POMPOUS CLERGY SPELL DOOM
In the history of clergy, one of the biggest reasons for utter failure has
been the history of pomposity.
What I mean is, (pom-pos-i-te, 1 the quality of being pompous;) which
causes clergy to walk around with their noses in the air - as if they were
better than normal mortals.
By mortal, (mor-tal, to die, be worn out) I mean, people like you and me
who have to scramble for a living 10 to 12 hours a day and don't have time
to study the holy books and develop a pious countenance. Also mortals are
the people who don't have time to brush and buff ourselves, so we always
look slightly ajar when we leave for work in the morning.
Clergy, on the other hand, have the luxury of skipping into their church
offices at midmorning and knocking off for a nap shortly after lunch. They
visit the hospitals looking for sickly people, then return home for more
reading of the sacred manuscripts. In the evening they make appearances and
go to meetings. And always they look darn good and pious.
This, I believe, is causing a great erosion of members from the religions of the
world.
At a recent Muslim gathering, I noticed that the fellow leading the
prayers was dressed exactly like the people praying with him. He had scooted
away from his daily job to lead prayers at the mosque. When prayers ended, he rushed back to his work without even combing his hair.
His followers seemed comfortable with him. There was a little joking, some
talk about repairing the mosque and a little concern about a meeting coming
up on the weekend. Obviously, what we had in this instance was a
partnership. All the piety was not concentrated in one individual.
But in some Christian churches, it's like God swoops down first thing in the
morning and spray paints the pastor with pompous tones. Then all day long
the lofty parson can rule the constituents with gentle splendor.
I wonder, for instance, why preachers have to dress differently from the
rest of us poor souls. Most of us wear a pair of pants or skirt and a shirt.
I've noticed that preachers often appear in public with those ridiculous
clerical collars that make them look like executioners.
The result is that some preachers are so set apart that regular people don't
want to be in their company. It's too bad, because many of these clergy are
wonderful people.
I'm also concerned about some clergy who pose as the font of all true
wisdom. When it comes down to a real crisis in a little church
body, if the clergy can't find the answers, the people will blame them for
failure. In essence, they've blown their own cover. If they fail to solve
all the problems, the jig is up and they are going to get the left foot of
fellowship. In other words, they'll get kicked out of the pulpit.
The ultimate truth is, churches and clergy are facing a significant
crisis. There is no special piety in being called to oversee a dying
institution. When it comes to the push of life, today's clergy are working
stiffs like all of us.
Clark D. Morphew
Posted 1-30-02