There are stories which come out of every military conflict
of newly minted junior officers acting like they know everything there is about
leading a group of soldiers into combat. The smart junior officers knew they
had very little experience in combat, and relied upon their senior sergeants for
advice and counsel. The wise senior sergeants spoke privately with the junior
officer in a manner of coaching rather than contradicting the junior office in
front of the troops, or directing the junior officer with do this not that
directives.
Too often, I have observed newly minted teaching elders
(ministers) interacting with the session like the moderator is in charge. In
the polity of the Presbyterian Church (USA), the pastor is the moderator of the
session. For a first call pastor the words, “You are the Moderator,” ought to
send cold chills down one’s spine. When I was a young pup in ministry I was not
proficient in moderating a session. Although I had had plenty of group process training
in college, I didn’t fully understand the theology, polity or practicality of
moderating a session. My mother in executive service, Evlyn Fulton, often
stated that most ministers do know what it means to be a moderator.
A moderator is, in the words of Robert Greenleaf in Servant Leadership, first among equals. The only difference between the moderator
and the others elders on the session is function. The moderator is the presence
of the presbytery in the session meeting to insure the mission and ministry of
the congregation is in accord with the mission strategy of the presbytery.
Yes, the moderator functions as the chairperson in the session meeting. That
means it is the moderator’s responsibility to keep the business moving and the debates
civil. The moderator’s function is also to keep the business and debate biblically
and theologically focused. To use an image from family systems theory, the
moderator is to be the least anxious person at the table.
I know there were times when I was the most anxious person
at the table. I had in mind what should be done; how it should be done; who
should do it; and when it should be done. If the session were significantly
deviating from that, my anxiety would skyrocket and I became very ineffective
as the moderator. I forgot that when one acts like the most knowledgeable
person in the room, you are proving you are not. One of the core theological
and polity beliefs we have is, even though councils can and do err, the
decisions of the group are generally far better than those of an individual.
The moderator’s function is NOT that of a dictator.
The moderator’s voice should not be the most heard nor the
loudest voice at the table. There are appropriate times for the moderator to
ask a question and sometimes for the moderator to make a brief statement. It is
generally ill-advised for the moderator to scold the other members of the
session, or to speak at length favoring one side or the other, or to filibuster
on a topic. If the moderator wishes to make their opinion known, if is best to
ask the clerk or another elder to function as the moderator.
In our system the moderator has a vote in session meetings,
due to their having been elected by the congregation. Temporary, non-installed,
moderators do not have a vote. My counsel to pastors has been either always
vote or never vote. Cherry picking issues upon which to vote is a dangerous
pattern. If there is an equal number of ruling elders on the session and the moderator’s
vote would decide the question, one way or the other, means there is not a
clear discerning of direction. It is likely the losing side of the question
will feel resentment of the power play by the moderator in voting on that issue
if the moderator usually does not vote on lesser matters.
I know I would have greatly benefitted by having had a coach
with whom I could have debriefed the session meetings, and who could have
helped me better lead the session. Having taught polity on the M.Div level and
for those preparing to serve as ruling elders commissioned to pastoral service,
I know there is not enough time to cover the material and to prepare the
students to function as effective moderators. If I were doing it again, I would
insist folks come to class fully knowledgeable of the material for that class,
and we would spend the most of the class time in practice session meetings. I
believe it would have been more effective than covering the material in class.
Effective moderating requires knowing the material, and artfully applying it.
Newly minted moderators, who is your coach?
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