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Do Ministers Really Retire

By Jim Hamilton.

I did!

At 10.30 on a balmy June evening in 2011, with an armful of wonderful gifts, a generous cheque in my back pocket, and my family beside me, I walked the short distance from the church to the Manse through a torch-lit ‘Guard of Honour’ of members past and present, and friends made and cherished over the years. The church that I had ministered in for 29 years had put on what the Area Minister called, ‘a humdinger’ of a farewell party with food, fun, dancing, moving and often hilarious tributes made live and through DVD, and now, as the Manse door closed, it was over. Forty years of pastoral ministry in just two churches had come to an end. I had retired! There was a tear or two. We broke open the champagne, ate some cake, reflected on the day and I planned to play golf with my son and sons in law the following afternoon. Golf on Sunday – this really was retirement!

Now, just over a year on, it is time to reflect, and the following is just that – some reflections. They don’t carry any authority, and I’m sure my experience is different from that of others, but I hope it might be helpful for some ministers as they approach their own retirement and for some churches as they prepare for that event.

The Preparation

It was always my intention to retire at 65. My 29 years at Shoeburyness had been very happy, fulfilling and often exciting. There were the three building projects – nothing that was there when we arrived in 1982 was still there when I retired. There was the church plant at Friars, special events, church holidays and missions. Above all, there were the many people who came to faith and grew in discipleship. New ideas and plans were still emerging, new appointments were in the offing, and there were many exciting plans and prospects. Even so, I just knew it was right to finish, but I had resolved to hit that point running.

I didn’t want to wind down. I still wanted to preach most Sundays, plan and be involved in special events, and generally continue at full throttle till the fateful day. In some respects that happened. We planned for my final Sunday to have a baptismal service – in the event we had to have three – such was the number of those wanting to be baptised before we rode into the sunset!

In other respects, however, and in spite of my good intentions, there was an element of winding down. Having lived in manses throughout both my ministries the issue of housing became prominent. Initially, we intended to follow the accepted pattern and move away, but circumstances led us to realise that we should stay in the area, so we had to look for a house locally. We were so grateful for the support and provision of the Retired Baptist Ministers Housing Society and after a short search a house was found and purchased for us by the RBMHS. It was much smaller than our manse, so time had to be given to sorting out stuff that we had accumulated over the years. Not only had we accumulated so much and accommodated it in our seven-roomed Manse, but for many years I had worked from an office in the church, so now I had to decide what to do with hundreds of books, documents, files and other stuff that I would not need and in any case have no room for in retirement. That was not an easy task! The winding down process in these areas had begun in earnest weeks before the retirement date.

The biggest winding down impact however was more subtle. Meetings were now taking place that no longer needed my presence (for instance the Search Group to seek and appoint my successor was set up months before I retired), and events planned that I would have no part in. All this was right and vital, but it did bring home the reality of impending retirement into sharp focus. I was beginning to be no longer needed. The church would survive and thrive without me! Some of that winding down process was exciting and enjoyable, some of it sad and almost frightening, but it was inevitable.

The Protocol

In his excellent paper, “Approaching Retirement” Paul Goodliff writes about the importance of a protocol being put in place and agreed by the minister and church about what can and can’t be done by the minister on retirement. This is particularly important when, as in our case, the minister is staying locally in the area of the church where he has ministered. There have been too many horror stories of ministers being undermined by the presence of their predecessor not to make such a protocol necessary. Most of the issues covered make perfect sense – the minister not attending church or preaching at services for an agreed period, not taking on any pastoral responsibilities or leadership roles, not agreeing to participate in weddings, funerals, dedications etc unless invited to by his successor, not attending Church Meetings for at least two years, and generally agreeing not to say or do anything that might undermine his successor or the work he or she is doing.

In my case, there were some additional restrictions put in place and, in its initial form, I felt the document was overly negative, impersonal and rather rigid in some of its wording, suggesting – I’m sure wrongly - a lack of trust. Negotiations with the Leadership Team corrected some of this, but there was still a feeling, shared I know by a number of church members, that a more informal and more verbal arrangement would have been more suitable. The document also failed to take into account the situation with my wife and that led to some misunderstanding that could have been avoided.

