In Search of a Better Way
An Ohio pastor tells how a seventy-year-old church regained its youthfulness.
Robert Culp
July 1, 1983
The following story of a congregation doing serious business with its goals and structures is an inspiration to all who wish for reform. While many readers belong to denominations with differing polities from this one, the principles and attitudes expressed here can be applied to a wide range of settings. Two years after the British voters thanked Winston Churchill for his wartime leadership by kicking him out of office, the old man said in a House of Commons speech, "Democracy is the worst form of government except for all those other forms that have been tried from time to time." Nearly every pastor I know would agree with the sentiment. We have all suffered through power struggles in the church that left us in despair. The problem, we sensed, would not be corrected by a dynamic sermon or an inspiring song. Nor would a new program cure what ailed us. We dared to dream of radical surgery. But wouldn't another form of government be worse? The congregation I serve got along rather peacefully from its beginnings early in the century until the 1950s, when serious controversy hit. The turmoil produced four pastoral changes in five years. Pastor Number 1 was forced to resign suddenly, the trustee board voting to shut off all parsonage utilities if he was not out in thirty days. Pastor 2 scheduled a tent revival, with church approval-but then had to pay for it himself when the lay officers refused the bills. He resigned after nine months. ... Pastor 5, upon arrival in town, was forced to make his debut not in the pulpit but in court, where a lawsuit between church officers was in progress. Despite this rugged start, he managed over the next six years to heal much of the breach. He also did me a great favor when I succeeded him in ...
Like the preview? To read this complete article
and 18,013 more in the archive—JOIN NOW!
Easily find high-quality, well-researched materials that provide a Christian perspective on topics ranging from headlines to history.
Start using this invaluable tool TODAY for preparing your Bible studies, presentations, class lectures, sermons, meetings, and more.
|
It's easy and quick to join:
Brought to You by Christianity Today Int'l |  |
|
| 
Find similar articles
E-mail this page
