How to Get Off a Church Committee
Posted January 10th, 2008 by Unofficial Unit...
Volunteer burnout is a risk for active United Church members. Knowing how to gracefully withdraw from a committee is one way to make sure you have energy to keep serving the church in different ways.
1. Know when to quit.
Being part of a church committee should feel like a joyful opportunity to offer your gifts, not a burden. If the thought of going to a committee meeting fills you with dread, it may be time to resign or at least take an extended leave to "recharge your batteries."
2. Give ample notice. (And don't back down.)
Tell the chairperson and the committee of your intention to leave. They may be distressed at the prospect of losing you and anxious about their ability to carry on without you. You may find yourself thinking that it would be "easier" to stay with the committee and keep plugging away. Be strong!
3. Find a sucker replacement.
One way to resign from a committee with a clear conscience-and allay the fears of committee members who see their numbers dwindling and their individual workloads increasing-is to provide someone who can take your place. Suggest some names and, if appropriate, approach people who may be interested in joining the committee.
4. Look for new opportunities to serve.
It may help you say goodbye to the committee you're on if you have in mind something you're moving on to (a different committee, a study group, or a church-related community outreach project).
5. Use extreme tactics as a last resort.
If you find yourself unable to get off a church committee either because of the committee's tenacity or your complete lack of spine, you may have to move out of town and/or fake your own death. These options are costly and have serious consequences for your life and for your relationships. They should be considered only in extreme situations.
Be Aware
- Some congregations have "fixed terms," in which volunteers are asked to serve on a given committee for no more than, say, three or four years. This ensures that committee membership doesn't become a life sentence, and encourages people to get involved in a number of different areas of the congregation's life and work.
Originally published in The Unofficial United Church Handbook. Please see the UCRD web page for more information.
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Comments
Extreme Tactics
6. Other extreme tactic – Change the committee structure
Faking your own death is challenging admittedly, but is relatively simple compared to killing the committee structure that has been in place since the pews were installed.
In my interpretation of the Manual (never having opened one…) the only committee structure required of a United Church is a Board (of some form) and a Ministry and Personnel committee. Everything else is your own creation. Own that creation.
Do the people who decorate the Sanctuary need to meet monthly as part of a Worship committee?
Do you need a Stewardship committee, or can you just put together a group on an annual basis to co-ordinate the drive for 3 months, and then disband it?
Is your outreach committee sitting around a table, or is it pursuing a project a group of people have a passion for?
If no one cares about ________, or wants to do it, why are you? Is the Spirit calling you to that work?
A small group model of church action allows the Spirit to move people to form groups, carry out the Spirits work, and then dissolve those groups when the call fades.
If you would like information on how to invoke change in your congregation, like say eliminating a bunch of non-functional committees, consider attending an Emerging Spirit workshop where you will be given tools to imagine what your Church can be, and help get there.
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