Title: ELCA Survey: Women Pastors "On
Leave From Call"
ELCA NEWS SERVICE
March 18, 1996
SURVEY: WOMEN PASTORS "ON LEAVE FROM
CALL"
96-05-015-SS
CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Survey data show
that the largest number of clergywomen of
the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
who go "on leave from call" cite "study
leave" as the reason. But, when asked why
they thought a greater percentage of women
than men pastors were on leave, they most
often cited "family responsibility."
An ELCA pastor is considered "on leave
from call" when he or she no longer serves
at the request of "a source officially
recognized" by the church. After three
years without a call, the pastor is usually
dropped from the list of ELCA clergy.
Lutherans have ordained women as
pastors in the United States since 1970.
About 1,700 or 9.8 percent of the ELCA#s
clergy are women.
After study leave, the three major
reasons given in the survey were: caring for
family (child, parent or spouse), parish
conflict, and stress related to physical or
mental health problems.
The steering committee of the ELCA's
Commission for Women discussed these
preliminary findings at its meeting here
March 1-3. Surveys had been mailed to all
217 ELCA clergywomen who were on leave when
the study began in 1995, and 123 responded.
Committee members received a survey report
focusing on the dominant themes of the
survey.
"Many respondents reported serious
dissatisfaction with terse or absent
communication from synodical bishops and
staff," the report said. "Most disturbing,
a very few reported receiving only an
official form letter notifying them of the
impending end of their three years on leave,
after which they would be removed from the
roster; no telephone calls, no letter of
inquiry regarding plans or hopes or
concerns, no pastoral interest or concern,
no invitation to conversation."
Patricia Lemmerman, Allentown, Pa.,
concurred with those findings. "When my
three years were up, no one contacted me. I
had to read about my having been removed
from the roster," she said.
The survey is part of a broader study
that includes data from about 600 clergymen
and more than 80 percent or about 1,400 of
the ELCA's clergywomen. Recommendations
will be developed from these studies during
the next months and will be on the steering
committee's agenda in October.
In other business the steering
committee:
*Voted unanimously to recommend the
commission's executive director, Joanne
Chadwick, for another four-year term. The
ELCA Church Council will act on this in
April.
*Discussed how the church might be
hospitable to lesbian women in an attempt to
carry out the request of the 1995 Churchwide
Assembly for hospitality and justice for gay
and lesbian people.
*Asked the executive director to report in
October about the number of staff members
the commission needs to do its work.
*Examined new commission resources: "Safe
Connections: What Parishioners Had Do to
Understand and Prevent Clergy Sexual Abuse,"
"For the Peace of the Whole World: Five
Bible Studies on Just Peacemaking," and a
video and study guide, "Face to Face: Women
of Color in Leadership."
For information contact: Ann Hafften, Dir.,
ELCA News Service, (312) 380-2058; Frank
Imhoff, Assoc. Dir., (312) 380-2955; Lia
Christiansen, Asst. Dir., (312) 380-2956
