Clergy Self-Care: Finding a Balance for Effective Ministry, by Roy M Oswald (Alban Institute, 1991) is still one of the best books on stress and burnout in Christian ministry.

Roy Oswald has been  ¢â‚¬Ëœthrough it ¢â‚¬â„¢  ¢â‚¬“ his own burnout, mid-life crisis, divorce, four years of heavy psychoanalysis etc.  ¢â‚¬“ and for a couple of decades has led popular seminars on this subject with the respected Alban Institute in the U.S.

Main ideas:

•   Many voices say to the clergy:  ¢â‚¬ËœYou can do it better ¢â‚¬â„¢ rather than, for   example,  ¢â‚¬ËœAre you having any fun lately? ¢â‚¬â„¢
• Let us encourage clergy and congregations to reject what I believe is a dysfunctional  ¢â‚¬Å“medical model ¢â‚¬  that treats pathology in isolation from the whole person
• Approx. 20% of clergy score extremely high on my Clergy Burnout Inventory. If they ¢â‚¬â„¢ve been in long pastorates (ten years or more) it ¢â‚¬â„¢s 50%. No wonder many clergy have a recurring dream of leading Sunday morning worship while stark naked
• The goal should be to take care of myself, not only for my sake, but also for the sake of others  ¢â‚¬“ finding a balance between healthy self-care and unhealthy narcissism
• Matthew Fox says the clergy ¢â‚¬â„¢s worst sin is not being heretical or unethical, but just being plain dull
• At least 70% of all ailments may be stress-related, and studies indicate that people who had recently lost a loved one or had lost a job had a higher than average rate of illness and death
• Pastor  ¢â‚¬ËœBill ¢â‚¬â„¢ always had this voice in his head:  ¢â‚¬Å“Don ¢â‚¬â„¢t be your authentic self. Be like your predecessor! ¢â‚¬ 
• Clergy ought to strive to do their ministry in 50 hours a week or less (Oswald reiterates this at least half-a-dozen times)  ¢â‚¬“ and also take two days off per week like everyone else. (Sunday can ¢â‚¬â„¢t be a pastor ¢â‚¬â„¢s Sabbath). Many overuse their listening or caring capacities, and are consumed by too many needy people
• Jesus never seemed to burn out… The wondrous phrase that keeps showing up in the Gospels is  ¢â‚¬Å“he dismissed the crowd ¢â‚¬ 
• Much of the stress of ministry comes from trying to resolve conflicts that cannot, and should not, be resolved. Polarities can never be resolved; they can only be managed
• Go for a walk rather than have that extra piece of cake. A ten-ounce can of Pepsi contains ten teaspoons of sugar. Cut down on your consumption of red meat (to perhaps just twice a week): eat skinless chicken and fish instead. Fasting is good for you. Hatha yoga says we either use our muscles or we lose them. Walking a mile burns the same number of calories as running a mile
• In my seminary years no one asked me if I prayed or practised any sort of  ¢â‚¬Å“rule of life ¢â‚¬ . Christology? Yes, but not if I believed in Christ. Clergy need a deeper spiritual life more than they need better knowledge or skills. Take at least 15 minutes to move into a  ¢â‚¬Å“meditative space ¢â‚¬  before you rush out of the door. Sometimes turn off the car radio when driving (perhaps get the audio-cassette  ¢â‚¬Å“Chants for the Road ¢â‚¬ )
• Smart parishes know it ¢â‚¬â„¢s in their self-interest to offer a competent pastor a periodic sabbatical
• Try not to take your worries home, or they ¢â‚¬â„¢ll take precedence over family and personal activities   
• Try not to handle a piece of paper (these days, an email) more than once: don ¢â‚¬â„¢t open your mail until you ¢â‚¬â„¢re ready to answer it. Manage your phone calls with an answering machine
• Norman Cousins claims to have cured a crippling/supposedly irreversible disease with laughter. A ten-minute belly-laugh gave him at least two hours of painfree sleep. (Oswald:  ¢â‚¬Å“I believe that God is able to laugh and cry at the same time ¢â‚¬ ). (Cartoon: church matriarch to pastor in a hospital bed:  ¢â‚¬Å“Good news Reverend. The board has voted to pray for your recovery… the vote was 5 to 4 ¢â‚¬ )
• When Peter said  ¢â‚¬Å“I ¢â‚¬â„¢m going fishing ¢â‚¬  it was as though he ¢â‚¬â„¢d done enough worrying and it was time to do something else
• Does your church practise a healing ministry? Jesus sent his disciples out to  ¢â‚¬Å“preach, teach, and heal ¢â‚¬  (see also James 5:14-15). Good  ¢â‚¬Ëœhealing ministers ¢â‚¬  feel a sympathy for the patient and tend to  ¢â‚¬Å“blend in ¢â‚¬  emotionally and spiritually with him or her

More: put the words stress, burnout etc. into the search facility of the John Mark Ministries website (jmm.aaa.net.au)

Rowland Croucher

June 2012