By Dr. Ann A. Michel Religious communities through history have always found ways to care for and support clergy. And this need is arguably greater than ever in an era when increasing numbers of pastors feel overwhelmed by the demands of ministry. What systems are in place to address their needs? While the most meaningful…
By G. Jeffrey MacDonald From the outside, First Parish Church (United Church of Christ) in Newbury, Massachusetts, appeared to be chugging along reasonably well after 377 years of ministry. A small group of faithful souls still gathered every Sunday morning. A preschool met in the downstairs hall on weekdays. More than 40 area residents tended…
How has the pandemic shaped the vitality and resiliency of congregations? Did it really prompt large numbers of pastors to leave ministry? In this episode of Leading Ideas Talks from the Lewis Center for Church Leadership of Wesley Theological Seminary, Scott Thumma shares insights from ongoing research on the pandemic’s impact on congregational life and…
Are you a pastor serving more than one church? Or a leader in a congregation that’s part of a multi-church ministry? In this Leading Ideas Talks podcast episode from the Lewis Center for Church Leadership, small church vitality expert Dr. Lew Parks explores perspectives and practices that can help ministry flourish even in a church…
By Lewis A. Parks It’s important to remember that in some denominations, the normative expectation of a local church to have a resident pastor is relatively recent. Until the middle of the last century, for example, the whole mindset in the Methodist tradition was that clergy were not overly identified with any one congregation and everybody…
This article shares highlights from an in-depth interview with Scott Thumma, available in Leading Ideas from the Lewis Center for Church Leadership of Wesley Theological Seminary. How has the pandemic shaped the vitality and resiliency of congregations? Did it really prompt large numbers of pastors to leave ministry? Doug Powe, director of the Lewis…
By Steven C. Van Ostran It has been my experience that bivocational ministers see themselves and are looked upon by others as second-class ministers — ministers who are not on the same level with those who serve full time. It has also been my experience that some of the finest, most godly, and long-tenured pastors…
WASHINGTON, DC — The Lewis Center for Church Leadership of Wesley Theological Seminary has launched an initiative to study the makeup of the religious workforce across Christian traditions in the U.S. Research will focus on the changing staffing patterns of congregations and shifts in the employment of ordained clergy and nonordained professionals within local churches,…