Retired Pastors

I do not see a real challange unless you pastor the church that he used to pastor. Then when people got mad at you they would run to him for everything and exclude you.

It could be a blessing to have someone with a wealth of knowledge who could give you advise and help you along the way. It could also be good to have a pastor there to keep you encouraged b/c he has been through all the heartache before.

 

Nathan is right. I have a couple of pastors in my congregation and a couple of other itinerant preachers. Finding pulpit supply when I'm preaching revivals or the like isn't hard! And it keeps me on my toes in sermon prep. Fortunately, I haven't had the problem of people running to them since they did not pastor this church before. Personally, it is a rare situation where a pastor should be a member of his former charge.

 

As a retired minister, I get to occupy a pew almost every Sunday. After all those years up front, we ought to have an idea of what worship is all about, and I assure you, the present pastor is not the main focus of attention. It is not a homiletics class.

There is no end to learning and it is amazing what we still learn sitting in the pew. I find it rather refreshing.

I will say this, I have been in church when a young minister is in charge, and have been told that he felt a little intimidated. He soon learned, however, that I was not critical and was very supportive of his ministry, and he soon got over that. In my experience, most retired ministers move closer to their home or family and seldom remain in the same church they last served.

When I first retired, I took the opportunity to visit different churches, and even different denominations, just for the experience. It too was quite refreshing and made me appreciate home.

Cheers,

Jim (11 years retired)