Healthy Pastors, Healthy Churches

One of the more alarming trends in ministry is the rise of burned out clergy. To some degree, burnout is nothing new. Clergy are folks with a predilection for working selflessly. It is ingrained that working for the church, with the inescapable addendum that one is working for God, means self-sacrifice to the point of self-annihilation, if need be. It flows straight from the cross at the center of our faith—if Jesus spared nothing in the redemption of the world, then his servants within the church should expect no less as they work within Christ’s kingdom. This thinking leads to the stereotypical assumptions about pastors—that they will work for next to nothing happily; that they will always be available, even to the point of sacrificing family, vacation, or friendships; that they will never complain; that they will never need time to rest—the list gets ridiculous both in its scope and its assertions. The end result is an exodus. Active clergy resign. Pastors find something else to do, often bitterly departing from any sort of organized religion. Pastors fall ill. Pastors break down. They vacate their pulpits, simply unable to keep at it. They may have lost marriages along the way. They may have fallen into affairs or addictions. They become statistics.

It need not be so.

The church needs healthy clergy. It needs clergy who live in  a healthy manner—physically, emotionally, and spiritually. This need is especially pronounced in a context such as ours where mainline congregations struggle to survive.  A pastor needs to be at her best as she leads worship and ministry within a congregation. We humans need more examples of healthy living where we keep things in balance, not leaders who promote a way into dysfunction. Healthier clergy will hopefully lead to healthier congregations which become more inviting simply because they are healthy. 

We live in an unhealthy context. We are told that the only effective road to success is by total commitment, which is usually translated as total giving of oneself to one’s work—more hours, more work, more self-sacrifice, or risk being expendable. We settle for poor diet (fast food can be eaten on the run). We lose time to exercise—can’t be away from the desk that long. We lost our relationships because they take too much time and energy from what we are supposed to be doing, as if relationships were impediments to success. We may be well compensated, but too many people hate their work, skipping from job to job with no thought of fulfillment, just getting more compensation. Weariness is a badge of honor. 

I do not think that is what God requires.

The singer Tom Jones has been around nearly 60 years, releasing nearly 40 albums, enjoying popularity for generations, even becoming an icon on an American sit-com—it is his song, “It’s Not Unusual,” that was “The Carleton Dance,” on Will Smith’s first hit TV show, “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” (children, ask your parents, they’ll remember). Someone asked him how he could keep working so hard for so long. His response was wondrous, “I haven’t worked since 1962!” His point—he so loves what he does that it is not work. That is a beautiful definition of vocation.

That is also a concept we’ve lost along the way, ironically, within the church, supposedly the one institution that above all others should understand vocation. We have done a great job of ensuring that would-be pastors understand the complexity and difficulty of being  a pastor, but have we instilled the joy of pastoring?

Yes, there can be joy.

In fact, joy can be the lifeblood of ministry.

But for that to be so, we who are in leadership of the larger church need to take responsibility for the church as it is and interceded to make the church as it needs to be.

One of the biggest impediments to joy for parish clergy is isolation. Far too many pastors operate in a vacuum. They toil away in their congregations, with little or no meaningful interaction with their colleagues. They may be a part of community clergy council, but is so many of those, it becomes competitive—who’s got the biggest church? biggest budget? biggest staff? who’s stealing whose members? As Presbyterians, we have a structure that is connectional by nature and design. Used properly, that design should ensure that no clergy ever feel isolated—there will always be someone nearby who understands, who shares in similar work, and who is there to bounce ideas around, share resources, or just listen. Are we as a presbytery making sure our pastors know about each other, have time to talk, and get connected as supports for one another? Are we on staff making ourselves available to our pastors to let them know we are here to help, not just as crisis intervention, or, God forbid, critics? 

A second bugaboo is our own work ethic. It is rare that I come across a pastor who is not overly responsible. I am sure they exist, but by far the model is the over-accountable pastor—someone more than willing to take responsibility for more than is their share. Self-care is something that needs to be taught and lifted as an essential value. Work is good, but it is only a piece of who we are to be—GASP!—there are many more facets of our being that also need to be developed. It is all right to take a break. It is okay to leave the desk cluttered when the day is done. There needs to be a balance in life. It is not an accomplishment to reach retirement and flounder because no other interests apart from work were ever developed which can now be given full attention. Are we at presbytery encouraging sabbath? are we encouraging sabbaticals? are we encouraging balance? I know of one presbytery that offers yoga classes for any pastor; another offers art retreats; another offers writing seminars—see? You can be more than your work!

Third, there is the unique experience of being a clergy family. Children and spouse may be a vital part of a pastor’s congregation, but they may not. This issue carries no moral judgment on said family. A clergy family is like any other family—the members will share some pieces of the family, but there will be other pieces that are as individual as each child or spouse involved. A church is not getting  package deal. The pastor is in deep relationship with a congregation, but the family is not another tool in the pastor’s toolbox. The pastor will need time and space to tend them just as she does any other person, and even more imperatively because there is no greater support, help, and hope than one’s family as one works. As a presbytery, are making sure congregations understand the dynamic of being a clergy family? are we allowing the pastor space to be a part of their own family? are we setting proper parameters on expectations and demands made on clergy families? are we offering help, support, and assistance to the families of our clergy?

Finally, a healthy mind and body makes work easier. In the PC(USA), we can take great pride in the fact that our Board of Pensions offers one of the best health insurance programs going. Yes, there are occasional hiccups as with any plan, but overall, our insurance works to keep body and mind sound, covering well a huge array of treatments, prescriptions, and preventatives. Clergy need to be encouraged to take advantage of these benefits, and offered assistance if the price is too high in some situations. This includes mental healthcare, too. A mind can break or become ill just like a body. There should be no stigma when someone needs psychiatric treatment or psychological counseling—every human being needs help from time to time. We offer access to treatment freely without judgment. Clergy need to be offered safety and security in seeking such help. The job is hard, why make it harder? Offer respite.

There are, of course, many, many other areas to cover, but the essentials are here. Healthy clergy promote healthy churches. A healthy church wants healthy leadership. Our world needs healthy options.

God created a garden where all would be perfected on the Great Sabbath. That begins with health.