I am probably the most blue collar priest around. Most of my peers work as hospital and nursing home chaplains or some other sort of white collar chaplaincy. My trade is that of a butcher. I served an apprenticeship many years ago in my home state of Ohio and learned the trade right well. I have worked in grocery stores, slaughter houses, and even a Mexican butcher shop. If you come to my house I will make you some smoky chicken or ribs. Ribs are my personal favorite. I do not discriminate; any rib is a good rib if smoked properly: pork, beef, goat, lamb. . .
Working at the Mexican butcher shop was quite an experience. That is the worst place I have ever worked and I spent nearly a year at Newport News shipyard. The owner had 2 shops and on the days when I was sent over to the other shop, which he had his nephew running, it wasn't bad. But when I was at the main shop I was habitually referred to as 'white boy' and worked like a pack mule. They thought I was unusually strong because I could overhead press the 90+ lb. boxes of beef. So I got to unload all of the deliveries. They noticed I was good with butcher's twine and made me tie Christmas hams until my fingers were literally bleeding. I was fairly desperate for employment at the time and I took it until one day. They didn't realize I understood Spanish and some of the guys were joking with the owner about how he was paying me a dollar an hour less than the illegals. I finished out the week and told him I wouldn't be back.
That's amazing Shane, my respect for you just grew tenfold. Something about bivocational ministry seems "right" at this time, when everyone is so removed from the earth, from the real world. In prior times when even the most academic of the academics still had to go to an outhouse, and knew how to milk the cows, a narrower specialization in books didn't seem to be a concern. But today when it's so easy to sever all ties to the real world and be a resident of the world-of-make-believe, those who get their hands dirty, even if leaves less time for ministry, are exactly what we need. Maybe that's what will make you a much better minister of the gospel to the rest of us.
I am probably one of the least blue collar people around by upbringing. Family owned their own business and we also now have expanded out into rental property. My grandad was able to go to college during the Depression years because of successful family. I work in the family business and it is all about the blue collar. We are a wholesale version of Home Depot and Lowes. I am not blue collar but the people I interact with are. I value their work as it is truly essential.
I keep trying to talk my bishop into getting a goat for one of our clergy meetings. I'd slaughter it and dig a pit to slow roast it in. It would be delicious. He hasn't gone for the idea yet.
Good, you should keep pushing for it. Almost all Christians have imbibed the "all life is sacred" nonsense which comes out of Hinduism. "The problem of evil" is not actually a "problem", and has never been a problem for Christians, because we've never believed that pain was anything evil. So what that you caused pain; you could even pull wings off a butterfly and still be perfectly moral, for 1900 years of Christian history; but today we cringe at any thought of it. The gospel of Hinduism has colonized us. Make the clergy around you squirm at the sight of blood, and then make them confront the gospel of Hinduism that's been implanted in all of us by modernism.
Interesting enough the priest at the church I went to last Sunday works for the city grounds or sewer department. I am not sure which but he said he comes into our business and that is the only reason I can see why he woudl work for the city and come into our business.
His Grace might be worried about seeing "Christian Priest Slaughters Goat as Part of Religious Ritual" as a newspaper headline. A Roman Catholic priest I know suggested to his bishop that they go on a cruise for their diocesan conference since it was cheaper than the hotel they stayed at. The bishop said no, the newspaper would have a field day. I bet working as a butcher gives you some perspective that a lot of the other priests don't have. In the military, I met some chaplains who legitimately had no idea how to connect with enlisted people. Then at one unit I had a chaplain who was phenomenal and easy to talk do, and later found out he was a prior service Marine. I'm guessing the lesser chaplains had exclusively done yuppie jobs before entering the ministry.
Perhaps I am slow to catch on. Are you talking about your background prior to ordination or do you still have a secular job in addition to being a priest?
I did work a secular job for some time after ordination. I would estimate that most Continuing Anglican clergy under the age of 60 do. I really need to find a place that will let me come in 2 or 3 days a week, more for networking purposes than income.
I take from that most of the Continuing Anglican churches are not able to pay their clergy a living wage. I think the churches they leave may hope to destroy them by cutting off funds. I know when groups leave a church, the church they leave fights tooth and nail to prevent them taking any assets with them.
Some of the Continuing churches had money after they left TEC. Most of it has been spent in the 40 years that have elapsed. Much of the membership of a Continuing parish is going to consist of retirees. Retirees are not usually the big donors in the parish. In my experience, it's more typical that they are the ones who drop a $20 in the plate. In my jurisdiction we've got about 3 or maybe 4 guys who get their primary income from the parish. Of those, one is also a farmer with sheep and goats and chickens and rabbits. His son is a dog trainer and that business is located at the farm as well. I'm sure it's a bit of a menagerie. He told me to bring my daughters by to see the animals next time I'm in his locale. We have a retired Archbishop who took up bee keeping after his first career. He sells honey by the US quart. Very good quality. My mentor is also a prolific keeper of poultry. After my wife died he would sometimes come and stay at my house for a day or two and stay with my girls while I went to diocesan meetings. He always left a pack of mixed eggs in the fridge when I came home.