The future of the PC(USA) is being reformed by God.

And it is as limitless as the holy imagination that we vow to practice when we are ordained. 

That’s it. That’s the article that sparked this response. But I’m going to go on, because The Outlook started a conversation that is worth having by using a very click-baity headline: “The future of the PC(USA) is pastor-less.” And I’ve decided to be here for it.

What I read in that piece was a creative, hopeful way that one Presbytery is seeking to support churches that still maintain vital ministries in their community without having a full-time installed pastor. And that’s an article worth reading. Every Presbytery should be finding creative, hopeful ways to support their churches.

The headline, however, left a lot to be desired, because it answers a question I didn’t think any of us needed answered. Do we as a denomination believe in the priesthood of all believers? Yes. We do. It’s why Ministers of Word and Sacrament take the same ordination vows as Ruling Elders. It’s why we train and commission lay pastors. It’s why both Ministers and Ruling Elders serve and vote on the Presbytery, Synod, and General Assembly levels. It’s why we pass communion plates through our pews, each member ministering to the other, whispering to their neighbor, “This is the bread of life. This is the cup of salvation.” Can the future of the PC(USA) include more lay leadership and still be faithful? Of course it can.

But that doesn’t mean the PC(USA) shouldn’t be asking better questions. Starting with this one: do we as a denomination continue to value theologically educated and ethically trained pastoral leadership? That is a yes or no question, and most calls I hear for nuance are really calls to justify avoiding the next question. Do we as a denomination believe that, because a person or community cannot afford something means they do not deserve it and should, therefore, go without it?

These questions go hand-in-hand. Because if we do value theologically educated and ethically trained pastoral leadership, and we do not believe that a person or community’s inability to afford something means they should go without it, then the only faithful response is to help churches who are struggling to call theologically educated and ethically trained pastors. (It sounds like this is the exact effort being made in the Presbytery in Kansas, highlighted in the original article, which is funding a Presbytery level position for a Minister of Word and Sacrament to resource churches in this exact position.)

A decorative image of Pastor Allison Unroe, a white woman with dark hair, wearing a face mask, a stole, and a black dress, leading worship.

Pastor Allison leading worship.

If we do not value theologically educated and ethically trained pastoral leadership, then we need to change our ordination process. It is unfaithful to affirm that God calls certain people to specific leadership that demands a full-time three year degree, a psychological evaluation, Clinical Pastoral Education, ministry internship(s), applications and interviews for approval to be under care of the Committee on Preparation for Ministry, then more applications and interviews for approval to be certified ready to receive a call, and passing five ordination exams if the Church has no intention of honoring that call. It’s unfaithful, and it’s also poor stewardship. What are we doing pouring all of these limited resources into Ministers of Word and Sacrament if we don’t need, want, or value them or their call? As the internet says, make it make sense.

Furthermore, if we do not believe that a person or community’s inability to afford something means they should go without it, then rural churches struggling to support installed ministers offer an opportunity for the PC(USA) to practice our faith and provide care for people who may not be able to afford it. I say this as a pastor in a rural-ish context and as a person who has deep familial and cultural roots in a small, rural, Appalachian town. When the rest of America is fine with poor, rural communities losing trained, professional medical workers, attorneys, and teachers, the only way for the Church to be in but not of this world is to say, “This stops with us. Our rural siblings deserve the same care that their suburban and urban siblings have access to.” These communities have become accustomed to abandonment. It will be a shame if the church contributes to such disparity by just accepting that, since every other trained profession is leaving rural America, clergy will, too.

The final question for us to ask calls us to say the quiet part out loud. PC(USA) clergy are increasingly women (of the 218 people ordained in 2017… 122 were women and 96 men), yet employed clergy are primarily men (nearly three-quarters of those serving as PC(USA) pastors or co-pastors are men). We know this because we track it closely. We issue regular reports outlining in detail the pay disparity between women clergy and their male counterparts (almost $10,000 in 2022). We see that “Women outnumbered men as associate pastors – with 405 women and 316 men – but the men still out-earned the women in that position, with males making an average of $64,463 and women $62,910.”*

So before we accept the blanket assertion that churches (rural or otherwise) simply cannot support a called and installed pastor, we would do well to ask a third crucial question: what do we as a denomination value more— theologically educated and ethically trained pastoral leadership, or white, straight, cis male leadership? Our professions of faith say one thing, and our statistics say another.

Faithful growth is not just an increased budget or higher Sunday worship attendance. It’s also expanded understanding of the Holy and greater appreciation for the Divine. It’s spiritual disciplines practiced more intentionally and hearts opened more spiritually. It’s a closer relationship to God and better understanding of scripture. Proverbs says, “As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.” Does that not mean that part of the work of the Church is to dig deep into the faith we practice by facing these clergy employment and pay trends head on? A Brief Statement of Faith says that, “In a broken and fearful world the Spirit gives us courage to unmask idolatries in Church and culture.”

That means that the future of the PC(USA) may be pastor-less. Or building-less to free up funds for use in ministry and service. Or Sunday-morning-less to navigate cultural shifts in timing and schedule. Maybe it means the future of the PC(USA) is particular-congregation-less to accommodate more parish/neighborhood based ministry as opposed to multiple tiny churches saturating a community. Or denomination-less to encourage a unified Christian witness in the connectional, universal Church we profess in our Apostle’s Creed. I vote for a future of the PC(USA) that is idol-less, and that will only be possible if…

The future of the PC(USA) is being reformed by God.

