Faith Works 10-28-22

Faith Works 10-28-22
Jeff Gill

Ministry in transition, online or up close
___

Many denominations have a "Week of the Ministry" in October, or some sort of ministerial appreciation month this time of year.

Preacher, padre, reverend, evangelist, elder . . . the terminology for the person can vary, but in our area there's a fair amount of consistency to a few aspects of what it means to talk about ministry.

If your local church is part of a larger church body, or denomination, there are probably pretty firm guidelines for what it takes to be ordained. From the priesthood of the Roman Catholic Church to Protestant ministry, many functions of ministerial work are reserved for someone who has the formal recognition of a diocesan bishop or conference board of ordained ministry or regional commission on ministry.

Presiding at communion is often a function of ordained ministers only; my own tradition is somewhat unique in that almost anyone can preside at the table, but even for us you'll most often see an ordained clergy member at the table. There's usually a sacramental understanding that links ordination and presiding at the table, and frankly the less sacramental the theology of a tradition, the less restricted you'd see for the function of presiding.

Baptism similarly is often performed by the minister, regardless of the sacramental theology of the church involved, but more and more often you'll see lay members ("laity" simply is a general term for anyone not ordained) involved in baptism . . . and in fact most sacramental traditions have major exceptions allowed for any believer to do baptisms under certain circumstances.

Then you get into weddings and funerals, the first of which is also linked to a presider's status with the State of Ohio, and the latter being something anyone can do, but you'll find many friends of couples willing to do a wedding but not so many lining up to offer to conduct a funeral service, so again that becomes a de facto ministerial function.

But I've mentioned ordination a number of times as the effective "gateway" into a ministerial calling. In the last century, that's become an act, a sort of churchly blessing on the person called to ministry, which is offered after not only a course of study (some church bodies require a college degree, many a seminary degree beyond that), but a process of discernment in the local church, the wider church, and usually with a "laying on of hands" by leaders who stand in relation to the historic witness of the church from the apostles on down to today.

Ordination is considered a once given, always held sort of blessing; one can be ordained but not be granted standing, which is a sort of licensure or certification which many traditions review annually. You can lose standing for whatever reason, and get it back; ordination is fairly permanent, but if some cause leads the wider church to rescind that, it's what people call "defrocked" and rarely is restored.

I've been asked if I'm "still a minister" since I'm not currently serving in a pulpit, other than as a supply preacher. Well, my ordination is still valid, and my standing has been renewed up to the present time, I just am not serving a "call" as a parish minister. But yes, I think of myself as a minister.

What my ministry is largely involved in these days is supporting a nationwide online program to serve commissioned ministers, who may never be ordained but have a commission to serve a specific church or task. Ministry today is a flexible, online and off-line, in person and at a distance calling; I'm trying to flex with it!


Jeff Gill is a writer, storyteller, and preacher in central Ohio; he's teaching ministers from California to New England these days. Tell him how you're learning new things about ministry at knapsack77@gmail.com, or follow @Knapsack on Twitter.