This past week, the Reverend Howard-John Wesley of Alfred Street Baptist Church made a bold confession from the pulpit: that he was tired and felt distant from God. He even noted that most people think that working in a church means you are good with God. But nothing could be further from the truth. And as a result, after Christmas he will be taking a sabbatical until Easter. A lot of clergy and church folks shared his message on Facebook, me being one of them. I, and scores of other pastors, applauded Wesley’s honesty and vulnerability. Too often clergy are supposed to have that stiff upper lip and pretend that everything is ok. That is one of the reasons that only 1 in 10 pastors stay in the business long enough to retire from it. The clergy depression rate is astounding. I fully support Wesley and appreciate his bringing this to light.
One of my clergy friends posted this article and another clergy friend wondered if this was a unique problem to clergy or whether other professions have the same problem. I know this is also the case with the pharmacy industry. I could go on and on about what is happening in that industry but that’s not the point. The point is that my friend’s point got me thinking: sabbath is a privilege.
We agree that the idea of sabbath is a good one. God even mandated it in the 10 commandments. But let’s be real. Revered Wesley is taking a sabbatical because he can afford to. I am not arguing whether he deserves it, because 11 straight years of pastoring a church that welcomes roughly 4,500 people a week is unfathomable to me, he definitely deserves it. I am arguing that he is only doing so because he can afford it. And not just him. I know several senior pastors who have done the same. And they all do it because they can afford it. Large churches can afford to pay the pastor their regular salary and pay those who will be filling in. Many churches cannot afford this. And this is going to be an important conversation as more and more churches are unable to pay pastors and pastors move to being bi-vocational. Speaking from the experience of being a part time church worker, many churches are not prepared to deal with this.
At the last church I worked for, I was asked to go on a mission trip. I was salaried to work 25 hours a week. I inquired to my boss how this was going to work. Do I get overtime? What do I do about my lost wages at my other job? Because that too was a part time job and no work = no pay. Funny how not too long after that, I was invited to no longer work there. And I never did get a clear answer on how much time I get off. But they aren’t atypical. Many churches don’t have clear policies for part time employees. But even with crystal clear policies, church support staff are often overlooked when it comes to vacations and sabbaticals. I know at least one person will argue that folks get vacations. But a vacation is not a sabbath or sabbatical. When you have family, especially little kids, vacations are spent going to theme parks, visiting relatives, seeing things. It is not a dedicated week to renewal, finding inner peace, or professional development.
This is not a complaint against any church I worked for or currently work for. This is a plea for church leaders to take in account that they are not the only tired ones. And to acknowledge that sabbath and sabbatical are privilege. Once we acknowledge this, we can have honest conversations about changing this. Because we all deserve a real and true break.
