Barnabas File

I was serving as interim pastor of a small congregation and working with their search committee as they sought a new pastor.   The committee asked me to make some contacts related to one particular candidate.   I made several phone calls and discovered a disturbing pattern.   The pastor in question had a reputation of borrowing money from lay leaders in a congregation and then moving on, failing to repay the indebtedness.   Although the candidate was an effective preacher and seemed to have pastoral ministry skills, this raised some red flags for me and the search committee when they received my report. This is one of those ethical areas that are rarely touched in seminary or when groups of ministers gather to talk.   There are certain boundary issues—such as money, relationships, and time management—that are often overlooked in ministerial training. Although some denominational groups have codes of ethics that address such concerns, Baptists—being co...