Actors United… and in Partnership?

By way of introduction: I have been a full-time minister at a mid-size to large church, St. Peter’s, for four years.

While on a recent sabbatical, I left a co-worker, another of our church’s ministers, in charge of much of what I oversee (some things were put on hold for a short time for me to resume upon returning). One of my roles has been overseeing what groups meet in the church during the week. One group in particular, Actors United, a local theater group, has been using the church for many years, long before my arrival. They are well-respected among the congregation, even though their connection to the church lies primarily just in their being space users (though several actors do attend St. Peter’s).

Since I’ve been at St. Peter’s, the various presidents of Actors United (AU) have been in touch with me to explore ways they can “partner” with us and be considered not just “space users” but an actual “ministry of” St. Peter’s. In fact, they are a Christian acting troupe—their mission statement explicitly says so.

I’ve been reluctant to expand the scope of our relationship with them, but am having trouble putting my finger on exactly why. In the couple of meetings I’ve had with their reps, they’ve asked for things like making live announcements in church to promote upcoming plays, recruiting church members to their troupe, putting more permanent fixtures (such as a stage) in our space, and the like. I haven’t been able to accommodate all they have asked for, but I’ve tried to do enough so that they feel like they are more included in the life of the church. As to full “partnership” and fully integrating them as a top-down endorsed ministry of the church, I have avoided the issue and have dealt more with case-by-case requests as they come. And I have a sense that they still want more and a conversation could be helpful. I’m just not sure how to do that.

So one set of pre-existing questions that I’ve basically been ignoring and procrastinating has been: What should I do in response to their requests for a greater partnership with and integration into our church life? How can I go about exploring my reluctance and understanding what issues are at hand? By what criteria (if any) should I determine how to move ahead?

Now add this to the mix: during my sabbatical my stand-in had to be in contact with Actors United because of some props that were left out after a recent production. AU is not the sole user of the space they use, so it posed a problem for groups coming into that space after them. Initially AU was responsive and apologetic about their mess, but it happened again, several times. Finally, in a moment of desperation, my stand-in told them that should the messiness continue, he would remove their name from the list of folks who are authorized to use the space and discontinue our relationship with them.

In response, AU’s president reiterated the good standing they’ve enjoyed at St. Peter’s for many years, the importance of their own ministry, and how they feel they are truly a ministry of the church (not just a space renter). He said, “We are not just space renters that you can ask to leave so dismissively. Maybe we should get together to talk more about our working together in ministry.”

All of this dialogue took place over email.

What had begun as a simple request to keep things clean and tidy escalated into a frustration, a conflict, and now a conversation to be had about “partnership” in ministry.

I learned about all of this on my return from sabbatical. So now the question has been raised again: What should I do in response to AU’s requests for a greater partnership with and integration into our church life?

Now I am also asking: How ought I to work together with my stand-in to do any relational cleanup that is necessary after a somewhat heated email escalation?

And where should I start in all this?