Recording

Recording gifts in ministry is a tradition which goes back to the earliest days of Friends. Many Quaker pastors are recorded, as are a number of other “weighty Friends”. Because Friends emphasize that everyone is a minister and that all of us are equal, recording has often been misunderstood. In yearly meetings with pastors, the emphasis on pastoral leadership has often led to the neglect of non-pastors who felt called to minister, and in unprogrammed yearly meetings, Friends have often abandoned the practice of recording.

Recording gifts in the ministry is not a new practice. In the 1600’s, the Quaker movement depended on the efforts of “public Friends,” who traveled, spoke, debated with non-Quakers, visited families, set up new meetings and worship groups, and often suffered imprisonment, fines, and other hardships. Though they were unpaid, they were given hospitality on their travels. At one time in London Yearly Meeting a number of horses, called “Truth’s horses”, were kept for the use of traveling ministers.

The special place of such Friends was acknowledged in Robert Barclay’s Apology:

We do believe and affirm that some are more particularly called to do the work of the ministry, and therefore are fitted of the Lord for that purpose; whose work is more constantly and particularly to instruct, exhort, admonish, oversee and watch over their brethren; and that. . . there is something more incumbent upon them in that respect than upon every common believer. . .  (Proposition 10, section 10)

Though there were no pastors in the 17th century or early 18th century, a large meeting might have a dozen or more recorded ministers. These Friends’ concern for the spiritual vitality of the meeting led them to speak frequently at worship, to be concerned for newcomers, to voice the concerns of the less articulate, to visit families and nearby meetings, and to attend (though not to officiate) at weddings and memorial meetings. No formal educational requirements were set for recording, but recorded Friends were expected to be deeply versed in the Scriptures and other works, both to assist in their own ministry and to answer the objections of outsiders to Friends’ beliefs.

In the years after the Civil War, many new meetings were being set up, and in small towns and frontier communities the Friends meeting was often “the only church in town.” Young adult Friends were impressed by the liveliness of neighboring revivals. They wanted such radical innovations as hymn-singing and a prepared message rather than the “dead” silence into which they felt many meetings had fallen. Out of this atmosphere, the first Friends pastors were called. These Quaker pastors were almost always recorded ministers. At first they were not paid, but gradually Friends “released” them for fuller service by providing full-time financial support.

During the theological wars among Friends in the late 1800’s, many yearly meetings began tightening up the requirements for recording to make sure that ministers were “acceptable” (held and taught the “right” theological opinions). Starting in the early 1900’s, some pastors and mission workers began taking college or seminary courses to better prepare themselves for ministry. By the middle of the 20th century, most yearly meetings had standardized educational requirements for pastors.

The early 21st century has seen high-profile battles over whether some pastors are “too liberal” on issues such as homosexuality and the atonement of Christ, or “not Quakerly” on issues such as baptism and communion. There have also been serious financial problems as small and mid-sized meetings struggle to provide adequate support and health insurance for their pastors.

In unprogrammed yearly meetings, there is often a “leadership gap”. Friends everywhere need trained, dedicated, and experienced leaders to make local meetings run smoothly, to run our many educational and service programs, and to communicate what Quakers believe with the rest of the world. Without these leaders, we might as well close up shop.

This may be a good time for Friends to revisit the practice of recording of gifts in the ministry, and remind ourselves of some things:

• Not all recorded ministers are pastors – in fact, most are not! Smaller meetings need to have at least 1 or 2 recorded ministers, while larger meetings need at least half a dozen. Recorded ministers should outnumber pastors several times over.
• Meetings are richer when we have more leaders! We need more teachers, more prophetic leaders, more people skilled in listening and wise counsel. We need more Friends in each meeting who can prepare and deliver a message, or write an article, or teach a workshop. We need gifted clerks, youth leaders and elders. We need more people who can start new meetings and guide them through the first critical years.
• A degree doesn’t make a minister, but in today’s world our leaders need to be well-read, trained and experienced. Friends need to take leadership training more seriously and build it into their meeting plans and budgets.
• We need a broader range of ways to recognize and encourage ministry. “Recording” has become a lengthy, daunting, expensive and contentious process in many yearly meetings. Many newer Christian groups have found ways to do this. We don’t need a professional class or an ordained clergy – we need people who feel that God is calling them to serve the church, and we need to structure new and creative ways to encourage and support them.
• Large and mid-size meetings can release one of their members for full-time service, but most smaller meetings can’t afford to do so. The “norm” for Quaker ministry needs to move away from full-time  paid service, and encourage Friends who are part-time, bivocational or volunteers. Recorded ministers need to be the new “normal” for Friends!

In my next post, I plan to discuss some ways we can recognize and support ministry, including traditional recording but expanding the idea in different ways.

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(Full disclosure: Back in the 1980’s I helped to write the manual on recording for New York Yearly Meeting, and some of the material in this blog is drawn from there. )

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