May 10, 2004
The Pious Pastors, and
The Esteemed Parish Council
Members of
the Holy Metropolis of Denver
Beloved in the Lord,
Christ is Risen!
A number of administrative irregularities occurring in parishes throughout the Metropolis have recently been brought to my attention.
Among these is confusion in certain places regarding the position of the parish "secretary." It should be obvious that the Parish Council Secretary and the administrative assistant/office manager ("secretary" in other situations) are two very different individuals with very distinct functions. The first is an officer of the parish, whereas the second is effectively an "employee" of the parish whether compensated or not.
All mail and other correspondence should be delivered directly to the parish Priest, unopened. The Priest alone may, and must, open all correspondence with his name on it. The Priest, as head of the parish and part of the parish council, must also open all correspondence addressed to the Council, and pass it on to one of the Parish Council officers as appropriate for action. The parish administrative assistant/office manager ("secretary") may not open the mail for either the Priest or the Parish Council.
The parish administrative assistant/office manager ("secretary") may not attend the Parish Council meetings and take minutes, etc. as though they were the Parish Council Secretary. In fact, no employee of the parish may attend a Parish Council meeting unless invited to do so by the Priest or President to provide some pertinent information or report; once finished, they should leave the meeting. Similarly, spouses or other relatives of Parish Council members do not attend and/or participate in meetings.
Likewise, there must be no confusion between the Parish Council Treasurer and any other person who may be tasked with handling the routine matters of writing checks, making deposits, etc. The Treasurer alone is responsible for every financial transaction and all financial activities of the parish, and alone directly oversees any other person who may assist in conducting the financial business of the parish. The Treasurer is a signatory on all accounts of the parish, except for the Pastor's Benevolent Fund account as well as the Philoptochos and GOYA (youth) accounts.
All financial matters and dealings of the parish are open and must be conducted honestly. This should go without saying, but there are some cases where the parish has accounts, or conducts transactions that are not known to the general membership. Every account held, every single check written, and every transaction conducted, must be disclosed to the general membership typically at the seasonal General Assemblies as part of the Treasurer's report.
The only account from which transactions are made that are kept confidential is the Pastor's Benevolent Fund which every parish must establish to afford the Priest the ability to help those in need. Obviously any necessary "control" over this account by the Parish Council is simply whether to deposit parish funds into it or not. This, of course, does not preclude the Priest from obtaining other funds from donors to do charitable work.
Please keep in mind that our parishes are sustained by the generosity of its members. This is exercised by our faithful stewardship of the many gifts God has given to us. The concept behind Christian stewardship is this: to recognize that God gives us everything, 100%, of all that we have, and expects us to use everything we have to good purpose: to feed and clothe ourselves and our families, to help others, to sustain our Church. The Biblical principle of Christian stewardship is to acknowledge that God asks us to keep for ourselves and our use 90% of everything He allows us to gather of His many gifts, and to provide 10% to our Church. A good steward is therefore one who "tithes" (gives his 10%). Those whose "free will stewardship" as reflected on a pledge card is $10 a year or $100 a year might not be good stewards and should consult with their parish Priest regarding their spiritual knowledge and condition.
Although it is a theological matter, and part of our sacred Greek Orthodox traditions, customs, practices, and beliefs, please allow me to mention another matter that also has "administrative" consequences. The Priest, by virtue of his ordination to the Holy Priesthood of our Lord Jesus Christ and his appointment by the metropolitan hierarch is the head of the parish and therefore of every organization and activity of the parish. I do not know why the notion was ever introduced, or why we continue to perpetuate the idea, that the Priest is an employee, or is subject to the Parish Council, or is anything else but the living icon of Christ in your parish and your beloved father.
I am most bewildered and mystified when former (or current) and especially retired military veterans fail to show respect for the Priest or acknowledge his role in the "chain of command," something they above all others should know very, very well.