And it is as limitless as the holy imagination that we vow to practice when we are ordained.


*See the Board of Pensions report for more on these statistics at https://pres-outlook.org/2018/10/board-of-pensions-releases-data-showing-benefits-trends-gender-disparities/

“And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, (the magi) left for their own country by another road.” Matthew 2:12, NRSV

After successfully following the star to meet the Christ Child in Bethlehem, the magi were supposed to return to Herod’s palace in Jerusalem to report on the child’s whereabouts. At least, this is what the imperial puppet king had ordered them to do. But the magi are considered wise for a reason: as seekers of truth, they were sensitive to the subconscious insights that can surface when the thinking brain is subdued by sleep. They took seriously a foreboding dream and followed an alternative route home. In doing so, they effectively refused to cooperate with a state-sanctioned genocide targeting children. 

Read more

On Thursday, May 23, 2023, Governor Henry McMaster of South Carolina signed into law the “Fetal Heartbeat and Protection from Abortion Act.” In fact, Governor McMaster called a special legislative session just for this bill. This is significant because a near-total abortion ban was defeated three times in the South Carolina Senate during the 2022-2023 legislative session. Five female senators in South Carolina made national news when they introduced 1,000 amendments and filibustered the final attempt. They thought their voices had been heard until this special session was called.  Read more

A photo of wooden nativity set with undetailed faces, surrounded by a golden ribbon and sitting on top of burlap cloth

As we settle into the darkness of the changing of season, we are also being encouraged to prepare our hearts and minds for the coming of the Light of the World as the Advent season commences. The juxtaposition of looking for the light in the midst of the darkness always brings a tension to this time in the liturgical church calendar. How are we supposed to look for the light when the daylight fades with each passing hour? Read more

The founding fathers meant for religious freedom to stand as a fundamental principle of evolved civic life.  But in reality, church-state separation has had the unintended effect of protecting and enabling pedophilic male priests and endangering female clergy at the hands of abusive parishioners.  This two-sided coin of silencing abuse within church culture reveals a deeply patriarchal current that runs through not only conservative Catholic parishes but also highly progressive Protestant denominations.

Read more

Young woman studying, thinking, “What will this cost me?” The background is purple and the color scheme is various shades of purple and peach/pink. The girl is wearing headphones and sitting at a desk with a book open.n

On August 24, 2022, President Joe Biden announced his long awaited plan to forgive some student loan debt. It was a promise he made to would-be voters almost three years ago during his campaign. Throughout his presidency, various talking heads and Twitter hot-takers have wondered when he would finally do it. 

Well, he did it, and the reaction was just as predictable as his presidency.  Read more

35 year-old full-time working mom with young children seeks other working moms to form tight-knit friendship group. Loves travel, good food, reading books, going to the movies/theater productions, and being outdoors—especially near water. Must enjoy iced coffee, Rosé, and have a slightly irreverent sense of humor. Must send silly texts, make time for lunches, errands, or nights out, and check-in about the ups and downs of life. Will do the same. Email if you think we could be besties!

Read more

Since the leaking of Justice Alito’s draft opinion, I have been utterly worn down. Yes, there is that old ache of dread in my bones that wonders what will become of our world – one that has been nearly non-stop since March 2020. Much of it has also been from watching people spar in pro-life versus pro-choice debates – as if abortion rights were a spectator sport. But abortion is no sport, spectator or otherwise. It is medical care.

 

Like any medical care, people choose to pursue abortion for varied, complex reasons – so much so that any legislation limiting abortion access fails to account for the nuance of a decision to abort. The decision whether to terminate a pregnancy requires wisdom. And though not all those seeking abortions identify as women, I want to center women in my writing here.

Read more

 

The words of Mark Mathabane’s book Kaffir Boy jumped off the page at me. I read of sexual assault, police brutality, and generational trauma at the hands of the ruling class in South Africa’s apartheid government. “Good thing that never happens here,” I thought to myself. Now, I recognize my privilege and innocence in my fascination with this book.

 

I was reading Kaffir Boy as a part of my summer reading for 9th Grade Literature. It was paired with To Kill a Mockingbird, a classic for rising high school students. However, by the time I was halfway through Kaffir Boy, my parents received correspondence that I was no longer required to read it. A parent had complained and reported the inappropriateness of the book to the principal. I was hurt; I enjoyed the book. I didn’t know how to name my fascination with the book then, but looking back on it, I saw in Kaffir Boy a world that was so unfamiliar to me, yet a world that I needed to learn about. The pain of the author was on full display: a pain I needed to witness and would have never seen with my own eyes.

Read more

In the church calendar, Ordinary Time spans the Sunday after Pentecost through the Sunday before Advent begins. It’s the longest stretch of time in the church calendar. It is also the time when many members of the clergy are able to vacation, attend professional conferences, and reconnect with family and colleagues.

 

This year is different. These ordinary times are not so ordinary as we again hear reports of rising COVID case numbers coupled with baby formular shortages, food recalls, and rising gas prices. In these not so ordinary times, pastors and clergy are finding it more and more difficult to ward off burnout and cling to hope. There is no chance for pastors to proclaim a “return to normalcy” or to proclaim a “post-Covid” time. This is a new reality and one that isn’t in any way ordinary.

Read more