As many of you know while I waited for first call I interviewed pastors, seminarians, and ELCA officials about waiting for call and being bi-vocational with the intention of creating a booklet about these two subjects.
I collected a fair bit of information and I thought through things a bit—but I quickly realized I alone was not up to the task. Luckily for me I live in a world where we don’t have to do everything alone—we aren’t Atlas, holding up the whole world on our shoulders alone. So, it is my hope that this document will be created through “crowd-sourcing.” That is, a group of people will get together remotely (in this case through a facebook group) and write this document collectively.
This group’s goal is to create a document for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America that will help people waiting for first call and bi-vocational pastors wait and work better. We will do this by sifting through the information we collect, brainstorming, discussion, arguing, and eventually creating this document. Then we will pass this document on to ELCA higher-ups, adopt it at Synod Assemblies, and forward it on to Seminary Seniors and bi-vocational pastors who are looking for such a resource.
If you would like to be part of this task simply become a member of the group here:
Here is what the document currently looks like:
While We Wait, As We Work: Advice and Recommendations About Waiting for First Call, and Bi-vocationality
While We Wait, As We Work: Table of Contents
Preamble
While We Wait: Advice
While We Wait: Recommendations
What we mean by bivocationality
As We Work: Advice
As We Work: Recommendations
Conclusion
1. Preamble:
Whereas, we watched many of the pastoral candidates the year previous to us wait over a year for a call
Whereas, there seems to be no central place for those waiting for call to go for advice
Whereas, it can feel like the actual realities and stresses that waiting for call puts on the lives of soon to be first call pastors are not understood by congregations, synods, regions, and the ELCA as a whole
Whereas, bi-vocationality is much vaunted but little understood
Whereas, there are few resources to help ELCA pastors navigate bi-vocational ministry
Whereas, the church has not institutionally prepared itself for a more bi-vocational future
We bring forth this document—While We Wait, As We Work: Advice and Recommendations About Waiting for First Call, and Bi-vocationality.
Contained within is advice and best practices for individuals waiting for first call and practicing bi-vocationality and recommendations for the various expressions of church.
2. While We Wait: Advice
This section will contain the distilled collective wisdom of previous pastors who have waited for call. This is directed toward those who currently wait.
3. While We Wait: Recommendations
This section will contain recommendations for all the expressions of the church regarding helping/managing people waiting first call.
4. What we mean by bi-vocationality
This section will define the fuzzy term bi-vocationality both theologically and practically.
5. As We Work: Advice
This section will contain the distilled collective wisdom of bivocational pastors.
6. As We Work: Recommendations
This section will contain recommendations for all the expressions of the church regarding helping/managing people waiting first call.
7. Conclusion
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I hope by the time we are done it looks radically different and radically better.
Peace,
Chris
