CHURCH GOVERNANCE 2: LifeWay reports 913 pastors fired in 2003

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March 26, 2005
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Churches from 26 reporting state Baptist conventions fired 913 full-time or bivocational pastors in 2003, said Brooks Faulkner, senior pastoral ministry specialist at LifeWay Christian Resources. Five of the top eight causes of termination listed in Faulkner’s reports relate to control and leadership, with the most frequently named problem being

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LifeWay reports 913 pastors fired in 2003

control issues related to who would run the church.

How do these power struggles intensify to so frequently create an impasse between factions? Mostly, multiple dynamics combine for an explosive mix in which the conflict cannot?or will not?be resolved apart from severing ties between a pastor and some, or all, of the congregation.

One Texas church member cited several factors she believes contributed to forcing out her church’s new pastor: bad hiring practices of the former pastor, a small group of power-hungry deacons and lack of member initiative to stop them, and a congregation-led governance clashing with the pastor-led style of the new pastor.

Her story began in the time of the previous pastor, whom she appreciated fo