Don't go down that road
I'm beginning to gather material and do the reading for the next course I'm teaching on the theology and ethics of leadership, which made me stuff the article (linked below) in my "Under Construction" folder. When I was learning what it meant to be a pastor, my mentor passed along the unwritten "rule" that as a pastor, you didn't leave a church and start another one just down the road. I'm not sure those were his exact words, but that's the gist of it. It seems the "new breed" hasn't had anyone mentor them in that way. It's especially egregious when the reason for leaving the church is moral failure. And it is even worse when there is so little time elapsed between leaving and starting the new work (it's difficult for me to call it a "church"). Which is why I was so saddened to read about the failure of a younger leader who did exactly that. You can Google Gary Lamb and quickly discover that not everyone - including not a few pastors and church leaders - agree with me. That's not a big surprise, by the way. But I'd like to hear what you think - is it ethical to pursue a new work in this way?
Alan, I definitely agree with you and with Tony McCollum. Restoration is a must and Gary does not appear to have undergone true restoration. It seems that he is in both denial and rebellion.
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