Vanity in the pulpit
I preached Sunday at a church in Woodbridge. I used to do that for a living. And it's nice to get back in the saddle once in a while to see if I still have the chops for sermonizing.
What was interesting to me this time was that several members of the congregation came up to me to tell me about a big-time preacher who had visited their church the week before. Getting this guy is a bit of a coup, and one imagines he is handsomely recompensed for his appearance.
They were glad to have him, the church members told me, even though he chastised the congregation for what he deemed a too small turnout for his pontifications. He told them they were lazy, essentially, or incompetent for not getting the word out that the Big Man was coming. Because if they had, he proclaimed, the sanctuary would have been SRO. The people who talked to me assumed he was correct, even though they had publicized his appearance out the ecclesiastical wazoo.
"Look,'' I said to them. "There's another way to look at this. Don't you see the monumental egotism at work here? As if the mere mention of his name would bring people running. Maybe he's not as popular as he seems to think, and talk about biting the hand that feeds you. If the guy was disappointed in the turnout, he should have sucked it up and ministered to those who did have the grace to show up. You shouldn't feel bad at all -- the size of his ego probably limited seating.''
I know all about vanity and ego. I have a pretty big one myself, they tell me.
But I am still amazed, after all these years, that people will come out to hear me speak.
And it really doesn't matter how many are there. As long as the check clears.
What was interesting to me this time was that several members of the congregation came up to me to tell me about a big-time preacher who had visited their church the week before. Getting this guy is a bit of a coup, and one imagines he is handsomely recompensed for his appearance.
They were glad to have him, the church members told me, even though he chastised the congregation for what he deemed a too small turnout for his pontifications. He told them they were lazy, essentially, or incompetent for not getting the word out that the Big Man was coming. Because if they had, he proclaimed, the sanctuary would have been SRO. The people who talked to me assumed he was correct, even though they had publicized his appearance out the ecclesiastical wazoo.
"Look,'' I said to them. "There's another way to look at this. Don't you see the monumental egotism at work here? As if the mere mention of his name would bring people running. Maybe he's not as popular as he seems to think, and talk about biting the hand that feeds you. If the guy was disappointed in the turnout, he should have sucked it up and ministered to those who did have the grace to show up. You shouldn't feel bad at all -- the size of his ego probably limited seating.''
I know all about vanity and ego. I have a pretty big one myself, they tell me.
But I am still amazed, after all these years, that people will come out to hear me speak.
And it really doesn't matter how many are there. As long as the check clears.
posted by Michael Riley at 9:00 AM
3 Comments:
the speaker was incorrect in his assessment that not enough people came out to hear "the Big Man" speak....the only Big Man who counts in that church (or anywhere) is the origianl Big Man...
The Big Man. You mean Clarence What's-his-name from the E Street Band?
I like Tony Campolo. How could anyone dislike someone who once said the following:
"I have three things I'd like to say today. First, while you were sleeping last night, 30,000 kids died of starvation or diseases related to malnutrition. Second, most of you don't give a shit. What's worse is that you're more upset with the fact that I said shit than the fact that 30,000 kids died last night."
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