The Difference between Governance and Guardianship

When I first meet with the board of a church, I often start off by saying that I am going to talk about what I am not going to talk about. While governance is my area of experience and perceived expertise, I appreciate the importance of ensuring that the distinctives of a church are protected. The term I use for this aspect of church leadership is guardianship. 

Churches have some differences from other charities as I describe in A Guide to Governing Charities. While it is similar to a typical registered charity with an AGM and members voting on various motions etc., there are some basic theological and doctrinal beliefs that are woven into the fabric of that church. The guardians, gatekeepers or elders (using the biblical term) serve to watch out for those values that are not always focused on by the membership. This group of individuals who are not necessarily part of the governing board, guard the tenets of the faith. The church body will have previously decided to embrace these values which in turn should be formally accepted by each new member when they sign a statement of faith and are accepted into membership.

Are these elders who serve as guardians of the faith above the governing board of the church or the members of the church? Certainly not in a governing sense. The ultimate governing body of a registered charity is the board and that right to govern is granted by the membership. However in another sense, the elders, having been acknowledged and affirmed by the church, need to have the wisdom and courage to stand for the truths previously agreed upon by the church and stand against those who would seek to undermine those truths.

A church as a registered charity needs to balance the democratic right of members to identify the governing board while honouring the autocratic responsibility of elders to guard the values held by those same members.