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Other Tasks of Ordained Elders

© Susan Padezanin

Ordained elders are involved in a number of other tasks other than serving as pastors of local churches. Some six hundred in the United States are district superintendents and approximately fifty are active bishops. But in addition to these persons in the direct line of authority, there are several thousand in what the Discipline refers to as “Appointments Extending the Ministry of The United Methodist Church.” These clergy are working in a variety of tasks to which they are appointed by the bishop. These tasks fall into several categories.

The first category is when an elder is appointed “within the connectional structures of United Methodism.” This category includes district superintendents, conference council on ministries staff, and others who are clearly within our denominational structures. It also includes clergy appointed to ecumenical agencies.

The second and third categories are the appointment of persons under endorsement by the General Board of Higher Education and Ministry and by the General Board of Global Ministries. This includes military, institutional, and other chaplains, and missionaries.

A fourth category is “appointments beyond the ministry usually extended through the local United Methodist Church and other institutions” referred to in the first two categories. Appointments in this group require approval by the bishop and the board of ordained ministry. This category of appointments tends to become the farthest removed from the appointive power of the bishop and the effective discipline of the annual conference. The authority here is so broad and vague that almost any kind of work may be involved and it is not hard to show that “ministry” is a part of almost any occupation.

These are the categories of “Appointments Extending the Ministry of The United Methodist Church” as spelled out in the Discipline. While it is clear that all such persons remain under the appointive authority of the bishop, they tend to become less subject to that authority as the years go by.

It is feared that one of the potential dangers in broadening the field of appointments beyond the local church is in so diluting the concept of what it means to be an ordained elder that the ministry of “Service, Word, Sacrament, and Order” loses its significance. In addition, the possibility exists that large numbers of elders in these special appointments could be determining the program of the annual conference, which the pastors and lay members of the conference would have to finance and carry out.

It should be added that this process is a source of great strength for the Church. All the chaplains in military institutions are in their tasks under this appointment and they are fulfilling a great need. It is impossible to assess the tremendous influence that our clergy have had as faculty members and administrators of our Church-related colleges and universities. This appointment has been one of the ways the Church has ministered to the world and not simply to the people within the walls of the church building. Moreover, when clergy in these appointments take their responsibilities seriously, they can be of tremendous help to the conference and to their district superintendent in the regular work of the church.