PRESSURES
ON OUR CHURCH WORKERS
A Statement
from The Office of the President
The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod
1333 South Kirkwood Road
St. Louis, Missouri 63122
United States of America
All around
us these days, it seems that society is coming apart
at the seams. Social unrest, crime, family problems,
divorce, confusion over what is right and wrong, uncertainty
about the future, desperate attempts to possess more
and more things in life - all these elements factor
into the enormous pressures that face the church today.
In many cases, these frustrations and concerns of
the congregation find their way to the pastors and
other church workers of our congregations.
Aside from
the pressures exerted by the world on the congregation,
sadly enough, sometimes full-time church workers of
our Synod have to deal with congregations and their
lay leaders who are not as supportive as they should
be. Church workers struggle with unrealistic expectations
made of them and with undue pressures placed upon
them. They work with inadequate salaries, low levels
of appreciation, people who take out their personal
hurts on their church workers. The list could go on
and on. Repeatedly, the mail that comes across my
desk all too often bears out this fact. These are
all very real pressures on our church workers and
it is no wonder that these pressures pile up and can
take a heavy toll on our church workers and their
families.
I was reminded
of this when I had an opportunity to read the results
of a survey taken in the English District among the
pastors and their wives in the English District. The
survey concerned marital expectations and satisfaction
between pastors and their wives. Thank God that the
survey revealed that there is a good level of marital
satisfaction among those who responded! I think it
would be safe to assume that this would be true across
the Synod. However, the survey revealed some areas
that need attention. I would like to discuss these
with you for just a bit here so that we might understand
better how we as a Synod can improve the family situations
of our professional church workers. I think there
are a number of key points that the survey and its
analysis offers to our Synod. I would like to direct
these comments to the lay leaders of our congregations,
so that they may be aware of the distinct pressures
and stresses faced by our church workers.
TIME FOR
THE FAMILY
The survey
indicated that the greatest area of concern expressed
by both pastors and their wives was the whole area of
time spent with one another, and how that time is spent.
What is true for these English district pastors and
their families is surely true for all church-worker
families. They have a tough time trying to balance the
demands of their calling with the requirements to be
good husbands and wives, fathers and mothers.
Oftentimes,
because of a very good and proper commitment to their
calling to be servants in the Lord's church, our church
workers end up over-extending themselves. They overschedule
themselves, taking on more and more, until they come
to the point that they are not able to give their
families the attention they need and deserve.
Our congregations
and lay leaders need to be extremely sensitive to
the fact that our church workers need to spend both
quality and quantity time with their families. Our
pastors need to take a day off each week. Our teachers
need to have their family obligations respected and
not simply be given more and more things to do.
The survey's
commentary offers an all-too-accurate description
of the situation many of our church workers face when
trying to schedule time for the family: "We overschedule
at work at the expense of our family, believing or
hoping that they will understand how important it
is for us to fulfill our 'God-given' responsibility
to serve others first. We may even find ourselves
feeling guilty when we spend time at home that could
be spent at our desk or in our classroom catching
up on what we consider to be 'more important' projects.
However, even this can "backfire" if we
start getting angry that we then have no time for
ourselves and our needs. Dividing time so as to satisfy
all we consider to be our God-given responsibilities
is an extremely difficult thing. We are confused as
to which is the greater call-to our family or to our
job. Too often, our response to the problem has been
to try to ignore it. This can cause serious consequences
on all fronts-at home and at work. Instead of acting
with a well-developed plan that enables us to care
for all our responsibilities, we react to whatever
is putting the most pressure on us at the moment.
This can cause much stress and frustration."
What are
some concrete steps that our church workers can take
to deal with this tension between time for their duties
and time with their families? The survey offers some
very good observations. They need to recognize that
these issues will not just go away or just take care
of themselves. Church workers need to take deliberate
steps to address this situation. What are some of
these steps? 1) Openly discuss this situation with
the family to determine if there is a problem; 2)
agree together on what the family needs are and what
realistic steps can be taken; 3) discuss the concerns
with the congregation's leaders in a loving way, asking
for their support; 4) determine a very clear understanding
of what is expected from you and determine together
as a church how your duties can be fulfilled while
providing time for the family; 5) make time on your
schedule for your family and then write down these
times just like you would any other commitment and
then stick to this schedule. When asked if you are
available at these times, simply indicate that you
have already scheduled something else. Work to identify
an alternative time; and 6) finally, make a firm commitment
to give your family the time they both need and deserve
from you. Our full time church workers also need to-THINK
FAMILY-when it comes to their own households and not
deceive themselves into thinking that everything will
just work itself out with time.
MARRIAGE
God has given
our spouses to us as wonderful blessings. In the English
District, survey there was clear evidence that the stresses
of church work place unique pressures on a marriage.
Communication between husbands and wives needs constant
attention. It is recognized that men and women tend
to communicate differently. This factor caused the greatest
degree of concern expressed in the English District
survey. The survey indicated that failing to recognize
the differences between the way men and women communicate
accounted for a great deal of the concerns expressed.
Here husbands and wives need openly to communicate -
about communication. The wife should be made to feel
free to express openly her needs and concerns and then
the husband can share his point of view. Perhaps it
is most important simply to recognize that specific
time for good communication must be scheduled. In the
midst of busy activities, and the time required by children,
it is all too easy for couples simply to neglect the
need they have simply to talk with one another.
I would
now like to move into a discussion of how our congregations
and their leaders can be of service to our church
workers.
