Neither Clergy nor Laity-- a NT Vision of Ministry

Ben Witherington: Neither Clergy nor Laity-- a NT Vision of Ministry

... The Greek word laos from which we get the term laity simply means the people of God. It is used this way over and over again in the NT, sometimes of Israel sometimes of those who are in Christ, but in neither case is it used to refer to a particular kind or class of believing persons who are set apart from the 'clergy'. And about that word clergy, it is not a Biblical word at all.  Webster's tells us it comes to us from the Medieval French word clerc (13th century), but in fact ultimately the term comes from the Greek κλῆρος - klēros, "a lot", "that which is assigned by lot" (allotment) or metaphorically, "inheritance".  So it partially has a Biblical root, but no persons in the NT are called kleroi to distinguish a class of ministers.    And there is a good reason for this. ...

...  Let us concentrate first on the fact that God gave certain persons to the church--- apostles, prophets, teachers, and so on.  And no only so, Paul means that there is something of a hierarchial order of leadership.  He says first apostles, second prophets, and so on.  Just because we are all called to do some sort of ministry doesn't mean that we are all called to do the same tasks, or that we have all been equally gifted to do any and all tasks or that we are all called to be leaders. This is false.   There will always be leaders and followers, but all of God's people are gifted and graced to do something.  ...

... What about the distinction between part-time and full-time ministry with the laity doing the former and the clergy the latter?   There is certainly nothing in the Bible that supports such a notion, and part of the problem is the way one envisions ministry.  Raising children in a godly way is a ministry.  Helping people with their finances is a ministry.  Building homes, making clothes, selling groceries is a ministry.   Any good deed, anything that can be done to the glory of God and for the edification of God's people and the world is a ministry.  Our problem is that we have defined ministry too narrowly, and then jealousy fought over who gets to do what.  

Frankly I have run into too many ordained clergy who think: 1) it is their job to do most all the ministry (though they complain bitterly they are over-taxed and under-appreciated); and 2) instead of "equipping the saints for ministry"  they have in fact disabled, discontinued, even destroyed the ministry of those who are not, like them, ordained clergy.  What is all too often put in the place of every member a minister is the pastor-American idol syndrome, the pastor super-star model, which feeds on America's love of the cult of personality. ...

... In my view, every single Christian needs Christian training, and all the more so now as our culture and even our churches become more and more Biblically illiterate.  But hear me clearly--- we are not called to dumb down the Gospel, we are called to boil up the people.  We are not called to put the Gospel cookies on the bottom shelf, we are called to tease people's minds into active thought so that their reach will extend further than their current grasp.  ...

Great post!

Comments

[Travis Greene]

Phenomenal. Hauerwas comments on the fact that the early church replaced Judas by casting lots, and asks what kind of community you would need in order to choose your leadership (somewhat) at random?

[Peggy]

Thanks for this, Michael. As I said in the comments on Tea Party/Emerging, you are my hero, dude.

Love that thought, Travis....

[Paul Becker]

I would agree that the term clergy is not appropriate. I also agree that there are pastors who think that it is their job to do most of the ministry and that they fail to equip the saints for ministry. However, failure in the church doesn't stop there.

Whenever someone in a system is over-functioning, others in that same system are likely to be under-functioning. The false clergy/laity distinction is just as convenient for the "laity" who enjoy the effects of vicarious living through their over-functioning pastor. Certainly, the codependency creates an outcome that is less than biblically desirable.

I have witnessed situations where a pastor "wakes up" to the Ephesians 4 job description to equip the saints and... that awakening was met with resistance by congregants. And to be completely fair, I have seen times when a congregant's application to the priesthood of all believers has been trashed their pastor.

Codependency is mutually convenient to all parties involved. Certainly, the pastor has a key role and responsibility for correcting the codependency. Faithful congregants have a role in holding their pastors' feet to the fire. In presbyterian polity, pastors have additional contexts for accountability... elders and pastors on session and the presbytery.

[Michael W. Kruse]

Codependency is indeed the name of the game.