Elders as a team
This part of the course explores the importance of Elders working as a team - amongst themselves and with the wider church community.
5. What is a team? - in practice
The United Reformed Manual cites 12 key responsibilities for the Elders of a church to deliver. These cover a range of activities from worship, mission, church administration, and education. (Click here to review the function of the Elders' meeting)
It is in the Elders’ meeting that these responsibilities are taken forward either through collective decisions or, possibly, by collective decisions based on work done by smaller delegated groups that report back to the Elders' meeting.
The range of responsibilities that Elders hold calls for a wide range of skills. No one person would have all the appropriate skills, attributes, or time, to fulfill all of these needs! In the same way that, together, the apostles established the early church by bringing together their disparate skills, we too can discern God’s will and move forward God’s vision for our church today.