Note
from Former
Mountainview Elder John Engler
I resigned as an
elder at Mountainview on November 21, 2006 for personal reasons. I
think it is prudent to elaborate on the reasons for my resignation and
clarify my perspective on matters at hand.
Primarily, my
resignation had to do with how much time serving as an elder had
taken from my family. It had been under consideration for several weeks
and was not in response to calls for my
resignation during the congregational meeting of November 19th.
I continue to stand by the
decision we made as elders to ask the Sr.
Pastor of Mountainview to resign. I believe it was the right and best
course of action available at the time.
Some things have been alleged
concerning me:
- First, it has been
alleged that the elders, including me, came into the elder training and
the eldership with an "agenda" to dismiss the Sr. Pastor. That is
untrue. I did not even know what the problems were, other that what had
been presented to the congregation publicly. I went into the evaluation
of matters concerning the conduct of the Sr. Pastor with an open mind.
- Second, it has been
alleged that the elders heard only "one side of the story;" that is,
they only heard from people who had complaints about Jim's behavior.
This is also untrue, and it is irrelevant as well.
In my past dealings with the Sr. Pastor (prior to
elder training), I had no negative experiences with him and had been
positively
impressed
with quite a few things. So I myself had a positive impression of him
going into the eldership.
Further, when attempting to establish what actually happened
concerning the allegations of mistreatment and wrongdoing, it was
irrelevant to speak to
those who were not involved in the events in question. I heard the case
of
those who alleged wrongdoing or harm, and I heard the Sr. Pastor's
explanation as well. In making an evaluation, I had to consider the
plausibility of the stories presented and the credibility of those
weighing in.
The testimony of other parties (not to mention busybodies)
was not relevant. This process was not an election; it was an attempt
to determine what had happened and to evaluate the suitability and
commendability of the Sr. Pastor for continued leadership in light of
certain events that had taken place..
The explanations I heard from those hurt, the Sr. Pastor and
his coach, and church consultant,
along with prayer, consultation and thoughtful consideration, led me to
my conclusion. I
found the witnesses alleging mistreatment to be credible, and I found
their
explanations plausible. Many of these were past staff
members whose testimony effectively cost them their membership in the
church and in some cases thousands of dollars
(because of the professional and other hardships they encountered).
Such testimonies are not easily dismissed.
On the other hand, the Sr. Pastor has attributed all of
the hurt to "not being in the present" and a bad leadership structure.
I found this a ridiculous, incredible and inadequate explanation
for the hurts that
had taken place. His remaining in his position also represented a
significant financial benefit on his part.
The Sr. Pastor had said that if we felt like he was the problem, then
he would resign. He also said that he felt that "God had not released
him from Mountainview" but that if the elders reached a decision
contrary to that, he would accept it as from God.
I believed that the best course of action for all parties involved was
for the Sr. Pastor to resign from his position and for the church to
hire a new pastoral team that could work together to bring healing.
This would then propel Mountainview to the next phase of its life. I
considered this the best way to bring healing and true unity to the
church, and found those prospects quite hopeful and exciting.
I also considered this the best way for the Jim to
transform his role and manner of leadership-- by allowing him a new
start in a new place, with adequate time and space to make the changes
necessary.
- Third, I and the
other elders have been accused of not having any grace towards the Sr.
Pastor. This is utterly untrue and betrays a complete misunderstanding
of the terms "sin" and
"grace."
To some, "forgiveness" simply
means no accountability or responsibility for actions taken or results
encountered. This is not a biblical definition of forgiveness. Forgiveness
of sins is by grace-- but if
the Sr. Pastor has not acknowledged wrongdoing (and he has not), then
what forgiveness is
necessary?
The
fact that he was offered a position after these various allegations had
come
to light was tremendously gracious on the part of the elders.
Some have suggested
that we could have brought Jim back as Sr. Pastor with an executive
pastor and other accountability mechanisms in place. Yet efforts had
previously been made to bring in other staff members to handle other
aspects of leadership in the church, and the result was the situation
we found
ourselves in. I
was concerned that if any other staff were brought in, they
would experience the same problems as past staff. While various accountability programs and reconciliation
programs were considered, none of these can bring about the change of
heart that I believed was necessary.
