Anon, the Clergy

Connor L. wrote: Things the clergy could do to serve the membership:

Online courses (like a Sunday school maybe)
Regular Live services. (Google hangouts, the chat)
Community service, like maybe sending out care packages to members in need.
Supporting arts like commissioning art work that could have proceeds going to charity.
Coming out with strong stances against Naziism and calling for humanitarian efforts.
Providing ways for the lay leadership to participate. I know we can write sermons now, but what about lay led community service? TOTJO is one of the only churches I've seen where only the clerically minded do most everything. I mean, what if the lay leadership formed its own committee that was in contact with the pastor? I have no intention of returning to clerical service right now, but I would like to contribute.

I could go on, but that's a good starting place to get some ideas going.

Wonderful ideas.

Nakis is doing a wonderful job with the Saturday guided discussion, we could do this on the regular as long as people are interested and willing to host it.

Atticus wrote: AMAs are fun, but I can't imagine there's anything remotely interesting about me to justify my starting that kind of thread. But an AMA for the Clergy? With a sarahah link? Katie, bar the door.

Let's do this.

TOTJOClergy.sarahah.com

Hey, remember when we all used Sarahah for a couple days?

Believe it or not, the website is still up.

TOTJOClergy.sarahah.com

What issue is there in the heart of your organisation that leads to clergy members posting that they need time off due to burn-out? Can you please take a leaf out of your own book and look after each other more please?

I'm aware of one member of the Clergy taking a vacay since I've been in the Synod, and, frankly, she earned it. More to the point, though, there are a couple of assumptions in your questions to which I cannot respond: one, that burnout is caused by some "issue . . . in the heart of [our] organization," and two, that we don't look after each other enough. As to the second, without singling anyone out, I personally feel that I am quite well supported by my fellow Clergy. If there is a Clergy member who feels differently, it's not been revealed to me. I try to provide support to everyone who's around and even a couple who aren't anymore, but if I'm failing in that, I'd like to know. The only thing I want in exchange for any service I provide to the Temple is helping me to improve my personal ministry.

That first assumption, though, replying to that on behalf of another member would require me to either reveal confidences shared with me or make assumptions of my own, or both. I'm not going to do either. What I will say is that serving in the Clergy is very much like my law practice in one respect: we don't often get to deal with people on their best days. No one wakes up in a great mood and says, "Wow, what a beautiful morning. I think I'll go see my lawyer." The people to whom I provide clerical help, like the people to whom I provide legal assistance, are frequently in some form of pain if not full-blown crisis to one degree or another. There is an emotional cost to this service, and while we try to practice self-care diligently so that we can continue to be effective, sometimes the best self-care is unplugging for a bit. (There's an emotional cost to serving on the Council long-term as well, but that's beyond the scope of this question.)

But the bottom line question, can we please look after each other better? Yes, we can, and yes, we should.

As it pertains to clergy and burn-out... I'm only a Seminarian at this point, but I do serve on the Council and as a Security Officer. I also work with three excellent Apprentices who keep me on my toes as students.

Why tell you this? Because I love all of these aspects of my presence here and I am proud to serve my Temple, but sometimes it is a LOT to deal with at once. We have to prioritize and sometimes that means taking a break to collect our thoughts and recommit to the mission. This isn't an issue with the "organization". It is a human issue. We all face times in our lives when we have to step away and take stock of how we are spending our time and effort. It might be an illness or an accident that makes us do it. It might be the arrival of a child or a new relationship. It might be the death of a family member or a job promotion. Whatever it is, it is life, and we all live it. Even the Councillors and Pastors and Ministers and Officers here, believe it or not.

What is most important to me is that during my time here, the Clergy has always been there to support me. They have been there for my successes and failures. They have been there for me through family crisis and my diagnosis of cancer. They have always offered a kind word, an ear to listen, and compassionate understanding. Every single one of them. I have been better looked after in this place than any religious or social institution of my past. That is why I stay here.

Just gonna say I love this thread.

Burnout is a possibility with anyone in a caretaking role, especially clergy. There's little that can mitigate it except delegation or time away from caretaking duties. Burnout isn't the only reason for LoA's among clergy, however.

There are ways to battle chronic fatigue as far as clergy is in order . Any one have examples of their own defense ?

steamboat28 wrote: Burnout is a possibility with anyone in a caretaking role, especially clergy. There's little that can mitigate it except delegation or time away from caretaking duties. Burnout isn't the only reason for LoA's among clergy, however.

That's true on all counts. Thank you, Steam, I should have made clear that I was adopting the premise of "need[ing] time off due to burn-out".

Burn out can come from several things - one key thing I find is micro- management , especially in ministry work. The constant over abundance of stress can be given or dispensed - many hands make the heavy load.