Sunday, October 11, 2009

What are we so busy doing?

These thoughts are a follow up to the comment by Wendi Gordon (9/29/09) re: the comments titled “Where have all the clergy gone?” My thanks to Wendi Gordon for helping move this issue further along.
Ms Gordon adds another factor interfering with today’s clergy having time is this reality: “..most clergy today are consistently working at least 50 hours a week and simply don’t have the time to add another meeting….”
Her point about long hours appears to be true from my observations. Clergy do work many hours a week and, often, at times that significantly interfere with their obligations to families and selves!
However, it seems that has always been the case. Surveys from the 1960s and 1970s indicate clergy were putting in greater than 60 hours a week – and these figures were often cited as de facto evidence of their dedication to ministry.
That raises the question – What are we so busy doing?
That question reminded me of an article, I believe it was by Robert Leslie that addressed the mental health of clergy. [It was included in Wayne Oates’ book on The Minister’s Own Mental Health.] Leslie identified five roles that clergy must perform: Pastor, Priest, Counselor, Educator and Administrator. A survey of clergy asked for ranking by 3 questions:
Which roles are most important?
Which roles are most enjoyable for you?
How do these roles occupy your time?
The answers to the first: Pastor, Educator, Priest, Counselor, Administrator.
The answers to the second: Pastor, Counselor, Educator, Priest, Administrator.
The answers to the third: Administrator, Priest, Educator, Counselor, Pastor.
Is it any different in 2009?
What really drives our “busyness”. [An old joke tells of a young priest who, one day, sees Jesus at the window. He wants to know what to do and searches for help. His calls are passed along up the line: Monsignor, Bishop, Cardinal and then the Pope. The Pope answers – “Look busy.”]
Are we reading our members correctly as to how our time is prioritized?
And, if the answers to question # 3 are still so completely different than # 1 and # 2, might this be some clue as to the cause of so much depression amongst the clergy?
I look forward to your reactions.