200 thoughts on “Super Pastors (Who Are So Much Better Than You Mere Mortals)”
I’ve been on both sides of the pulpit (recovering pastor now), and after realizing this vid wasn’t a spoof, I was embarrassed! It was such self-serving pabulum I almost hurled! The idea that a man expects to be lauded for doing what’s required of all Christians is absurd. When I was pastor, I drove trucks, worked in radio and newspapers, and owned a small business. The guys pictured in the vid hardly got their hands dirty, and their nice clean white shirts were never smudged by brushing up against daily life in a fallen world. I will say this about the ministry: churches are absolutely brutal to pastors. That said, I can honestly report that I have never, ever, seen the regard toward me depicted on the video by either the pulpit or the pew. That’s how you know it’s fictional.
You know, this video is creepy in the way that all those Hyles preachers yelling how much they love their preacher is creepy. These guys would swear up and down that they are not gay, and yet this entire video is nothing but a young male elaborately worshiping an older male. The women in the video, the few that are shown, are worn out or used up. The preacher’s family itself (you know, the heterosexual relationship stuff) is referred to (briefly) as something that must be put in a secondary role. I don’t think they even appear, and the wife’s role as the comfort and support of her husband is not mentioned. The point seems to be that the only meaningful relationship is for the young man to have a relationship (as an acolyte) with his pastor.
Yes! Marvellous. Exposes this for the self-righteousness that it is, with a quick shift in the pronoun!
Haha… Thanks guys. I sincerely hope we never fall into such a snare. Have a great Friday!
Insecure men want titles…secure men want towels.
“Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going back to God, rose from supper. He laid aside his outer garments, and taking a towel, tied it around his waist. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel.” (John 13:3-5)
Special Thanks To all who supported (5:05)
“Pastor Janet Lowery? I didn’t think a woman could be called ‘pastor’ in Fundyland?
Wow, talk about blowing your own horn. Here, pat me on the back for doing such a good job. I would have at least thought this was done by a congregation or something, but, nope!!! More of the same self congratulatory, look how humble and works based I am. I have to remind people with this video how hard I work and how humble and modest I am. 😈
At first I thought the video was a spoof, but sadly it was not…
The problem with pastor worship, like this video encourages (self worship, in this case), is that it typically produces two types of people in my experience:
1) The egotistical, power-hungry type who uses the congregation as his personal servants, believes it to be a sin to disagree with him or go against him in any way, and expects constant praise for doing the same good works that good Christians should be doing anyway.
2) The hard working type who actually is humble and aware of the dangers of letting power go to one’s head, but who is spending too little time with his family, too much time trying to please finicky church members who want the pastor to be at their beck and call, and who is soon to be burnt out because he has been fooled into believing that he can fix everyone and he must do all the work.
The problem with both of these is the belief that the title of “pastor” bestows the person with some special spiritual power, and so only The Pastor can do/understand certain things. Forget all those other people in the church, fully capable of the work of the ministry without an ordination ceremony and a fancy title.
My dad was mostly #2 type, but he’s definitely got a good dose of arrogance and #1 in him….actually, it kinda seemed like he evolved from one to the other, a little bit gradually, but somehow managed the cognitive dissonance or…I don’t even know, split personality, so that really he could be either or both, depending on the day, the issue, and whether he was annoyed with you about something already. One thing he never learned is how to keep short accounts.
Forget all those other people in the rest of society too, who go about the work that the ministry should be doing, but without the need for an ordination ceremony and a fancy title.
What is that fiery lamp thing at 1:04? I just got an apartment with a balcony and I need one of those!
Click your mouse on it to buy one.
Shipping and handling are extra. 😉
White guys in suits make the best pastors.
You mean there’s a another kind of pastor?
There’s no hint of that in this movie.
Nor is there any hint that there is any other kind of people except for well-dressed white people.
I can’t begin to express how much nonsense that video is. Ugghhhhh.
Funny thing is, these people really see themselves like that, as the bastions of giving in society. Makes me sick.
“I understand it’s important to give what little I have”
Like that watch right? Or the nice car with the alloys? Or did you mean “I understand it makes me look less of a prat if I give the cash from my leather wallet to the helpless lady, who’s car broke down… then I drive off in my finely tuned motor”
Many abuses in the religio-corporate realm these past few years have made me rethink a lot of things. For example, does the Bible even teach there should be a “professional clergy,” when so many of the ministers in both testaments worked for a living? Another thing is: Why should preachers be paid for what they believe when the people in the pews believe for free? And I say these things as a recovering pastor who has been on BOTH sides of the pulpit. Finally, the video is nothing more than Nicolaitans on parade. Any man with a conscience and a sense of what self-worth is really all about, would be ashamed to be in that vid. Just thought I’d toss in my “two cents” worth before the price goes up.
