It has been awhile since I've written about my concerns regarding the ordination of bivocational ministers. For several years we have seen an increase in the number of bivocational ministers serving in churches of most denominations. As church leaders speculate about the changes churches are going to see post-Covid one of the things often discussed is that the number of bivocational ministers will increase even more. Some are saying that in the next few years we will see a tremendous number of ministers leaving the ministry. Many of them will be replaced by bivocational pastors, and yet many denominations and judicatories have not changed their ordination policies in decades. When a denomination tells its bivocational pastors they cannot be ordained because they lack a certain educational degree it is telling them that they are second-class citizens in that denomination. It's little wonder why these pastors and the churches they lead feel little connected to the denomination and why these churches often provide so little support to their denomination.
The denomination in which I serve, like many others, require a Master of Divinity degree before the pastor can be ordained. We do allow local churches to ordain pastors who do not have that degree, but that ordination may or may not be recognized if the pastor changes churches or moves to a different region. This requirement was started, I suppose, to raise the level of education among its clergy. While it did accomplish that goal it also drove a wedge between the denomination and its bivocational clergy. I should note that my own ordination is a local church ordination. At the time my church ordained me I had no education beyond high school. What is ironic is that I now have a bachelor's degree, a Master of Arts in Religion and a Doctor of Ministry degree, but I still do not have that required MDiv degree. I still do not meet the educational standard. I must also point out that after seven years of ministry in our denomination we can request full ordination without that degree. However, I never made that request. Personally, I am honored that the church I served, who knew me better than anyone else, saw fit to ordain me to the Gospel ministry. Their affirmation was enough for me.
Setting aside my own personal experience, my primary concern is the relationship that is going to exist between denominations and the bivocational clergy serving their churches if the denominations continue to send the message that without a particular degree that their clergy is not entitled to ordination recognition. I believe there is still value in churches being part of a denomination. During my 20 year pastorate my church and I benefited a great deal from our relationship with our denomination. We were supported in ways that a small, independent church would not have known. Yet, I know that not all bivocational ministers felt that way towards their denomination, and part of that had to do with the ordination issue.
I don't know how many denominational and judicatory leaders read this blog, but I want to say to those who do that without your bivocational ministers you would not be able to do some of the things you are doing. They are providing valuable ministry to your churches, and they need to be recognized for that. If you haven't reviewed your ordination policies in a while, especially if you do not ordain persons who do not meet your educational standards, I encourage you to conduct such a review. I can almost guarantee you that the number of churches you represent who will seek bivocational leadership in the near future is going to increase. If you do not begin to recognize their efforts and offer them opportunities to be ordained, you are going to see many of these churches pull away from active membership and participation in your denomination. This is already happening, and it's going to increase unless chances are made.
Pastors, if you agree with my concern I suggest you forward this post to your judicatory or denominational leadership. Ask them to review their ordination standards and to provide a path by which bivocational leadership can be ordained.
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