Character Counts

Last night, we were chatting w/our flatmate Adria about “Pastors Gone Tyrannical”. She was relating a situation that she and her aunt had both experienced while working at a church in their home town. We, too, have had close friends, relatives, etc. who have had similar “pastor problems”. One of our former guests was relating to Adria last night about yet another similar situation. It is wide spread. Symptoms are: slander, threats, character assassination, manipulation, money mis-management, relational impropriety, and just general selfishness. These men (and some women) display what I think are the quintessential marks of a totalitarian tyrant: fear. Stalin obsessed over his political enemies. So did Hitler. If you were close to these guys, you invariably went to a death camp or received a 9mm brain hemorrhage (Hitler) or you went to Siberia and/or received a similar brain hemorrhage (Stalin). Stalin even killed his own sons as he panicked. In the “tyrannical pastor” issue, those closest would equate to staff and elder/deacons.

So, what is the deal? Young Christians (the 20’s set and younger) seem to think the issue is church structure. Thus part of the great appeal of the Emerging Church movement which is often characterized by a lack of structure, amorphous terms like “organic church” and “conversations”. Many young people think this is the solution. Take power away from the one person and redistribute it to the congregation. I think this will ultimately fail. Why?

1. Ostensibly, in the “small-town” church, with the “one man on top” structure, that pastor is answerable to the deacon/elders. The job of the deacon/elders is to superintend the church. And these guys are, ostensibly, answerable to the congregation. Somewhere along the way, the congregation and the deacon/elders gave up their responsibilities and told the pastor, “Rule us!” Seems rather like America and her relationship to Congress these days. No one likes Congress, but we’re unwilling to hold it to account. So, if in this “bad structure” there is actually a mechanism to rein in a tyrannical pastor, and it doesn’t function because of the congregation’s abdication of responsibility, what is going to guarantee that in the “organic church” model, that congregation won’t also abdicate their role?

2. As Aubrey has pointed out, it is hard to imagine that any man (or woman depending on your denomination) gets into ministry thinking, “Hey, I want to build my own little kingdom/empire and I’ll use the local church to do it and torch anything/one who gets in my way.” Something goes horribly wrong. “Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely” as the adage goes. When all power in a church is invested in one person, that person is set up to fall. However, this doesn’t mean that this is inevitable.

I’ve known of many pastors, in the “one man on top” structure, who didn’t behave like Hitler or Stalin. They were/are people of conscience, humility, and a deep conviction of their need/reliance on God. They display the Fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5:22-23). They minister in the “broken structure” and people are loved and cared for. What’s the difference?

Character. I don’t care what structure you give a church, if the people lack character and the ministers lack character, then the church will start shooting people. The structure is a neutral thing. Every organism needs organization (thank you Ben Witherington III).  Even an amoeba needs order and structure.  A lack of organization will not save a church from corrupt men and women.

So, the solution to all these tyrannical pastors? People of principle and character who hold ministers to account. Ministers who walk in the spirit and remember they are serving God and not their “vision”. So, pray for your pastor’s character. Pray for the character of your elder/deacon/leadership group. Pray for and develop your own character. Walk in the Spirit. Things that I admit are easier written than done. But they are vital and necessary.

End of line.

~ by eikonministries on August 5, 2008.