We continue our discussion on how to respond to the presence of Clergy Killers within the congregation
Two Assumptions about Spiritual Leadership
One, it is not spiritually healthy for the pastor to be continually under attack by certain individuals within the church. That is true even though the pastor will have his or her faults.
Two, the session (or governing board) has a responsibility for the spiritual welfare of the church. Both the pastor and the session need to develop a strategy for exorcising any toxic spirits that are poisoning the spiritual well being of the church.
First Steps
In a moment I will describe two different approaches to the presence of Clergy Killers. But the first thing that must be done is the pastor and session must sit together and honestly confront the present reality within the church. This may be done internally but probably is best done by being guided by a consultant or someone from the presbytery (judicatory) who can guide the conversation.
The purpose is to identify, and where possible to date, the types of incidents directed at the pastor. Any individual incident might seem unfortunate but manageable. It is the cumulative build up of attacks coming from a minority within the congregation that it is important to identify. A nasty letter can be absorbed but ten letters, three unverifiable rumors, and a series of confrontive questions that appear not to be a a search for genuine information suggest a different level of conflict. A descriptive list with dates needs to be drawn up.
An Intervention
One choice available to the church leadership is similar to what is done for the sake of an alcoholic friend. It is called an intervention. If it can clearly be established that one or a few individuals have been behind these attacks, they can be invited to a meeting with the Session. It is explained that the Session believes, whether intentionally or not, a series of actions taken by these individuals has been spiritually damaging to the health of the congregation. The list of items is then shared together with their impact. As a united body, the session then invites these people either to cease such activity or to find another place to worship.
If it is difficult to precisely identify these individuals, another approach is to bring the issues into the light in a different forum. That is what will be described in the next blog.
*********************
A Star and a Tear, amzn.to/1aTDdgs , my new mystery novel, provides an opportunity for church school classes or clergy groups to both enjoy a good mystery and discuss together how to respond to some of the complex issues confronting the church in our society.