ADEQUATE
SALARIES
Another major
concern that needs to be addressed by our congregations
is the whole area of adequate salaries for our church
workers. Very simply put, this is a must. I am not directing
these comments toward those congregations that are paying
fair and adequate salaries, nor am I trying to send
those congregations that are truly struggling financially
on a guilt trip. I am, however, raising these concerns
with those congregations that could do better, and should
do better, but for a variety of reasons choose instead
to overlook this concern. Sadly, I am aware, and I am
sure you are too, of those congregations that year after
year balance their budgets at the expense of their professional
church workers. They take a good deal of pride in the
fact that they operate in the black, but continue to
underpay their staff, perhaps depriving them of full
benefits, such as health-care coverage for their families,
or paying them less than adequate incomes. Sometimes
the problem is not that the money isn't available, but
that the members of the congregations do not respond
generously and sacrificially to the needs of the congregations.
And, I am particularly concerned about the low salaries
paid to our school teachers. We simply can not expect
our schools to continue to maintain the excellence we
want to see there and then fail to provide adequate
salaries to our teaching staffs.
The English
District survey spoke to this situation as well. One
commentary said: "I am not suggesting that church
workers go on strike for better working and living
conditions. I am suggesting that church workers become
proud (in a positive sense) of what they are and begin
to lovingly remind their congregations of the responsibility
they have toward church workers. Congregations owe
it to us and to our families. We need to be supportive
of other church workers and treat them like the real
professionals they are. We all need to work together
to change the attitude of our whole church regarding
this matter. We are all effected directly and indirectly
when anyone of us is told, 'You are a real professional,
you will be paid $17,000 to do your full-time job
and you will be happy to work 60+ hours a week because
you are dedicated.' In contrast, I have heard jealousy
and resentment from the mouths of church workers when
talking about fellow workers who are paid well and
have better working conditions. This is not a healthy
attitude for us to sustain. Change requires careful,
loving, but persistent effort and education. It will
take time and future generations of church workers
will appreciate our efforts."
As many
of our congregations move toward their annual meeting
and setting their budgets for the new year, I would
like strongly to encourage our congregational leaders
to take a hard look at the salaries they extend to
their pastors and to their other church workers. Find
out how these compare to other professions in the
congregation and compare the salaries to the local
public school salaries. Obviously our church workers
are not in church work to get rich, but consistently
underpaying them does nothing but make their work
all that much more difficult. Out of respect for the
important work they do, our congregations should respond
generously to their salary needs and care for those
who labor in the Lord's vineyard as His called workers.
HELPING
OUR CHURCH WORKERS
The survey
and subsequent analysis of the survey offered some very
good, concrete suggestions on how we as a church, together,
can address the concerns we have for our church workers
and their families. There were some excellent suggestions
offered for steps that could be taken. Let me share
these with you.
1) Our
schools and seminaries need to teach future church
workers to set priorities that recognize the importance
of their spouses and families; 2) our synodical and
district leaders, as well as and our synodical publications
need to address these issues more openly. Denying
them or avoiding them will not make them go away;
3) these issues should be referenced at pastors and
teachers conferences, even if only briefly; 4) circuit
conferences and circuit counselors need to address
these issues on a regular basis again, if only briefly;
5) our congregations need to be confronted with the
understanding that their workers need to nurture their
marital and family relationships before they collapse;
and 6) our church workers need to be so committed
to their spouse and family that they will not become
complacent but will do all they can to help and serve
them
What are
some concrete things a congregation can do for its
pastor and other church workers? I would like to encourage
the lay leaders of our congregations to consider the
following list that was shared with me by the English
District's Commission on Ministerial Support: 1) pray
regularly for your church workers; 2) observe your
church workers' anniversaries of ordination or commissioning;
for example, the tenth, fifteenth or twenty-fifth
anniversary; 3) periodically observe an anniversary
of the church worker's installation in your congregation;
4) each year have a pastor's appreciation day, a teacher's
appreciation day, etc. 5) see to it that your pastor
has at least one day off a week and encourage him
to make up time for those emergencies that prevent
him from taking that day off. Encourage the same among
your other church workers and do not expect them to
work all day and then also on Saturdays and Sundays
as well; 6) if you invite a church worker to attend
a wedding rehearsal dinner, or a wedding reception,
a baptismal dinner, or a confirmation dinner, invite
his or her spouse to attend as well, and invite them
in advance, just as you would invite others; 7) allow
time for your church workers to attend wedding enrichment
seminars or take private marriage renewal retreats;
8) encourage your church workers to attend their children's
activities, for example, school events and sporting
events. Adjust the congregation's schedule to make
this possible; 9) encourage your congregation's families
to invite the congregation's church workers to their
homes for dinner, or a family outing; 10) in addition
to adequate vacation time, allow your pastor to take
a weekend off to spend time with his family; and 11)
include the church worker's spouse and children in
"thank you" notes that are extended to the
church worker.
Needless
to say, the concerns and issues I have raised here
will continue be important issues in our Synod. This
is as it should be. I have shared the English District's
survey data with our Commission on Ministerial Growth
and Support and the LCMS Health Ministeries. These
two groups help to coordinate and assist the work
among our districts, and they provide important leadership
to our Synod on these and other related issues. It
is very important that all of us look at these important
issues concerning our church workers and work together
to provide solutions to these concerns and then take
actions that will be of service to our professional
church workers on both a district and synodical level.
We who
serve as professional church workers must be aware
of the unique demands our callings place on our spouses
and children. And, our congregations need to be both
sensitive and responsive to the unique needs of our
church workers. Together, we are called by the Lord
to do the work of His kingdom, to spread the Gospel,
and to seek and reach out to the lost with the precious
message of Christ, our Savior. As we do this, we need
to encourage and support one another. We need to make
the time, to take the time to be with our families.
Our congregations need to take concrete steps to make
this possible and to make certain that our full-time
workers are adequately cared for by their congregations.
God bless them as they do!
From:
The President's Newsletter, November 1996, p. 2-3
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