In the event, the protocol has been gladly observed – it was more than nine months since the date of retirement before I entered the building again and since then I have only attended one further service due to preaching and other commitments elsewhere. My successor has been gracious and accommodating and I am genuinely thrilled that his ministry is flourishing. I would just want to appeal to church leaders and members to be sensitive in producing and presenting the protocol so as to avoid misunderstanding and even bad feeling. I believe there should be discussions between the minister and the Leadership Team to agree the broad content of the protocol before anything is put into print. It is helpful for the Baptist Union to provide a prototype document, but it is important to regard every situation as unique, and for flexibility to be allowed for.

The Process 

My wife and I have found that entering retirement is a process that requires on-going adjustment. I have to confess that I struggled at first. For us retirement meant finishing work, moving house and leaving church in one fell swoop. These are three big things to give up at once and would generally not all be there for those retiring from secular employment. 

In particular, I found moving from a lovely detached family home into a small end terrace house with rather thin walls difficult to cope with. Although we offloaded lots of things before we moved, we found we had to get rid of much more. Having been in a team ministry, I suddenly missed the buzz and banter of church life and especially of church leadership. There was a strange feeling of wanting to know and yet not wanting to know what was happening at church. It was tempting sometimes to drive past the building when there was no need to – I know that makes no sense! Meeting church members in the street or supermarket in the early weeks proved to be awkward – I didn’t want to be asked if I was enjoying retirement because I honestly didn’t know the answer.

We were thrilled to hear of the call to the new minister but at the same time it added to a strange feeling of finality. My 29 years of service along with the 11 in my first church were now officially history. Retirement was a new era. Gradually however the positives about this new life of retirement began to emerge. Our family are scattered in Belfast, The Midlands and Canterbury. Now we could see them so much more. On a Sunday morning in Canterbury, two weeks after retiring, I sat and watched my granddaughter in a gymnastics display at exactly the time the church service was beginning! My golf has improved with so much more time to play. I have even bought an iPad! Invitations to preach in other churches soon began to come in and I was given the opportunity to act as Moderator for two churches. It looks like further similar opportunities are emerging as well as invitations to participate in the BU Mentoring Scheme. Other invitations have also arrived and I have found it exciting and challenging to be able to speak, preach, guide and advise without the pressures of having to please a single regular congregation. It is great to realise that I can still be useful and have something to offer!

We are now attending our Small Group again and it great to be there in a non-official capacity. Meeting and talking to friends and church members is less and less of a problem. In other words, when people ask if I am enjoying retirement, I can now honestly say that I am. There are things that I still miss, but I am so glad that retirement came when it did. I think my wife, children and grandchildren would agree!

There is one final aspect of retirement that I want to mention, and this may seem controversial. Having spent all 40 years of my ministry in churches that were strongly evangelical, broadly charismatic and actively engaged in mission, I hesitated to question the fundamental beliefs that I had held and shared over these years. I have found that retirement and release from the responsibilities not only for, but to, the people in these churches has caused me to feel free to ask questions and explore ideas that might challenge some of my previously held beliefs. I have realised, possibly to my regret, that sometimes over the years both publicly in preaching and teaching and privately in conversation and some pastoral situations I have responded to situations and expressed views that in all honesty were designed more to toe the party line theologically and to say what I knew people wanted to hear, than what was truly in my mind and heart. I find now that while retaining and growing in many of these long held evangelical beliefs, I have been freed to question and sometimes express doubts that had remained hidden and suppressed over the years. There has been a feeling of release and freedom in that because the truths that are still there that overcome the doubts find strong roots in my heart.

I am so grateful for the forty years of ministry that I have been privileged to be part of.  I am also so grateful that I am being allowed to experience retirement. I hope I don’t become a grumpy old man, but now I am retired you never know – my wife sometimes calls me “Victor!”