"Tent" Ministry

“Tent” ministry is not the idea of tent revivals and going around the country preaching from a tent. Rather, it is a term that most commonly refers to what is also known as “bi-vocationalism” or “working clergy.” It comes from the Christian New Testament writings of Paul, who held an ordinary job as a tent maker. In this way, he was able to support himself so that his missionary travels and preaching would not be a burden to those small house communities he visited.

Tent ministry can also refer to professional work (as teachers, doctors, and other well-qualified professionals) in other countries as a legitimate way to enter a country which might otherwise be closed to proselytizing and missionary work.

And in these technological times, this concept of tent ministry has expanded again to include "TentBloggers", since making money from one’s blog is now a possibility. (No, I am not a TentBlogger, nor do I plan on being one.)

This term, “tent ministry,” has mostly been used in the Christian realm, but it is  reality for “alternative” clergy, coming from all forms of Christianity and other religious traditions. It has not been as common in Judaism, although we are seeing an increase in it here, too. I am becoming a Modern Rabbi, one who is not affiliated with the usual Big Four denominational movements in Judaism,nor affiliated with "standard" synagogues and customary pulpit work. I am a Modern Rabbi with a contemporary Jewish "tent ministry."

An important note about tent ministry comes from the Theology of Work Project. Taking this concept of “tent” ministry one step further, they indicate that while some say Paul earned money by making tents in order to support himself in his “real” vocation, Paul writes that his tent making is an example others should follow, emphasizing that Paul does not say everyone should follow his example of preaching; rather, he writes that everyone should follow his example of working to help the weak and to be generous in giving.

Furthermore, the Theology of Work Project notes that while “Tent making” has become a common metaphor for Christians who engage in a money-earning profession as a means to support what is often called “professional ministry,” and that the term “bi-vocational” is often used to indicate that two separate professions are involved (the money-earning one and the ministry one), Paul shows a different example: that all aspects of one’s life should be a seamless witness. There should be no distinction between one’s “professional ministry” and other forms of “witness.”

According to the Christian view, all Christians have only one vocation, and that is to give witness to the Christian gospel. Thus, it is more accurately described as giving “dual service” rather than being “bi-vocational.” It is not two vocations, not two callings; rather, it is one calling, with two (or more) forms of service.

While Judaism does not have this strong emphasis on proselytizing, there is much we as Modern Rabbis can bring to the world, especially in terms of tikkun hanefesh v’tikkun ha’olam. My call as a Rabbi is to answer a simple Hineni to whatever G!d asks of me. I have been living this call in every way possible for 6 decades. I do not seek rabbinical ordination in order to serve a pulpit ministry, but in order to expand what I already bring to the world in my every day life. I do not seek to start a “synagogue lite.” I simply seek to continue to grow spiritually and to be of even greater service to G!d in the world. Every sentence I write is another way I grow spiritually, opening myself to a deeper presence to my own soul, thereby living an ever-expanding and growing ability of tikkun hanefesh v’tikkun ha’olam, and thereby more able to help others in their own quest for tikkun hanefesh v’tikkun ha’olam. That is, simply, my call as a Modern Rabbi.

I never proselytize. I do bear witness, especially in a very non-Jewish area. Not because I will be a Rabbi, but because I am a Jew. I am the only Jew some people in this area have ever met. My one calling is to answer Hineni. My service to that comes in many different forms. In this way, similar to Paul, I have a “tent ministry.” The world needs my presence, because the world needs to sense G!d’s Presence. Being a Rabbi expands my abilities to offer this presence in more ways, opens more doors.