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4 - Family Congregations

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  07 August 2009

Penny Edgell Becker
Affiliation:
Princeton University, New Jersey
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Summary

From the time he came to the church in 1989 until the spring of 1992, Pastor West was the center of conflict at Community Church of Christ. Soon after he arrived, he was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. The disease itself made some people uncomfortable. Others were concerned that, being ill, he might not be able to give the congregation vigorous leadership. But from compassion as well as a sense of obligation, many of the lay leaders – particularly the older ones – rallied around the pastor. They let it be known that they would support his tenure as long as he was healthy enough to do the job. Early in 1992, he announced his intention to retire in June, and the church formed a committee to search for his replacement. Although people saw this as a difficult, painful, and frustrating time, the dispute did not concern how to deal with an ill pastor.

Members understood the conflict to be about the pastor as a person – his style, and particularly his inability to become close to people. A small group of vocal lay leaders made their dissatisfaction with him widely known. Two events in particular bothered this group. Soon after he arrived, Pastor West performed a joint service with the former (interim) pastor. The service included a christening, which the former pastor was supposed to perform.

Type
Chapter
Information
Congregations in Conflict
Cultural Models of Local Religious Life
, pp. 77 - 100
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 1999

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  • Family Congregations
  • Penny Edgell Becker, Princeton University, New Jersey
  • Book: Congregations in Conflict
  • Online publication: 07 August 2009
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511499319.004
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  • Family Congregations
  • Penny Edgell Becker, Princeton University, New Jersey
  • Book: Congregations in Conflict
  • Online publication: 07 August 2009
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511499319.004
Available formats
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Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Family Congregations
  • Penny Edgell Becker, Princeton University, New Jersey
  • Book: Congregations in Conflict
  • Online publication: 07 August 2009
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511499319.004
Available formats
×