Bill Easums Observations

I have been a United Methodist Pastor since 1968 (the United Conference). That’s a long time. Obviously, I love the UMC. Do I Still love it? You bet.  If I were starting over today would I be a United Methodist again? I’d have to give that some serious thought! Does that break my heart? You bet. Let me tell you why? And as I do, keep in mind that what follows is a diagnosis of an illness that needs treating and not a negative rant of disenfranchised person.  If you don’t like the diagnosis, see another doctor and get another opinion but don’t bury your head in the sand and think the illness will go away on its own.

I choose the UMC. It did not choose me. I choose it because I fell in love with John Wesley, read about the sacrifices of the circuit riders, and was befriended by a couple of United Methodist Pastors at a time when I needed a good friend.  I read about Wesley taking it to the streets and the circuit riders doing whatever was necessary to carry the Good News from town to town as the country grew west and lasting on average 18 months before dying from the ordeal. I was so impressed with the passion and quest for the completion of the Great Commission that I gave myself 100% to the call to serve such a great system.

 But over these 40 years I have watched my beloved denomination drift into a deep and potential lethal sickness, and that saddens me.  I can’t begin to chronicle all the warning signs in this post but I do want to share one example that sums up a lot of the sickness I’m observing.

 A couple of days ago I received the following email from a friend (I have doctored it as to safeguard the anonymity of the person who shared it with me.  This friend was a pastor of a UMC but he had never been to seminary. He only had local pastor credentials (a term for second class pastors in the UMC).  The problem was he had grown the church from almost nothing (the UMC tends to give local pastors only small dying churches and saves the good ones for seminary graduates who have put in their time) to a church of almost 1,000.

At this point the DS enters the picture (aka, District Superintendent- the person who appoints pastors to the various churches) said to him, “We are going to have to move you since this church is now too large for local pastor.  We have several Elders (pastors) who have waited a long time for an opportunity to pastor a church this size.” 

Do you see the sickness in this?

First, because the guy hasn’t been to seminary he is not worthy of continuing to pastor the very church he built almost from scratch.  The circuit riders hadn’t been to seminary and they took the UMC from the east coast to the west coast. But now the UMC puts more faith in academic credentialing than demonstrated credentialing. Something smells here. This kind of thinking isn’t an isolated event.  I know another local pastor who has grown a totally dead UMC (the conference was about to see it when another UMC asked if they could try to grow it) to a church of over 3,000 in attendance and the DSs hound him to go back to seminary if he wants to keep his church.

As a side note- prior to 1950 the average Methodist Elder (pastor) had not been to seminar but in the 1960s it was mandated that Elders go to seminary. The UMC has declined every year since 1964. Seems obvious doesn’t it? God honors demonstrated credentials more than academic credentials. Why can’t we see this?

Second, the average UM pastor has been conditioned to bide his or her time taking care of the church they are assigned to, waiting for the big break to open up for them rather than believing if they want to pastor a larger church they will have to grow it themselves.  I have actually heard pastors tell me “If I had a good church I could do great things.” Where did all the sacrificial examples of the circuit riders go? Why does a system like the UMC encourage pastors to wait around till a bigger church opens up for them to be appointed to rather than hunkering down and growing the one they’ve got? The only answer I can think of is the UMC has a deep illness that is draining the life out of it. Why would any pastor want to build a church that would someday be used as a great opportunity for some pastor to move up the declension sheet (the salary ranking of UM clergy)?

So, why this post? To say to all UMC pastors, DSs, and Bishops, WAKE UP!  This kind of thinking is draining the lifeblood out of us.  Pastors, quit waiting for that big break and start growing your church.  DSs quit moving pastors around like academically trained pawns in a timed chess game and start appointing pastors based on their demonstrated credentials like Asbury and Coke did when Methodism swept this entire continent. And Bishops, ah Bishops, how do I say this-quit playing your political games, roll up your sleeves (like some are doing) and role model for us what it means to not just be a witness of social justice but also of the personal redemptive grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. That’s what we need and only that will return us to our once, but now lost, greatness.