I believe God called me to that pastorate, though not to stay. The congregation and I learned a lot during our time together. We each grew in awareness. I believe God wants us to apply our gained awareness, though now in separate ministries.

Edward raises the important point that not all tents provide opportunity for traditional ministry practices. Let’s look at it from another angle and suggest that not all tentmakers are called to employ all traditional ministry practices. Perhaps that’s why they’re tentmakers, because their skill set doesn’t — and shouldn’t have to — include all pastoral leadership skills traditionally associated with full time pastors. Rather, the church needs the skills they have, gives thanks for the skills they have, and doesn’t grumble about the skills they don’t have.

I add to that my concern that presbyteries work with congregations to help them come to a more realistic understanding of tentmaking and shared ministry. Part time ministry shouldn’t mean a minister covers all ministry areas in half the time as a full time pastor. It should mean that the minister and the congregation are matched with complementary skills. For instance, perhaps the minister focuses on nurturing congregants’ spiritual growth, while the congregation attends to local outreach ministries.

I would consider another experience of tentmaking if it was truly bivocational, that is, if I could fulfill my calling equally in both tent and parish. I’m not going to hold my breath waiting for such an opportunity to arise for the simple reason that the PCUSA doesn’t appear sufficiently interested or adequately equipped to help match ministers and congregations for this form of ministry. I could be wrong, but that’s how it looks to me right now. I’d like to be proved wrong. Like Edward, I’d like to see some more substantive, out-of-the-box conversation about these and other issues related to tentmaking.

It is so great to know of other bi-voc’s out there with the missional mindset. I can’t say it has been easy, but the sacred space…it is so worth it. There just seems to be so few of us.

As a full time teacher most of my thoughtful time is spent in the educational realm so I do not have a lot of time to reflect on ministry practices. Have you or other Presbymergents thought about a continuing discussion regarding purposeful bivocational/tentmaking ministry and the theology and issues involved? I’d love to continue the conversation with others from the missional perspective!

It is a serious mistake to have pastors, whom one would hope to be among the most mature, knowledgeable, and passionate Christians, isolated from the outside world.

Also, employing a full-time minister is a huge burden for many churches. I have served for a year in a congregation with an average worship attendance of about 50. I think this a great size for a church, but in denominations with professional clergy, churches this size struggle to find and pay a pastor.

The need to pay clergy also contributes to churches’ excessive focus on money–a huge stumbling block for many people.

I especially like the point about leading by example. Professional clergy do reinforce the idea of a separation between normal life and serving God.

Unfortunately, in the PC(USA) at least, there are many barriers to bivocational and tent-making ministry: churches without a full-time minister are presumed to be unsuccessful; the process of calling a pastor discourages development of leadership from within; the massive investment of time and money that seminary requires makes it less than ideal for those who don’t want to make a career out of the ministry. What can be done about these things?