While being bi-vocational can create tremendous strain on our family, and can cause people to leave the church because the pastor’s not always available for them when they want him, working a “secular” job has many positive results. It provides financial security for the pastor of a small church. It connects the pastor with the community in real, down-to-earth ways, not just as “the pastor.” It helps the pastor realize the pressures and stresses his congregation members feel. It allows the pastor to live what he preaches; he is being a light for Christ in a secular workplace the way he preaches to his congregants to be. And, honestly, it can free the pastor to not cater to the wealthy people in the church. No matter how hard a pastor tries to be impartial, when you have a family to provide for, it’s hard not to notice realities such as, “If so-and-so leaves the church, our budget will drop off such and such a percentage so we need to make sure we keep him happy.” The impact of one or two tithing members can be huge, especially in small churches 25% of churches have few than 50 active adult members according to this link: http://faithcommunitiestoday.org/report-religion-united-states-today-executive-summary
To sum up, there are a lot of benefits for a pastor to work a “secular” job, but in order for him to do so, the church will have to greatly change their preconceived ideas about what they want the pastor to do. He’s not going to be able to counsel all of them or have time to spend time with them the way many of them expect, which is also a good thing because if he steps back, more of the congregation members themselves will be stepping up to bear one another’s burdens and encourage one another instead of relying on the pastor to do those things.
P.W.- That sounds an awful lot like either real deacons or elders (or both)who are truly part of the ministry. Next thing, you’ll be saying the Mog-mini-pope doesn’t deserve hero-worship.
I loved what a well known financial radio talk host said to a caller who called to complain about his pastor working another job.
“Here’s an idea…if you want him to be available that much, why don’t you PAY him a wage he can live on? Just a thought!”
I think you have some valid points about salary not being leverage for church politics. It’s honestly disgusting how it sometimes works that the big tithers have the power in a church (even over the leaders). Whether bi-vocational or no, if those dynamics exist, then that particular church body is broken, just the same as if a charismatic cultish-type leader has all the power.
Went to college with a couple of the guys in the video… Can see that nothing has changed. Surprised West Coast Baptist College didn’t put something like this out themselves for Chapell.
Yep, less than a minute it, I could tell it reeked of West Coast Baptist.
I am an IFB – I was grossed out by this. The arrogance flowing from this video is a definite problem in the IFB ranks and has been for awhile. The job we have been given requires zero thanks or platitudes but merely a caste, genuine life, which is very hard to do when you are busy trying to secure self glory.
I definitely had a problem with this video being produced by a pastor — that seems way too self-serving — and I don’t think it shows well the greatest stresses and responsibilities of the pastorate. As many people have pointed out, laypeople do many of the things shown on the video.
Some of the difficulties of the pastorate (none of which are easy to show on a video) include . . .
1. Attracting visitors to programs that are run almost entirely by volunteers
2. Motivating volunteers without taking advantage of them
3. Counseling people Biblically while knowing that if they take offense, they’ll leave your church
4. Balancing trying to be a good example with trying to authentic, honest, transparent, and humble
5. Knowing which person’s needs to focus on; what is the wisest use of your time?
Most churches I’ve been part of have been around 100 people (or less!) with pastors who have been hard-working, dedicated, and loving. I’ve seen the arrogant prima-donnas though and understand the frustration many of you have toward the profession.
6. Conflicts between the pragmatic and the spiritual.
7. Balancing the pressure from people in church who want different things but who all think you should do what THEY want because THEY pay your salary
8. Continuing to love people and welcome new people even though often when people leave your church, they reject YOU as well and drop you out of their lives
Thank you, Pastor’s Wife, for your comments. I have to agree 100% with them, as they have closely reflected my own experiences as a pastor. I worked the whole time I pastored the church (16.5 years), and we still struggled. And the church, to show their appreciation for my struggles, agreed to pay my successor more than TWICE what they ever paid me before he even took over. That, more than anything, showed what they really thought of me. Okay, fine. Now I only have to do “one thing well,” and that is work a job (which I have always done), to provide for my family. BTW: the lunatic they called to replace me ended up kicking several of these same people out after they tried to hold him accountable to the Bible.