Please allow me to "spell it out" for those who may be unfamiliar with this structure.
Your immediate metropolitan hierarch is responsible to his synod (regional assembly of bishops, or hierarchs), and oversees all the parishes within his diocese or metropolis. The theological principle is that the Church exists where the bishop is with those who are faithful to him and the sacred tradition of our holy Orthodox faith. It should be considered normal for the bishop to be present in every parish, and he is always the first in seniority or precedence. In our structure here in the United States, Metropolitan bishops are assigned as the hierarchs of the metropolitan dioceses and oversee the parishes therein.
In the absence of the bishop, the presbyter (or priest) stands in his
place. Your Metropolitan assigns a Priest to be the Proistamenos in the
parish, and by virtue of that assignment to speak for him in all
matters. When you show respect to the Priest you are showing respect
for the bishop and for Christ Himself of Whom bishops and priests are
living icons.
Obviously when you fail to show respect this reflects
your attitude upon Christ.
Any assistant clergy, presbyters and/or deacons, assigned to the parish are directly under the Proistamenos (or "Pastor"), and no one else. They are personal extensions of the ministry of the Proistamenos and are responsible to him alone. They may do nothing without his knowledge, just as the Proistamenos does nothing without the knowledge of his Metropolitan.
Parish staff are employed by the Parish Council, and are under the direct supervision of the parish Proistamenos for the daily conduct of their duties. Their performance is reviewed by the Parish Council to ensure that they are effectively and appropriately supporting the Priest and the ministry of the parish.
The Priest as Proistamenos and head of the parish administers the parish for the Metropolitan. He does so with the cooperation of the Parish Council who must be his loyal and trusted assistants in all things. The Priest is a non-voting member of the Parish Council because he is above voting issues, being the father of those on all sides of every issue.
The Parish Council officers have specific leadership responsibilities, under the guidance of the Priest, within the Parish Council. The President, or in his absence the Vice President, under the authority of the Priest, presides over all meetings. He does not vote, except to break a tie. The President also usually serves as a point of contact for many routine administrative matters, although the Priest and other Council members are obviously also "contact persons."
The Parish Council Secretary records and reports minutes of Parish Council meetings, and is responsible for files, records, and correspondence matters proper to the Parish Council. Obviously the Parish Council Secretary is not the "office manager" or "supervisor" of the parish office administrative staff.
The Parish Council Treasurer, as noted above, maintains all parish accounts and financial transactions, and oversees any other persons who assist in these functions.
Other Parish Council members participate freely in discussions and in the decision-making process within the Council. They may also serve as the heads of various committees.
Please keep in mind that the concept of "democracy" is alien to the Church and our ethos. The word itself, derived from the Greek word for people, or public, (demos) and strength, or rule, (krateia), implies power and control. Yet we say to God in every service of the Church, "Yours is the Kingdom, the power, and the glory." Instead, the concept proper to the Church is "order" (in Greek, taxi). God's power and rule over us and His Church is exercised through the good order of the local parish and the Metropolis. Neither the Metropolitan nor the Priest is more "powerful" because he stands in the sanctuary during the Divine Liturgy, nor because they he is the overseer or head of the parish. Rather, in the interest of good order, which is the indispensable prerequisite for peace and spiritual growth, they Ñ like the Chanters, Readers, Acolytes, choir members, Sunday School teachers, Parish Council officers and members, and members of every other parish organization Ñ have responsibility to perform that which is appointed for them by the tradition of the Church to do.
It is as simple as that. Anyone seeking to "control"—or exert power over—the parish, one of is organizations, or any person, is acting outside the tradition of the Orthodox Church.
I pray that you will take these words to heart as you struggle spiritually to be accounted as good and faithful servants of the Lord, obedient to Him and His Church in all things, as you seek to administer the parish to the greater glory of His most-holy name.
With Paternal Blessings in the Risen Christ,
+Metropolitan Isaiah of Denver