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necessary to follow this practice. The Bible is not specific on this
point. �any things we do today, such as our form of service -- our
custom of preaching as we do including average length, sermonettes,
hymns, prayers, etc. -- are traditions established by judrnental deci
sions. God does not give rigid instructions as He did to the priests
and Levites of old.
Mr. Armstrong nevertheless felt that it is encouraging to a minister
(as well as to the congregation) to lay hands on him at the time he is
advanced to another designation in the ministry. It is not unscriptural;
it has simply become a modern tradition and at least for now there is
no good reason to change it.
Along this same line, in counsel with Mr. Armstrong, we decided
(Mr. Armstrong making the final judgment) that we would at least for
now continue with the two separate designations of Preaching Elder and
Pastor. Again, this is a matter of administration and judgment. It
is not contrary to the few guidelines God gives us, (especially I
Corinthians 12 and Ephesians 4). We have followed this custom since
the mid 1950s, at the time the number of ministers of this era of the
Church began to grow at a rapid pace.
Today in actual practice we have some men designated as Local
Elders who are actually Church Pastors. Generally this should be very
limited as one ought to move to the position of Preaching Elder if he
is adequately trained and experienced to become a full Pastor.
Mr. Armstrong has taught -- and still believes -- that when one is
ordained as a Local Church Elder he is not set apart with the full
credentials of the ministry. For example he is not necessarily
required to preach. He does not generally have the duty to perform
the functions of conducting wedding ceremonies and funerals. He may
not wish to teach publicly in such services as Bible Studies. He
must, however, be a man of God, dedicated to the Church as Christ's
Body and to the service of his brethren. He is to be a man of faith,
able to pray over and anoint the sick in believing faith.
As we know, in actual practice, many of our Local Elders are
excellent speakers in both sermonettes and sermons. Many are very
good leaders and motivators with very good stage presence. We have
seen many men ordained from among the local membership as elders, then grow
and develop in such a way that it is obvious God is setting them apart
to the full-time ministry. At this time, unless there are unusual
circumstances, such a man should be ordained as a Preaching Elder.
Since our custom -- now a modern tradition in the Church -- is in
no way unscriptural, we will continue as I said earlier, to use the
designations of Preaching Elder and Pastor. The general guidelines
will be that one is ordained as a Pastor after long years of service,
perhaps is more effective as a public speaker, and one who exhibits
leadership and service orientation beyond the normal requirement.
In no way is it to be a greater "badge" of authority, but rather
a meritorious consideration and recognition of development and service.
From a pyramidal structure point of view, being set apart as a Pastor
may not in fact mean more administrative responsibility. We may
actually have Evangelists working under the supervision of a Pastor