Pastor Angie's In-Spire-ations June 2018
It’s nice to be loved. Thank you!! I say that because the question that continues to be on everyone’s mind is, “Does ordination mean we will be losing you?” You can relax. Deacons are NOT moved around like Elders. Elders are the ones you will find as lead/senior pastors and they are the ones who travel from church to church over time. It is rare for a Deacon to hold a senior pastor role, but there are a few.
When Deacons hold a primary appointment OUTSIDE of the church, like I do, we are also required to hold a secondary appointment INSIDE of a local church. So…Common Grace Ministries is my primary appointment and Trinity is my secondary. Common Grace Ministries had to be approved by the Bishop and the Cabinet as my placement. When I sought a secondary appointment at Trinity, I had to go before your staff parish team (now your leadership team) for approval. Once approved at that level, both Pastor Chris and I had to write a letter to the Conference Superintendent requesting my secondary appointment be with Trinity. He had to take that to the cabinet and they gave me the final approval for both of my appointments.
As long as my ministry is making a difference at Trinity…being fruitful…I can remain here. If at any time, I choose to leave or you ask me to leave, then we would take that to the Leadership Team and Conference Superintendent. I would then have to find another secondary appointment to replace of Trinity. The other thing that could happen is that the Bishop could ask me to serve at another level, like the district or conference level as my primary appointment, but that would be in place of Common Grace Ministries, and I could remain at Trinity as my secondary appointment. I have no expectation of that, it’s just another scenario.
I have also been asked if people should call me reverend or pastor now. I have had the title “Reverend” since my commissioning in 2015. All clergy (both Elders and Deacons) are licensed at the time of commissioning, but we serve under the supervision of seasoned clergy during our 3-year Residence in Ministry. “Pastor” is also appropriate and if you feel the need to refer to me with a title, I prefer that over Reverend. I generally only use Rev. for professional communications. Elders and Deacons are not referred to as Elder Chris or Deacon Angie. Those two words refer to the “Order” to which we are ordained. Our ordinations are equal in status; we are simply called to two different orders within the church. Elder and Deacon are the only two orders into which United Methodists are ordained. I hope that clears up a little more and sets your minds at ease. If nothing else, you will be the most well-versed congregation in the state regarding the Order of Deacons.
Again…thank you for making me feel loved and giving me the courage to grow in your midst. We have connected, I am growing along with you and we are serving together. It doesn’t get much better than that! God bless you and keep your lights shining!
Pastor Angie