I recently spoke to Simon Bland, the Unitarian Congregational Support Officer, at the ‘Ministry Inquiry Day’ 2022. When I asked him about Unitarian Ministry, he updated me on new training available to any Unitarian who wants to become a minister. This was interesting, but, as I said at the time, this is an answer to the question “What is it like to become a Unitarian Minister?”, and the question I need answering is “What is Unitarian Ministry?” (It is a tribute to Simon’s good nature that he did not immediately point out that I was being a right smart-Alec.)

Or to put it another way: “If our congregation doesn’t have a minister, what are we missing out on?”

As a movement, we seem to be rather coy about this. There’s no “ministry” page on our national website, and you will struggle to find a definition of it online, and indeed anywhere else. We could define it as “Ministry is what Ministers Do”, but this is not the most useful definition, and it is increasingly irrelevant in an era when we are fast moving away from the “one congregation, one permanent building, one full-time minister” model, and into an era when ministers may be part-time or have more than one congregation, many congregations don’t have their own building, many congregations don’t have a minister in any form, and worship is increasingly led by lay worship leaders and people of other faiths and practices.

Clearly, though, ministry is about more far than leading the service. So what is it? Simon helpfully pointed me towards some resources: Rev. Stephen Lingwood’s article “Towards a Theology of Unitarian Ministry” and the six competencies expected of Unitarian Ministers as specificied by the UK Unitarian College. Rev. Lingwood’s article is too detailed to be quickly or carelessly summarised, and I recommend that anyone interested in this topic should read it thoroughly, but I will highlight this section from his conclusion:

“At the risk of tedious repetition, this is the theological model of Unitarian ministry I am proposing: Ministry is everything we do together. That cannot be emphasised strongly enough. The “laity” should not be passive observers but radically committed ordained activists within our Unitarian community. All are priests, prophets, and pastors. Equality is a foundational theological commitment of Unitarianism.

This we need to affirm while also affirming in equally vigorous terms that there is a vital role in our ecclesiology for those we call “ministers.” Education is a foundational theological commitment of Unitarianism. Therefore Unitarian ministers are not ordained priests, but must be understood properly as ministry coordinators and theologians-in-residence / community spiritual directors. In this role the Unitarian minister is constantly turning ministry over to the whole community, constantly empowering the community to take responsibility for its own ministry, constantly turning the community’s attention to the Holy and to their calling in the world. The ministers does not mediate between the community and the divine but is a constant presence reminding the community and its members to “acquaint themselves with deity first-hand” and take responsibility for their own faith.”

The six competencies are:

1. Self-management and reflective work
2. Preaching / worship & Unitarian theology
3. Leadership
4. Pastoral
5. Mission and community
6. Rites of passage, ceremonies and stories

It would seem to me that the six competencies above are a very good starting point for a congregation without a minister to identify their ministerial needs. I would suspect that many of our congregations have got ‘preaching and worship’ covered – there are many excellent lay leaders – and self-reflection and maintaining our communities are often well done by lay members. Rites of passage and ceremonies might also be covered by bringing in celebrants from other Unitarian congregations or similar faith traditions such as humanists and Quakers.

My personal opinion is that the theological, leadership, pastoral and mission aspects of ministry are what many of us are missing out on. These require sustained and often difficult, perhaps even draining, work. It is difficult for volunteers, no matter how dedicated, to deliver on these aspects of ministry, unless they have a great deal of free time and support. Ministers have training, a salary, and a support network available, which is often not the case for lay members trying to map out what is needed.

Clearly, as a movement, we need to give this some thought. We’re not going to be able to go back to “one congregation, one permanent building, one full-time minister” for all congregations and fellowships, given our funding situation. I have had discussions with Simon Bland, Helen Mason (Principal of Unitarian College), and Liz Slade (Chief Officer of the national movement) among others, in which ideas such as having “regional clusters” of ministers, congregations being able to recruit part-time ministers (including perhaps those of other faiths) to provide pastoral care and spiritual leadership, and sharing ministers and lay worship leaders among congregations. All of these are promising avenues we should explore.

Lay Chaplaincy and Rites of Passage courses could also be of great use, and encouraging members of our congregations who feel able to undertake them to do so would be a big step forwards. There is perhaps now a need for more national co-ordination of ministerial resources to ensure our whole movement is well-served, not only those congregations with sufficient resources to pay for a minister, or able to share one with other nearby congregations. Clearly, it’s a big challenge, but when have we ever not faced big challenges? Forward into the future with hope!