Churches and ministries over-extend themselves and then have to make cuts. In the recent economic downturn it has become even more pronounced.
I have found that lay offs and severance pay are similar i the Christian world as they are in the "secular" world. And that saddens me.
* A pastor's position is cut by 50% and he decides to negotiate with the elders for a "buy out." He will resign if they will pay severance for 6 months.
* A pastor is removed by his denomination for theological error and is given many months severance pay. He moves down the road and starts a church within 2 months. If my math is correct, that pastor has TWO salaries for a bunch of months.
Some years ago a former employee threatened to sue the church where I was serving. We all signed papers that we would not discuss the matter with anyone for a number of years. She received a settlement of several months pay.
Another employee (a female) hired a lawyer to determine if she had been under-paid and if a case could be made for sexual discrimination. She HAD been under-paid, she had a case! (why would a church underpay someone due to their sexuality?) The church agreed to pay her several months salary and health benefits in exchange for her agreeing to never sue the church.
Are we having fun yet? If you are still reading this post you may think that I am totally crazy or that Christian institutions are pretty messed up. Perhaps both is true.
The people who I mentioned above all believe in Jesus, and the power of His Kingdom. Some are Reformed, other Pentecostal, some believe that in the end ALL are saved because Jesus said "I am making all things new."
If in fact he is making all things new, then he has a lot of work to do with us bumbling Christian workers in how we treated one another in the midst of institution.
No comments:
Post a Comment