Resisting Church Authority Abuse 3: Church Member Voice
Today we clarify how the authority that rests in the local church is activated. Some feel that they have no practical voice in the operation of the church. But you may have much more influence than you have thought.
A Restraining Influence
Before turning to that, I want to address a certain complaint, namely, that the Church Manual is some kind of lawyerly priestcraft designed to strengthen the power of the church organization while taking power away from members. Exactly contrary to that, the Church Manual in practice is possibly the most important tool in the Church to limit the power and authority of church officers.
We do have to be realistic. The Church Manual is an imperfect document. Members and workers may interpret it incorrectly. Designing persons can misuse the Manual, attempting to bring about private agendas or to secure to themselves illegitimate power. Some will seek to ignore it. Nevertheless, consider a principle from one of the most useful Christian books I own, titled, The Great Controversy,
So long as Jesus remains man’s intercessor in the sanctuary above, the restraining influence of the Holy Spirit is felt by rulers and people. It still controls to some extent the laws of the land. Were it not for these laws, the condition of the world would be much worse than it now is. While many of our rulers are active agents of Satan, God also has His agents among the leading men of the nation. The enemy moves upon his servants to propose measures that would greatly impede the work of God; but statesmen who fear the Lord are influenced by holy angels to oppose such propositions with unanswerable arguments. Thus a few men will hold in check a powerful current of evil. The opposition of the enemies of truth will be restrained that the third angel’s message may do its work. (pp. 610-611)
So the Holy Spirit in measure controls the laws of the land and those laws exert a restraining influence. In like manner, the Holy Spirit in measure controls the content of the Church Manual. The Church Manual exerts a restraining influence on the exercise of authority in the Church. Were it not for the Church Manual the condition of the Church would be much worse than it now is. So, the Church Manual is a means by which the Holy Spirit works. We should think long and hard before we oppose the Manual.
Trust in the Church
There is an additional argument favoring the use of the Church Manual. No church organization can long function if participants feel they cannot trust it. Actions demonstrating faithfulness to shared values create trust. The Church Manual provides a denomination-wide standard by which the trustworthiness of the organized group can be measured.
Simply put, if a group by its actions demonstrates a refusal to carry out its mission in accordance with its own rules and procedures, how can it be trusted with the lives, resources, and instruction of its members? The Manual sets up expectations and creates an organization-wide standard for fair process. If the organization disregards its own standard, it becomes the destroyer of trust in itself. The existence of the Church Manual itself creates an urgent incentive that its plans and procedures be followed.
Some have derided the Church Manual and parliamentary procedures as a Roman Catholic plot to take power from members and give it to a controlling priesthood. Actually, the churches decision to employ universally accepted procedures, checks, and balances is one of our strongest protections against arbitrary and authoritarian misuse of power. The impulse of power in the Papacy is top-down, while the impulse of power in Protestantism is from the bottom-up. Authority rests in the membership.
Membership and Voice
Let’s step back now and go for a big picture view now on how the authority that rests in the membership is transformed into facts within the church structure.
Every member of the Church has a voice in choosing officers of the church. Remember, “authority rests in the membership.” Every church member, either directly or through representatives, has a voice. The Church Manual says this on page 28.
This echoes the procedure of the early church described at Acts 6:1-7. In the rapidly expanding work at that time, new duties had come to light, and the church needed to appoint more officers. The apostles called a meeting of the church membership, the membership set criterion and devised means for making the selection, the group agreed, officers were chosen, they were ordained, and the Church began to have deacons.
Put simply, every member of the church has a voice and that voice is expressed in the Church either by direct vote (in business meetings or “miniature”-business meetings), or via indirect means (elected officers and elected representatives).
The church “in business” is every occasion when the church membership votes directly on a matter. The church “in business” actually meets much more often than it may seem.
Board meetings may meet 11 or 12 times a year. Meanwhile, the church in business is required to have at least one regular business session in a year, and along with that, in effect, meets dozens of times to
Vote in new members at baptisms and professions of faith
Vote in new members via membership transfers
Have first and second readings for church officer nominations
Elect delegates for constituency meetings
Elect organizing and nominating committee members
You heard me correctly. Remember, voice is through either direct voting or indirectly through representation. Direct voting is the direct expression of voice. We call those “business meetings” of the church.
