How my ministry became 'Cage Free'

I walked into a little church one Easter Sunday...

It was Easter Sunday, 2016

I was scheduled to supply at ​St. Paul’s Episcopal Church​ in Salisbury, NC.

I knew from the minute I walked in that this was a special place: a small church with a big spirit. I loved the time I spent there.

Afterwards the senior warden called me. “We’re looking for a new vicar, and we want you to be that person.”

But I had just started a new ministry - I had just gone ‘Free Range’. Precisely because I knew the struggles that congregations - and clergy - were facing.

I said no.

But still … I felt something very holy about serving alongside them.

So I proposed another possibility to St. Paul’s:
what if we designed a new way to serve ministry together, that best supported everyone sharing the Gospel with minimal stress?

Over a decade has passed since then.

And along the way, we’ve worked out what I call ‘Cage Free’ ministry - a way to get to the most important parts of ministry - prayer, worship, formation, hospitality - with as little institutional ‘overhead’ as possible.

We’ve figured out 5 steps to Cage Free Ministry with a congregation (paid subscribers, see below)…

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Join us for Q2 of Substack Seminary. A place where innovative ministers - lay or ordained, serving in a traditional congregational setting or setting out on their own as entrepreneurial clergy and faith practitioners -

can find a community for ministry development, training, and support.

It’s where ‘Cage Free’ ministers of all kinds feel less alone.

You’re not weird - you’re early. And now you’re right on time.
Join Substack Seminary - a year-long development, networking, and training community for ministers.

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Cage Free Ministry Basics

1. Clergy (and professional lay ministers) on task-based contract.

A new minister shows up at a congregation - what is the actual work they’re supposed to do?

Often enough, this is never spelled out!

Clergy do what they think clergy should do (they lead worship, they preach, and then what? Pastoral care? (what does that mean, exactly?) Christian formation (what does that mean, exactly?)

Clergy end up doing everything. And congregations just assume that this clergy person will do what the last one did (why shouldn’t they?) And they basically expect full-time work regardless of whether it’s part-time, because clergy are usually doing everything.

The simple yet paradigm-shifting solution to this: a contract that states exactly what work is being done by the minister. Based on the task, not the time.

It’s not about ‘30 hours a week’, it’s about ‘preaching on Sunday’ (how many Sundays? What about other days/services? etc)

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2. Clergy not ‘in charge’ of congregations

The 20th-century model of church is clergy as CEOs of small non-profits - making decisions for the community on everything from service times to personnel to programs.

In the Cage Free model, clergy serve alongside congregations, bearing the sacraments, Scripture, and traditions of faith. Praying and leading worship. And supporting the leadership of the lay ministers - and the whole congregation.

It’s not the clergy person’s church!

Personally, as a Free Range Priest who has been serving with a small congregation for a decade, I:

• Don’t have a key to the buildings

• Don’t know what their budget is

• Don’t attend any meetings (unless I’m specifically invited - for a reason)

Cage Free Ministry is about being a ‘consultant’ for the ministry of the congregation or community.

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3. Asking ‘Where is God in this?’

After clarifying what our job is NOT, it’s important to clarify what it is:

Theological presence and process.

Helping others grow in their relationship with God, and helping them become the disciples they’re called to be.

The ‘cage’ of the institutional church often puts clergy in the role of social worker, therapist, community organizer, business manager, and other jobs best suited for those who are so called.

As ministers, we have a very important calling, and it’s important to keep this central:

Sit with people and ask where God is in this. Tell them where you see and feel God’s presence. Create space for discernment and listening for God’s voice.

Don’t solve or fix. Be a faithful presence.

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4. ‘Root’ not ‘Fruit’ of Christian ministry

Churches should not be doing ‘outreach’.

This may seem contradictory to our faith - because of course we’re called to love and serve our neighbors!

But this is the ‘fruit’ of Christian ministry.

Ministry is where we share the root.

There is nowhere else in today’s world for people to learn and practice and experience the Christian faith than in church (or participating in another ministry).

Ministry should focus on forming disciples - who then feel compelled to share the fruit of Christian ministry in their community.

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5.Focus on sharing the Gospel - NOT saving the institution.

This step requires brutal honesty and not a small bit of courage.

Most ministers and lay leaders are exhausted because they are trying SO hard not to let the institution collapse on their watch.

• ‘We’ve got to meet our budget’

• ‘We’ve got to bring in new members’

• ‘We’ve got keep this small group of people happy’

• ‘We’ve got to find more people to help with this program’
  
  

Or else - what?

Or else the church doors could close. Or else the minister’s hours will have to be reduced (or at least their pay…). Or else we might have to let someone go…

The painful truth: the institution is collapsing anyway. We can’t save it through the force of our will.

The Good News: We can let it go. We really can.

If we focus on the love of God, and loving and serving our neighbors, if we preach the Gospel and use our energy to share it - then we know God is leading us forward into new ways of being and doing church.

We just have to follow faithfully.

And be not afraid.

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The ultimate goal of Cage Free Ministry isn’t efficiency or

cost savings—though it provides both. It isn’t even supporting clergy and small congregations - though it does this, too!

The goal is breaking out of the institutional cage that is crushing us - and sharing more Good News that is giving us life.

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Let’s Bring Church to People.

As a paid subscriber to Free Range Priest, you’re already receiving:

• Week-by-week, step-by-step insights and actions you can take towards Cage Free Ministry and Unstuck Church

• Monthly ‘Ask Father Cathie’ livestream (and submit you own questions)
  
  Become a founding member and get a 360 degree ‘mini consultation’ for your ministry:
  

• Free Ministry Re-imagination mini-courses

• Paid membership to Substack Seminary and Trexo.

• a yearly 1-1 consultation with me.

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The institution is collapsing. The church is growing in new ways.
If you’re ready for the adventure of sharing the Gospel in this (not so new anymore) century:

Let’s Bring Church to People.

Free Range Priest

Practical ideas and wildly optimistic theories about how the Holy Spirit is transforming the practice of ministry.

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