Talk about trading in the temple. The movement afoot to unionize the clergy of the United Church gained momentum this week. This halo-rattling concept has some very peculiar ramifications which are patently inconsistent with the idea of the selfless man of God ministering to his flock. But as one hears of the plight of so many ministers of that church being the victims of parishioner abuse, long hours, and an unhealthy environment of stress and conflict then the idea of increasing their compensation becomes more palatable.
But the more we define ministering as a job the less likely it will be viewed as a vocation.
When we start to bean-count the value of ministerial service we risk trivializing the minister and his circumstances, reducing him to the status of another worker bee who must consult with his fellow bees (including nuisance parishioners) about every little iota of their work. This is what would inevitably happen when one attempts to place a mercenary value on the delivery of religious services. The idea of anything the minister does as being sacred gets thrown out along with the holy bathwater.
And the siege mentality unions are so experienced at crafting in the workplace to bring pressure to bear upon the evil employers (that would be the churches now) is also an inevitability. And instead of using students or patients as hostages in their bargaining tactics the unions get to use parishioners. Pity the poor pilgrims.
Injecting money into a religious environment does not bode well for the likelihood of a divine outcome. Marriages have always carried an implicit cost in fees. Now baptisms will cost. Will there be a charge for blessing the church-going flock? Will that be cash or chargex?
And Buzz Hargrove, the pugilistic advocate for workers everywhere who likes to think of himself as most humane (to the exclusion of course of welfare recipients and non-union members), acting as the reverends’ representative in discussions with the church is a strange bedfellow indeed. This guy is the president of the Canadian Auto Workers of Canada. Since when did the ministers need a tune-up, or a soulful lube job?
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