Appointment-Making 2005
KITCHEN CABINET
ADDS ELEMENT OF FUN TO A STRESSFUL SEASON
By Annette Bender
When the Rev. Terry Goodman asked Bishop Swanson if he could put up a Web site with speculative lists of clergy appointments, the bishop "just laughed and said go ahead," Goodman said.
Goodman did, and www.holstonpastors.com went up on April 10. Within two weeks, 669 visits to the unofficial site had been registered.
"It's fun. It's sort of a homage to Jim Hankins," said Goodman, pastor at McKendree United Methodist Church in Chattanooga District. Many people in Holston fondly remember the late Rev. Hankins as "the great Kitchen Cabinet member of all time," he said.
You won't find any mention of it in the Book of Discipline, but the Kitchen Cabinet has apparently been speculating on clergy appointments long before technology made the practice more visible and efficient.
So named to reflect the unofficial nature of the group - as compared to the actual Cabinet who has real say-so about where clergy members are sent - the Kitchen Cabinet includes clergy individuals who collect lists of appointments and pass them somewhat secretly on to each other. The lists might be right or wrong, because in United Methodism, the bishop has ultimate say about where clergy will be appointed. Until the final day of Annual Conference in June, appointments are considered to be "projected" - not "fixed" until the bishop makes that clear with a ceremonial whack of the gavel.
That doesn't stop pastors from exchanging information before then, especially during the height of the appointment-making process in April. In the weeks that the Cabinet is juggling names and salaries and the appropriate clergy and pastor-parish committees have to be informed, appointment-making is highly confidential and stressful for the involved parties.
The Kitchen Cabinet might serve as a stress-reliever during the process, as well as a favorite pastime among clergy. "To me, it's a fun thing to do," says the Rev. Ralph Kidd, pastor at Mafair UMC in Kingsport District. "When they try to keep it so secretive, I like to break the code. I've even had people who were moving call me and ask, 'Do you know where I'm going?'"
"It's like a puzzle," says Goodman. "You want to figure it out and see how close you can be."
Some district superintendents have even quietly told one Kitchen Cabinet member that they're glad he's occupying his colleagues with speculative lists, because it keeps the clergy members "off their backs" with questions about who's going where. This June, about 134 out of 700 full and part-time clergy are expected to make moves to new appointments.
"Ultimately, it's the pecking order that keeps us so interested," said the Rev. Brad Scott, pastor at Jonesborough UMC in Johnson City District. "We find out who's important when appointments get made. I'm always glad when people get promotions. It's nice to see people growing."
In the old days, clergy shared appointment lists at district meetings or by telephone, Scott said. A now-deceased pastor is rumored to have spent hundreds of dollars on long-distance telephone calls, accumulating information for his highly accurate projections.
E-mail - and now, Goodman's Web site - made the information easier to pass on, according to Kitchen Cabinet members. Kidd claims that he doesn't make any calls at all now, but after 25 years of being in the center of the action, he warns his secretary that the phone will start ringing in April.
"I think people think I'm nosey, but it's amazing the number of people who call me - especially from Virginia, where I served until the last few years," Kidd said.
While many Holston members see the Kitchen Cabinet as harmless, Goodman said he is aware that "some people don't like this. Some don't go along with the speculation, because they don't think it's appropriate."
The risk, Kitchen Cabinet members say, is that news of an appointment will get out before the appropriate parties are informed. Another concern is that an appointment will be "announced" by the Kitchen Cabinet in a case where the involved clergy member has asked the official Cabinet to review or reconsider his or her appointment.
"I do keep strict confidence if someone asks me to," Kidd says. "I've never known of anyone being upset or hurt, but if the bishop ever told us not to do it, we wouldn't do it."
"If it ever gets to be a problem, the Web site will come down," Goodman said. "I've made that clear to the Cabinet. But right now, I don't think I'm hurting anybody. People are doing this anyway."
top
|
Bishop's Column
Cover Stories:
Kitchen Cabinet
Thirteen ministries receive Change for Children grants
INSIDE
Who's cooking?
Good ministry
Boots for camp
National & World News
Back to The Call Home Page
|
|