On a humorous note… The part in the video where the pastor kneels at a pew and “prays” reminds me of a preacher I once heard as he related the “outward appearance” of public prayer-
He was meeting in a restaurant with several other ministers, and before eating, he said, “Gentlemen, shall we bow our heads, and rub our eyebrows?”
I don’t know why, but this really amuses me…
So I watched this video and actually my heart is heavy. I am a pastor and the people in this video that the pastors are talking to have real problems. From broken relationships to substance abuse all the way to the one lady dying. I did 8 funerals last year and was at the hospital today visiting a great friend and volunteer that us not doing well. My wife went with me. Tomorrow I need to go to church and help hundreds of people see who God wants to be in their lives. I need God. I need prayer. I am so thankful that the people I try to serve love and support me.
I grew up in a fundi church and I am almost positive my pastor hated me. Please find a church where your pastors know they are human and love you. Find a way to get over you disappointments from churches in the past. Not all pastors suck.
This video made me pray and ask God for help. I pray that this response will help you find a church you can trust.
Makes me so glad our pastor is a normal man – just …
And I do love him! Cool guy!
Shalom
Hermann
Anyone else notice that the text from the root beer drinker was at 7:17 on a Wednesday? (clip at 2:41) And it’s dark when he gets there, so surely it’s not a.m.
That “pastor” in the video is ALMOST cute and “doable” 😉
If he’s “doable” then I’m a p****slayer.
The title of his sermon slide at :30 is “The Laws of Stewardship”. But they aren’t legalists. No, no, no.
More like over-controlling stewardship rules. The pastor that the pastor in that part of the video used to sit under taught me that ALL my giving should be done through the local church. Which is not a biblical concept at all.
There is but one true pastor, Jesus.
Matthew 23: 1-11: Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples, “The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat, so practice and observe whatever they tell you—but not what they do. For they preach, but do not practice. They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on people’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to move them with their finger. They do all their deeds to be seen by others. For they make their phylacteries broad and their fringes long, and they love the place of honor at feasts and the best seats in the synagogues and greetings in the marketplaces and being called rabbib by others. But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all brothers. And call no man your father on earth, for you have one Father, who is in heaven. Neither be called instructors, for you have one instructor, the Christ. The greatest among you shall be your servant. Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.
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A silly blog dedicated to Independent Fundamental Baptists, their standards, their beliefs, and their craziness.
I’ve been on both sides of the pulpit (recovering pastor now), and after realizing this vid wasn’t a spoof, I was embarrassed! It was such self-serving pabulum I almost hurled! The idea that a man expects to be lauded for doing what’s required of all Christians is absurd. When I was pastor, I drove trucks, worked in radio and newspapers, and owned a small business. The guys pictured in the vid hardly got their hands dirty, and their nice clean white shirts were never smudged by brushing up against daily life in a fallen world. I will say this about the ministry: churches are absolutely brutal to pastors. That said, I can honestly report that I have never, ever, seen the regard toward me depicted on the video by either the pulpit or the pew. That’s how you know it’s fictional.
You know, this video is creepy in the way that all those Hyles preachers yelling how much they love their preacher is creepy. These guys would swear up and down that they are not gay, and yet this entire video is nothing but a young male elaborately worshiping an older male. The women in the video, the few that are shown, are worn out or used up. The preacher’s family itself (you know, the heterosexual relationship stuff) is referred to (briefly) as something that must be put in a secondary role. I don’t think they even appear, and the wife’s role as the comfort and support of her husband is not mentioned. The point seems to be that the only meaningful relationship is for the young man to have a relationship (as an acolyte) with his pastor.
Updated Video in the 1st person… 🙂
https://vimeo.com/63765435
That’s hilarious … and more honest!
Yes! Marvellous. Exposes this for the self-righteousness that it is, with a quick shift in the pronoun!
Haha… Thanks guys. I sincerely hope we never fall into such a snare. Have a great Friday!
Insecure men want titles…secure men want towels.
“Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going back to God, rose from supper. He laid aside his outer garments, and taking a towel, tied it around his waist. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel.” (John 13:3-5)
Special Thanks To all who supported (5:05)
“Pastor Janet Lowery? I didn’t think a woman could be called ‘pastor’ in Fundyland?
Wow, talk about blowing your own horn. Here, pat me on the back for doing such a good job. I would have at least thought this was done by a congregation or something, but, nope!!! More of the same self congratulatory, look how humble and works based I am. I have to remind people with this video how hard I work and how humble and modest I am. 😈
At first I thought the video was a spoof, but sadly it was not…
The problem with pastor worship, like this video encourages (self worship, in this case), is that it typically produces two types of people in my experience:
1) The egotistical, power-hungry type who uses the congregation as his personal servants, believes it to be a sin to disagree with him or go against him in any way, and expects constant praise for doing the same good works that good Christians should be doing anyway.
