Elephant in the Boardroom:  A Crisis Transition Plan For Your Church

Orginally published on Tuesday, March 29, 2005 at 6:40 PM
by Todd Rhoades

This is our last look at the book “The Elephant in the Boardroom:  Speaking the Unspoken about Pastoral Transitions."  (Please see below how you can get a copy).  Today’s topic:  Crisis Transition… Church folks would be the first to admit that ultimately only God is in control. Unexpected events happen to all of us, and humility requires us to acknowledge our frailty in the face of forces larger than ourselves. Yet church leaders often operate without the slightest idea of what they will do if their pastor is suddenly taken from them…

We cope with the unexpected by devising crisis and contingency plans. Every time we get into a car and snap a seatbelt around our waist, we are establishing a crisis plan. We are not in control of every other driver on the road, let alone large animals, weather, landslides, earthquakes, pedestrians, or mechanical failure in our vehicle or someone else's. Nor are we fully in control of ourselves, sudden distractions, health emergencies, or people within our vehicle. A seat belt is a crisis plan that says, "If something unexpected happens and this car hits a large object, I have a plan for protecting my body from severe injury."

It is sobering to realize that most churches do not have a plan in place that will manage the risk of a sudden pastoral departure. The reasons why a pastor might suddenly leave generate a substantial list:

• Sudden onset of a debilitating physical illness

• Mental illness, emotional collapse

• Traumatic event in the life of a family member

• Death by accident, catastrophic health problem, or violence

• Family problem such as divorce

• Personal problems that necessitate dismissal

• An unexpected, but desirable ministry opportunity for the pastor, with a short time line

Some of these events are more likely than others and all are things we would rather not think about; nevertheless, real-life examples come to mind in every case. Taken together, the possibility of a sudden pastoral departure is real and worthy of attention.

Elements of a Crisis Plan

The critical elements of any crisis plan are safety, command structure, continuity of service, communication, and restoration of normalcy. When a pastor departs suddenly, each is an issue; a crisis plan should address them all.

Safety — The plan should provide a way to ensure the physical, emotional, and spiritual safety of members. If the pastor has died suddenly, critical incident debriefing may be necessary for the church staff and lay leadership, and perhaps for the entire church. Since the sudden death of a role model can be traumatic, prompt attention should be given to the entire congregation. The crisis transition plan should contain a list of mental health care providers, with contact names and phone numbers.

Command Structure — In the emergency phase of a crisis (generally the first twenty-four hours but as long as one week), there is often insufficient time for collaborative or group decision making. Trusted individuals have to be given the authority to act. These individuals should be identified in the crisis plan.

Continuity of Service — Since the primary mission of the church is to provide service in the name of Christ, it is important that the plan feature a way for quality services to be continued wherever possible. Critical. Pastoral Resource. We call this person your "CPR" (for critical pastoral resource). The purpose of a CPR is to offer worship leadership during those first two critical weeks when the right tone can have long-term benefits. This provision for a CPR in a crisis plan has a number of advantages. It gives the congregation a worship experience under the leadership of someone they know and trust. It brings a person with the right gifts to the situ¬ation that can promote healing and inspire confidence. It sends a clear signal to the congregation that the church is in capable and compassionate hands. Finally, it gives leaders who are work¬ing to provide interim worship leadership more time to do that task well.

Communication — One critical function in a crisis is communication. Generally, it is advisable that one person be given the responsibility for managing communication. There are a number of levels of communication that must be managed:

• Staff

• Lay leaders

• Congregation

• Area pastors

• Denominational bodies

• Friends of the church

• Geographical communities (local, regional, national)

• Media communities (radio, television, Internet)

 Restoration of Normalcy -- Once the emergency phase of the crisis is past, work can be resumed on restoring the church to normalcy. This requires an orderly, focused process to recruit and orient a new pastor."

I Highly Recommend…

The Elephant in the Boardroom: Speaking the Unspoken Truth about Pastoral Transitions -- Carolyn Weese and J. Russell Crabtree—experts in the field of church leadership—have written a nuts-and-bolts guide to developing a succession plan for smoothing pastoral transitions. Filled with strategies and solid advice, this handy resource is based in solid research and the authors’ many years of experience working with churches in a wide variety of denominations. Weese and Crabtree clearly show that leadership succession should be part of every church’s planning process. Hardcover. 240 pages from Leadership Network Publications. More Information...

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