Territorial Bloggings

Just to show that I haven’t completely forgotten about things in the realm of churchly politics (and that I haven’t totally ceded that arena to others like Frank! ;^) ), here’s a little tidbit that I came across recently that might be of some interest…

One of the perennial hot topics in synodical circles is that of the (take yer pick) past/current/future “shortage of Pastors” afflicting the synod. This “shortage”, and the companion number of congregations in some sort of vacancy, has been the reason that non-Seminary training-tracks for pastors have become increasingly en-vogue in Missouri in recent years (e.g., SMP).

One of the questions that accompanies the topic is that of “CRM” pastors, or “candidate” pastors currently without a call. Over the years, CRM has become somewhat of a “scarlet letter” of sorts, where men go, and are never heard from again. Why? Well, there are stories. Unfit for ministry. Unfit to teach. Needed time away. Etc., et al… It can really be hard to pin down.

In any event, this all becomes of particular interest in light of the synodical statistic that we have 9,164 pastors… of which 5,356 are serving parishes — meaning roughly 40% are not. So, how many are CRM? And is that CRM status really being used against them? I’ve been able to come across some info (in a public forum, so it’s not secret or anything like that – goodness knows I’m not that plugged-in to any circles of power…), and I thought I’d pass it along, since I hadn’t seen it pop up in the blogosphere yet. Here’s the quote:

At long last, an update on the number of pastors on candidate status in the LCMS.

There are several types of candidate status, first of all. Some pastors, although they can be called to service, are on “non-candidate” roster status. This means that they are not seeking a Divine Call, but are in some kind of transition – maybe they’re selling Thrivent, doing something else, not able to consider a Divine Call, a myriad of things. They aren’t considered in the same way as those Pastors who are eligible and desirous of receiving a Divine Call.

The number of those pastors, as of today, is 227 in the LCMS. Inside that group there are a bundle of other descriptors – able to consider a Call but geographically limited, or wife not able to move at this time, etc. etc. But it’s a substantial number, in my opinion.

In addition, there are over 30 pastors who have completed our colloquium but have not received a divine call; they’re in the “placement pool.” Many/most of them are originally from another country – Korean, African nations, etc.

There are currently 436 parishes that are not calling a pastor. Many to most of them are served by retired pastors. The most frequent mode of providing pastoral care to congregations in the LCMS not able to provide full compensation is NOT the SMP student, but the retired pastor.

I can’t say that there’s any deep, deep meaning there, but it is interesting nonetheless.

We do not currently have a shortage of pastors in the LCMS. We do have a surplus of seminary-trained bureaucrats. We do have a broken understanding of the importance & necessity of AC XIV.

Will we have a shortage when current pastors in their 60′s+ start retiring? I don’t know. But I do know that it’s not right to use a “shortage” or a broken understanding of AC XIV as pretense to begin circumventing the OHM & create programs like SMP treat symptoms rather than underlying causes.

But, then, that’s what we do far too often in Missouri these days — attack symptoms rather than causes. It’s easier & more “effective”, isn’t it?

Feh!

-ghp