2) The hard working type who actually is humble and aware of the dangers of letting power go to one’s head, but who is spending too little time with his family, too much time trying to please finicky church members who want the pastor to be at their beck and call, and who is soon to be burnt out because he has been fooled into believing that he can fix everyone and he must do all the work.
The problem with both of these is the belief that the title of “pastor” bestows the person with some special spiritual power, and so only The Pastor can do/understand certain things. Forget all those other people in the church, fully capable of the work of the ministry without an ordination ceremony and a fancy title.
My dad was mostly #2 type, but he’s definitely got a good dose of arrogance and #1 in him….actually, it kinda seemed like he evolved from one to the other, a little bit gradually, but somehow managed the cognitive dissonance or…I don’t even know, split personality, so that really he could be either or both, depending on the day, the issue, and whether he was annoyed with you about something already. One thing he never learned is how to keep short accounts.
Forget all those other people in the rest of society too, who go about the work that the ministry should be doing, but without the need for an ordination ceremony and a fancy title.
What is that fiery lamp thing at 1:04? I just got an apartment with a balcony and I need one of those!
Click your mouse on it to buy one.
Shipping and handling are extra. 😉
White guys in suits make the best pastors.
You mean there’s a another kind of pastor?
There’s no hint of that in this movie.
Nor is there any hint that there is any other kind of people except for well-dressed white people.
I can’t begin to express how much nonsense that video is. Ugghhhhh.
Funny thing is, these people really see themselves like that, as the bastions of giving in society. Makes me sick.
“I understand it’s important to give what little I have”
Like that watch right? Or the nice car with the alloys? Or did you mean “I understand it makes me look less of a prat if I give the cash from my leather wallet to the helpless lady, who’s car broke down… then I drive off in my finely tuned motor”
Many abuses in the religio-corporate realm these past few years have made me rethink a lot of things. For example, does the Bible even teach there should be a “professional clergy,” when so many of the ministers in both testaments worked for a living? Another thing is: Why should preachers be paid for what they believe when the people in the pews believe for free? And I say these things as a recovering pastor who has been on BOTH sides of the pulpit. Finally, the video is nothing more than Nicolaitans on parade. Any man with a conscience and a sense of what self-worth is really all about, would be ashamed to be in that vid. Just thought I’d toss in my “two cents” worth before the price goes up.
While being bi-vocational can create tremendous strain on our family, and can cause people to leave the church because the pastor’s not always available for them when they want him, working a “secular” job has many positive results. It provides financial security for the pastor of a small church. It connects the pastor with the community in real, down-to-earth ways, not just as “the pastor.” It helps the pastor realize the pressures and stresses his congregation members feel. It allows the pastor to live what he preaches; he is being a light for Christ in a secular workplace the way he preaches to his congregants to be. And, honestly, it can free the pastor to not cater to the wealthy people in the church. No matter how hard a pastor tries to be impartial, when you have a family to provide for, it’s hard not to notice realities such as, “If so-and-so leaves the church, our budget will drop off such and such a percentage so we need to make sure we keep him happy.” The impact of one or two tithing members can be huge, especially in small churches 25% of churches have few than 50 active adult members according to this link: http://faithcommunitiestoday.org/report-religion-united-states-today-executive-summary
To sum up, there are a lot of benefits for a pastor to work a “secular” job, but in order for him to do so, the church will have to greatly change their preconceived ideas about what they want the pastor to do. He’s not going to be able to counsel all of them or have time to spend time with them the way many of them expect, which is also a good thing because if he steps back, more of the congregation members themselves will be stepping up to bear one another’s burdens and encourage one another instead of relying on the pastor to do those things.
P.W.- That sounds an awful lot like either real deacons or elders (or both)who are truly part of the ministry. Next thing, you’ll be saying the Mog-mini-pope doesn’t deserve hero-worship.
I loved what a well known financial radio talk host said to a caller who called to complain about his pastor working another job.
“Here’s an idea…if you want him to be available that much, why don’t you PAY him a wage he can live on? Just a thought!”
I think you have some valid points about salary not being leverage for church politics. It’s honestly disgusting how it sometimes works that the big tithers have the power in a church (even over the leaders). Whether bi-vocational or no, if those dynamics exist, then that particular church body is broken, just the same as if a charismatic cultish-type leader has all the power.
