Can a pastor ban a parishioner from coming to mass?

At the same time, the 10:30 AM Sunday Mass was becoming a circus, because everyone who attended was certain that this lady would always be there, and was invariably going to collapse before it was over. Parishioners trying vainly to pray were either grumbling, or half-jokingly making bets on how long it would take her to keel over this week.

Why do people say they feel disconnected at church?

It is a common phrase spoken by Christians and wrestled with by pastors, “I don’t feel connected at church.” The pastoral burden is for all Christians to be thriving in and through the ministry. When we hear something like this we immediately go into “fix-it” mode.

Can a priest tell someone not to go to mass?

Of course a priest can’t tell someone not to attend Mass, simply because he has a non-contagious health problem which is beyond his control, right? In actual practice, the question is not a simple one—and without knowing the full story behind it, it’s risky to try to answer it in a generic, one-size-fits-all sort of way.

Can a person sit in the back of the church during mass?

If the person really is significantly distracting the congregation during the Mass, is it possible for him to sit in a more discrete place in the church, to minimize the disturbance as much as is humanly possible? Maybe Lorraine doesn’t know—and maybe the parish priest does.

Can a pastor be a friend to a parishioner?

Have a social live, imbibe on the good live that God gives you and look at it all as being a holy and perfect gift. Pastoral work is not a call to absenstion, but a call to redemption of all that life has to offer. A mentor once told me that pastors are to be friendly, but should not become friends with the parishioners.

Is it OK for pastors to feel guilty?

Challenged, stirred, inspired, but not guilty. As a pastor this means I don’t expect that everyone in my congregation should feel awful about everything I ever preach on. It is ok, after all, for people to actually be obedient to God’s commands.

Who was the pastor that was not his friend?

He is right about friends, but I was not his friend. I was his pastor. M. Craig Barnes is president of Princeton Theological Seminary and author of The Pastor as Minor Poet. For over 30 years I’ve struggled with the question of befriending parishioners.

What happens when a pastor tells his people he has a lust problem?

The pastor who tells his people that he has a lust problem is creating more problems for himself than he can imagine. Every woman in the church will think he’s undressing her when he shakes her hand. When that happens, his ministry has come to an abrupt halt.