In the end,
leadership is a matter of trust. When trust has been broken,
the ability to lead is at risk. Not
only was the trust not restored in this case, I saw nothing that would
allow me in a
good conscience to commend the Sr. Pastor for leadership. A shepherd's
role is to shepherd and protect the church, and my actions reflected
that duty. I could not allow him to return to leadership in good
conscience, knowing that more would be hurt as others had already been
hurt.
Now some further
observations and comments:
- I was plainly
appalled and
shocked by the congregational meeting of November 19th. The lack of
love for the truth, the hostility and the booing was utterly shameful.
It was a deeply
hurtful and traumatic experience for me personally.
- I can understand
surprise
on the part of the congregation with the Sr. Pastor's resignation, as
the congregation had been led to believe by some in past leadership
that the
leave of absence was progressing well and that the Sr. Pastor would be
returning
after his leave. I can also understand people's difficulty with this
being presented as a "job fit" sort of issue. Believe it or not, this
was an extremely gracious way to present the entire matter. I think the
elders were bending over backwards to express it in this way and to
offer him the position of leadership in the first place. Ironically,
this graciousness may have made it harder for the congregation to
accept the evaluation and action of the elders.
When Jim did not
accept the
final proposal, after past assurances that he would abide by whatever
the elders thought best, demonstrated to me one last time several
troubling things I had seen throughout this process: that he
did not
take any of the past hurtful behavior and results seriously, that his
word was always open to further "spin" later on, and
that he was bound and determined to
be THE leader of Mountainview, over all others, elders and other
pastors alike. This final attempt to manipulate the position that was
offered into a position of primacy confirmed the evaluation I had come
to through this process.
- To have the
honest
assessment of the elders attacked was embarrassing-- for
the
attackers, not the elders. The mob mentality, the "booing," and lack of
spirituality
was troubling. I could only wish that the desire for truth was stronger
than the desire for partisanship. Though there were a few strong, noble
voices, they were in a distinct minority.
- For the recently
resigned Sr. Pastor to say he supports and respect the authority of the
elders and the unity of the church, but then to encourage and
participate in a meeting that attacked the elders and further divided
the church, speaks volumes to me. Another example of saying one
thing and doing another. But I always watch what people do, not what
they say.
- What stood out to
me in this congregational meeting was an utter disregard on the part of
the congregation for their brothers and sisters who had been
mistreated. The membership did not (and still does not) realize that it
could just as easily have been
one of them who had been mistreated. I know that many of those
complaining about
the decision would be singing a different tune if they or one of their
best friends had been mistreated by the Sr. Pastor. With his return, I
fear more people will be hurt, and they will find out the hard way
about all of this.
- The congregational
meeting and other incidents at this time made me
realize that
many if not most people at Mountainview wanted the Sr. Pastor to
return, no matter what he had done, whether or not there was any
penitence or accountability for his actions. Their comfort level in
having him as Sr. Pastor matters more than anything else, including the
well-being and fellowship of their brothers and sisters and the health
of their congregation. I find this unfortunate, but true.
I think Mountainview has a lot
of great people. They are nice, hard-working and trying to do the right
thing. But I am perplexed-- how can great people so uniformly look the
other way with toxic leadership dynamics? How can great people stand there like
signposts while their brothers and sisters are trashed out? How can
great people sit there silently while a mob speaks for them and boos
when certain names are mentioned? How can great people not be appalled
by this sort of behavior?
Well, I'm appalled by it.
For me to remain at Mountainview is like chaining myself to all of this
toxic nonsense. Do I really
want to spend the next season of my life doing that? I can't justify that, especially where I have had my
character assassinated for
making a good faith evaluation of the matters at hand as an elder. I
can help God's church-- his universal church-- in other ways than I can wasting my time and racking my brain trying to get the Sr.
Pastor and Mountainview to be something they don't want to be.
I know Mountainview "works" for a lot of people. I wish them all well
and pray that the necessary changes take place in time to protect more
people from being hurt.
I understand
and respect that some people may decide to leave
Mountainview in the wake of all of these events. I count myself among
them. I
want to urge those of you who have left or are considering leaving to
continue to remain close to the Lord and your brothers and sisters in
the
Lord as you move on in the next step of your journey of faith.
John