Section: The Pastor

515.15

The pastor shall be, ex-officio, president of the local church, chairperson of the church board, and a member of all elected and standing boards and committees of the church he or she serves. The pastor shall have access to all records of the local church. (127, 145, 150, 152, 153.1)

516

The pastor shall have the right to a voice in the nomination of all heads of all departments of the local church, and any Nazarene childcare/school (birth through secondary) organization.

517

The pastor shall not contract bills, create financial obligations, count moneys, or disburse funds for the local church unless authorized and directed by majority vote of the church board or by majority vote of a church meeting; such action, if taken, must be approved in writing by the District Advisory Board and shall be duly recorded in the minutes of the church board or of the church meeting. No pastor or any member of his or her immediate family shall be authorized to sign checks on any church account except upon the written approval of the district superintendent. Immediate family shall include spouse, children, siblings, or parents. (129.1, 129.21–129.22)

518

The pastor shall always show due regard for the united advice of the district superintendent and the District Advisory Board. (222.2, 536.2)

519

In case a licensed or ordained minister presenting a credential from another denomination shall, during the interim of sessions of the district assembly, make application for membership in a local church, the pastor may not receive such applicant without first having obtained the favorable recommendation of the District Advisory Board. (107, 225)

520

For the exercise of this office the pastor shall be amenable to the district assembly, to which he or she shall report annually and give brief testimony to his or her personal Christian experience. (203.3, 530.8, 536.9)

521

The pastor shall automatically become a member of the church of which he or she is pastor; or, in case of more than one church in his or her charge, of the church of his or her choice. (536.8)

522

Pastoral Service includes the ministry of a pastor or an associate pastor, who may serve in specialized areas of ministry recognized and approved by the appropriate governing, licensing and endorsing agencies. A member of the clergy called to any of these levels of pastoral service in connection with a church may be considered an assigned minister.

523

Supply Pastors. A district superintendent shall have the power to appoint a supply pastor, who shall serve subject to the following regulations:

  1. A supply pastor may be a Nazarene member of the clergy serving in some other assignment, a local minister or a lay minister of the Church of the Nazarene, a minister in process of transfer from another denomination, or a minister who belongs to another denomination.
  2. A supply pastor shall be appointed temporarily to fill the pulpit and to provide a spiritual ministry, but shall not have authority to administer the sacraments or to perform marriages unless that authority adheres to him or her on some other basis, and he or she shall not perform the administrative function of the pastor except in the filing of reports, unless authorized to do so by the district superintendent.
  3. A supply pastor’s church membership shall not be automatically transferred to the church where he or she is serving.
  4. A supply pastor shall be a nonvoting member of the district assembly unless he or she is a voting member by some other right.
  5. A supply pastor may be removed or replaced at any time by the district superintendent.