We usually think of a business meeting as a once a year meeting of the whole church to hear reports or decide some substantial spending issue. But every time your congregation, at the beginning of the church service has a first or second reading or votes a membership transfer, you are acting “in business.” The church budget, for example, is recommended by the church board but only finally approved by the church meeting in business session. (p. 139)
But all the occasions listed above are, in actuality, miniature-business meetings. We rarely, if ever, enter into substantive debate over those decisions while we are gathered primarily to worship God in a church service. This is a reason why, before the worship service proper begins, there is a brief announcement period. That is because as the denomination so rapidly grew, it was necessary to remain well-organized, update church officer appointments, and have an orderly record of memberships as they shifted from congregation to congregation. Although we transact a minimum of decisions in those votes, those effectively are “mini”-church business meetings.
The Church Manual requires every congregation to hold a larger such meeting at least once a year (p. 134). This is because in the Church the authority rests in the membership and as a denomination the membership has determined that the voice of the members should be expressed both through elected representatives, and directly. In the church business meeting the members vote directly on matters. Who calls a business meeting?
The pastor, or the board in consultation, with and support of the pastor, calls the meeting. Business meetings should be announced a week or two in advance at the regular Sabbath worship service, with detail as to time and place… The business meeting has authority over the board and may delegate responsibilities to the board in addition to those already assigned by the Church Manual. (Church Manual, p. 134)
Mini-Business Meeting Mode
When your congregation is in “mini-business meeting” mode, the church is obliged to respect your direct vote in a matter.
Let’s say, for example, that your congregation has not held a business meeting for more than a year, and you have asked the pastor or church board for a business meeting to be held but it has not been held. In such a circumstance, one might do the following.
In the pre service time when the church is gathered and in the announcements period, without interrupting another process, one might rise to seek the floor while the elder as at the podium, and clearly and respectfully state to the elder on the platform, “Brother Elder,” then wait for the elder (the chairperson) to recognize him. Then the member might state, “Brother elder, this church has not held a church business meeting for 16 months and the members are entitled to it. I move that a business meeting of this church be held, on a date next month, to be determined by the pastor or church board and announced on one of the next two sabbaths. I so move. Brother elder, could you please ask if there is a second?”
A motion has been made and at this point the elder, who is actually chairing a business meeting, if the motion is seconded, he could call for a vote. It is best not to engage in a extended debate period in such a setting; try to reserve that activity mostly for a meeting devoted to the item.
If the elder or pastor resists, you could say something like, “Brother Elder, the direct voting of members on a matter was sought just now (perhaps on a membership transfer or an officer appointment), and that clearly indicates that we are engaged in direct action as a voting body. Respectfully, your duty is to ask if anyone in this body seconds the motion.”
Exercise restraint with this approach, but it can be useful in especially in circumstances where the pastor has resisted following proper order. Holdings business meeting at least once a year is an example of proper order.
Kindness, Respect, Unity-Seeking
Some persons seem determined to come into an adversarial relationship with the pastor, the conference, the elders, or authority figures in the church. Exercise restraint and avoid those approaches if at all possible. Do not assume these persons to be enemies. You may even find them to share interests and concerns similar to your own. Many things are possible if you respectfully ask. Start by asking privately. Be courteous and respectful. Try an approach where you are teaming with them toward a common goal rather than adversarial approach.
We have laid some foundations in these first three presentations. In the Church, authority is shared; the church board and even the church in business does not have unlimited authority. We will talk about that. But next time, I intend to address the role of the pastor in relation to the church board. His powers are very strictly limited. I guarantee you will be surprised!
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Larry Kirkpatrick serves as pastor of the Muskegon and Fremont MI Seventh-day Adventist churches. His website is GreatControversy.org and YouTube channel is “Larry the guy from Michigan.” Every morning Larry publishes a new devotional video.