Went to college with a couple of the guys in the video… Can see that nothing has changed. Surprised West Coast Baptist College didn’t put something like this out themselves for Chapell.
Yep, less than a minute it, I could tell it reeked of West Coast Baptist.
I am an IFB – I was grossed out by this. The arrogance flowing from this video is a definite problem in the IFB ranks and has been for awhile. The job we have been given requires zero thanks or platitudes but merely a caste, genuine life, which is very hard to do when you are busy trying to secure self glory.
I definitely had a problem with this video being produced by a pastor — that seems way too self-serving — and I don’t think it shows well the greatest stresses and responsibilities of the pastorate. As many people have pointed out, laypeople do many of the things shown on the video.
Some of the difficulties of the pastorate (none of which are easy to show on a video) include . . .
1. Attracting visitors to programs that are run almost entirely by volunteers
2. Motivating volunteers without taking advantage of them
3. Counseling people Biblically while knowing that if they take offense, they’ll leave your church
4. Balancing trying to be a good example with trying to authentic, honest, transparent, and humble
5. Knowing which person’s needs to focus on; what is the wisest use of your time?
Most churches I’ve been part of have been around 100 people (or less!) with pastors who have been hard-working, dedicated, and loving. I’ve seen the arrogant prima-donnas though and understand the frustration many of you have toward the profession.
6. Conflicts between the pragmatic and the spiritual.
7. Balancing the pressure from people in church who want different things but who all think you should do what THEY want because THEY pay your salary
8. Continuing to love people and welcome new people even though often when people leave your church, they reject YOU as well and drop you out of their lives
Thank you, Pastor’s Wife, for your comments. I have to agree 100% with them, as they have closely reflected my own experiences as a pastor. I worked the whole time I pastored the church (16.5 years), and we still struggled. And the church, to show their appreciation for my struggles, agreed to pay my successor more than TWICE what they ever paid me before he even took over. That, more than anything, showed what they really thought of me. Okay, fine. Now I only have to do “one thing well,” and that is work a job (which I have always done), to provide for my family. BTW: the lunatic they called to replace me ended up kicking several of these same people out after they tried to hold him accountable to the Bible.
On a humorous note… The part in the video where the pastor kneels at a pew and “prays” reminds me of a preacher I once heard as he related the “outward appearance” of public prayer-
He was meeting in a restaurant with several other ministers, and before eating, he said, “Gentlemen, shall we bow our heads, and rub our eyebrows?”
I don’t know why, but this really amuses me…
So I watched this video and actually my heart is heavy. I am a pastor and the people in this video that the pastors are talking to have real problems. From broken relationships to substance abuse all the way to the one lady dying. I did 8 funerals last year and was at the hospital today visiting a great friend and volunteer that us not doing well. My wife went with me. Tomorrow I need to go to church and help hundreds of people see who God wants to be in their lives. I need God. I need prayer. I am so thankful that the people I try to serve love and support me.
I grew up in a fundi church and I am almost positive my pastor hated me. Please find a church where your pastors know they are human and love you. Find a way to get over you disappointments from churches in the past. Not all pastors suck.
This video made me pray and ask God for help. I pray that this response will help you find a church you can trust.
Makes me so glad our pastor is a normal man – just …
And I do love him! Cool guy!
Shalom
Hermann
Anyone else notice that the text from the root beer drinker was at 7:17 on a Wednesday? (clip at 2:41) And it’s dark when he gets there, so surely it’s not a.m.
That “pastor” in the video is ALMOST cute and “doable” 😉
If he’s “doable” then I’m a p****slayer.
The title of his sermon slide at :30 is “The Laws of Stewardship”. But they aren’t legalists. No, no, no.
More like over-controlling stewardship rules. The pastor that the pastor in that part of the video used to sit under taught me that ALL my giving should be done through the local church. Which is not a biblical concept at all.
There is but one true pastor, Jesus.
Matthew 23: 1-11: Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples, “The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat, so practice and observe whatever they tell you—but not what they do. For they preach, but do not practice. They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on people’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to move them with their finger. They do all their deeds to be seen by others. For they make their phylacteries broad and their fringes long, and they love the place of honor at feasts and the best seats in the synagogues and greetings in the marketplaces and being called rabbib by others. But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all brothers. And call no man your father on earth, for you have one Father, who is in heaven. Neither be called instructors, for you have one instructor, the Christ. The greatest among you shall be your servant. Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.