Pastor, board, or congregation?

Published 1 day ago • 1 min read

Hello Reader ,

Sometimes what looks like a leadership disagreement is actually a governance problem.

The pastor believes a decision falls within pastoral authority.

The board believes the issue requires board approval.

The congregation believes members should have a vote.

Everyone may sincerely believe they are correct.

But there is a more important question underneath the disagreement:

What does the church’s actual governance structure say?

That is why church leaders need more than assumptions about how decisions are supposed to be made.

They need clarity about:

Who has authority.

Who has responsibility.

What requires approval.

What governing documents say.

And how those pieces work together.

When everyone understands their role, leadership decisions can be approached much more clearly.

When those roles are unclear, even routine decisions can become unnecessarily difficult.

On October 27, I’m hosting a focused Faithful Foundations Legal Briefing on this very issue:

Pastor, Board, or Congregation? Who’s in Charge?

We’ll discuss what church leaders should understand about governance and decision-making before a difficult situation forces the question.

Tuesday, October 27

12:00 PM ET

Live Online + Recording

$50

Register for the Legal Briefing

If you serve in church leadership, I encourage you to attend with this question in mind:

If an important decision had to be made tomorrow, would everyone on your leadership team agree about who has the authority to make it?

Blessings!

This email is intended for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal, accounting, or tax advice, nor does it create an attorney-client relationship. The information provided here was based on certain federal and/or state statutes and does not encompass all applicable requirements or other regulations that may exist, such as local ordinances or case law.

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