabs on every side distract us away from the authority exercised in the pastoral office? Perhaps none of us really believe it is as Nagel says: we are the vehicle, but Christ is in, with and under us giving out His Gifts.

Tis, at heart, a faith problem. Faith problems cannot be diagnosed or treated with anything other than Word and Sacrament. Managerial techniques cannot solve spiritual problems (another Kleinigism).

Reformationalist said...

Dear brother Jay, absolvo te! I, too and yet), have much to learn.

Luther still is right: "We are all beggars; that is true!"

Cordially,

Robert.