It is a common thing for a church to become known primarily for their senior pastor. It is a common thing for a church to grow with a pastor and then dwindle when he retires.
I’ve noticed one thing about today’s Christian culture: they love pastors. I can name 15 or 20 pastors that have hugely popular blogs/Twitter accounts and they all speak at conferences year round. I’m not really sure why, but being a pastor is becoming a “cool” thing in some circles. Or maybe the line between an apostle and a pastor is shrinking. I’m not sure.
While sometimes I can see value with a senior pastor being pushed to the forefront by a church (After all, he or she is likely the key communicator for that church), sometimes though, I think churches cross the line.
A few weeks ago I ran across a church in Seattle named Christian Faith Center. Here is the picture that is the header of their website:
What this says to me is that the church is its building and the senior pastor and his wife.
Not only does it communicate that, but the church’s web domain name is the actual name of the senior pastor: Casey Treat.
I’m not kidding, go to CaseyTreat.com and you will find that church’s website.
For me this not only crosses the line, but jumps right over it.
