Expert: Rev. Robert Woods - 6/18/2006

Question
Our pastor uses sermons off the internet. He does not just study them, but he uses them word for word without giving the ones who preached the sermon any credit.  We have found the sermons and compared them to his sermons that were taped.
He stood in the pulpit and denied this.  He said he just studied them because he didn't have a lot of time to study on his own.  Many of the people thought this was ok.

Answer
Blessings and thank you for your questions.

First of all, most people have no clue how long it takes to prepare a sermon.  You don't just sit down one day and say, "I think I will write a sermon today."  Sermon preparation is a constant thing.  A pastor must be constantly reading the Bible, books, current events, fiction, and yes even other's sermons.  It takes me between 8 to 10 hours to prepare 1 sermon.  The problem develops because most churchs expect their pastor to attend every meetings, vistit all the sick and the shut-ins, be there 24/7 for every need, spend time in the office, do administrative work (budgets, letters), attend local and national denominational meetings -plus the counseling and phone calls that he is not at liberty to discuss with you.  Most pastors are overworked, unappreciated, underpaid, and are stretched to the limit with the church and their families.

Now, in a typical sermon, I use at least 5 or 6 quotes from different sources, I quote from different translations, and I use ideas from books, writers, and yes even other sermons.  I usually tell my congregation, especially about the books, so if they want more information they can look it up themselves.  Most congregations do not want to listen to a Bibliography of all the resources a pastor uses in his sermon.  IF people want that from me, then I am more than happy to give it to them.

There are several sermon sites online.  www.Homileticsonline.com has a policy that says "In short, you don’t need to worry about plagiarism with your subscription to Homiletics, because you are doing the work. We’ve done the grocery shopping. You’re doing the cookin’.  They basically claim that pastor's do not have to quote them when delievering their sermons."  There are many many more preaching sites out there.  Some say that you should quote them but others say you don't have to at all.  

So is your pastor doing something wrong?  It depends on who he is taking his sermons from and if they demand recognition.  Also, did the sermon speak to you and to your congregation.  If so, then even if he didn't write it, then God still spoke and blessed it, so what harm is done???  If you want your pastor to only speak what God has given him, then you better free up more of his time to do so.  Pastors are asked to do more and more every day.  It isn't easy running a group of all volunteers.

On a personal note, I get requests for my sermons everyday in tape, cd or DVD format.  I personally don't care if someone takes my sermon in whole or in part and preaches it.  As long as it is faithful to the Lord, I don't care.
I have no desire to be quoted or have my name exalted.

Finally I want you to consider two things.  First, did you know that Pastors are in the top ten most of the most denied for health and life insurance?  You would think that can be so, they don't have dangerous jobs or anything.  Pastors are under so much stress that they are much more likely to suffer from depression and anxiety.  These two things alone can lead to high blood pressure, obesity, and long term health problems like heart disease and diabeties. Four years ago at the age of 35 I suffered my first heart attack.  The church has no idea the pressure they put on pastors today.

Second, give your Pastor a chance.  He may have had permission to use someone else's sermon.  If you want him to document everything he does then ask him nicely to do so.  Be prepared to be bored.  Also, consider the fact that you are asking him to do to much.  The church was called to minister to the people, not the pastor.  Biblically a pastor is called to teach, preach, feed the sheep spiritually, pray, lead worship, and spend time in the presence of the Lord.  God created the role of the deacon (ACTS 6:2-6)to minister to the sick, minister to the widow and orphan, and visit the shut in.