Unlocking the Mystery of COVO Congregations: Part 1
What is a COVO Congregation?
A COVO congregation is characterized by the absence of a full-time paid leader for the church.
In recent memory, this type of congregation has been thought of as small and struggling, declining to the point where it cannot afford the salary of a full-time minister. This may still often be the case, but increasingly, congregations and ministers are choosing to build their leadership structure and strategy around the benefits of this innovative yet ancient structure.
The roots of covocational ministry go back to the earliest practices of the Christian church, with the Apostle Paul being the most obvious and most successful example of this. Paul financed his itinerant church startup ministry by leveraging his skill in making tents.
Thus, an often-used name for this type of pastoral leadership has been “tentmaking.”
While most of the study and resource creation in this area is devoted to supporting the leaders themselves, the COVO Project at Briercrest also pays attention to the postures and strategies needed by the congregation's leaders and parishioners.
In this four-part series, we will be taking a quick look at what it means to be a covocational congregation. We will uncover a few of the reasons why, instead of calling this project bi-vocational or even multi-vocational ministry, we are calling it CO-vocational. It’s because we believe that this practice of ministry is shared.
What, exactly, is shared in a covocational congregation?
A covocational ministry shares ownership.
In churches with full-time ministers, there may be a common perception that these ministers bear the sole responsibility for the church's vitality, health, and growth. Since the ministers are employed full-time, it’s easy to assume that they are responsible for handling all the work.
A covocational church leans heavily into the principle of the priesthood of all believers described in 1 Peter 2:5 & 9. Each member of the church sees themselves as a priest, one who is responsible for the work of the church. Ownership for accomplishing the mission and vision of the congregation is shared broadly across the entire church family.
But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. — 1 Peter 2:9
A covocational ministry shares gifts.
Each person in the church, as a royal priest, acknowledges that 1 Corinthians 12 tells us that each follower of Christ has been given a gift from the Holy Spirit that is to be offered and used for the benefit of all. Some have more time to give, and some people’s gifts are better suited for leadership and coordination, but all gifts have equal value in God’s ministry economy.
A covocational ministry shares the fruit.
1 Cor 12 goes on to say in vs 26 that, “If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.” Instead of placing the weight of responsibility, ministry, and also the emotional weight of the rise and fall of the congregation on one person, a covocational ministry shares all of these things together.
Stay tuned for the next article, where we will discuss the benefits of this approach to congregational life and ministry!
To learn more about the COVO Project at Briercrest, go to Co-Vocational Canada: Rethinking Sacred Work.
Reach out for free counselling for covocational leaders at CTMMCounselling@briercrest.ca.
To book a free consultation for your congregational leaders, contact Ellen Duffield, Coordinator for the Paul E. Magnus Centre for Leadership Studies at Briercrest Seminary.