Preachers and Plagiarism in Sermons

Two articles have recently come to light that accused preachers of plagiarism and likely caused some to have undue concern. I suspect that one was prompted by the other. Both presented only one side of the issue, and the point was that preachers are sinning when they do not cite their source(s) (as if it is a term paper) to the congregation when presenting a sermon. Perhaps you read at least one of the articles and were disturbed by it. I certainly was, but not only because of concern of being guilty but mainly because of the harm that their thinking and teaching can do to the cause of Christ.

The Cambridge Dictionary states that plagiarism is "the process or practice of using another person's ideas or work and pretending that it is your own." Rarely does a preacher state that his sermon is original with him. And when he does, it might be a lie, whether intentional or not.

Plagiarism is a concern for all writers, speakers, and song writers who have a conscience. But to be honest, anyone who has done much writing could be guilty of plagiarism to some degree, at least as some see it. It is a huge gray area, and the question of when or whether someone is guilty of plagiarism is highly a matter of opinion. My daughter has recently gone back to school. She wrote a paper that was plagiarism checked (with some new software). It gave her a percentage of authenticity. She followed the rules meticulously yet her "score" was far from perfect, which is never going to happen for anyone. Incidentally, at least one of the two writers (noted above) believes that any and every sin results in falling from grace. Thus, his own article adds to the accumulation of evidence against his belief, destroying any hope of his living above sin and thus being in God's grace.

In my first year of college, back in 1972, my first major was Parks and Recreation. The class I was in was taught by the dean of that department. I had at least a solid C in the class as the semester was nearing an end. My term paper was on archery, which, being an avid archer, I knew something about, and I had experience in writing. It is significant that I was taking a class called "Writing for the Professions" at the same time and was allowed to write the paper during class. I had my sister proofread the article and type it on an IBM computer. It looked perfect and I was expecting to get an A for the paper, which I hoped would bring up my grade. The writing class also required a term paper, and I was able to use the paper for both classes. Rather than type the paper again, I copied it on an IBM copier, which looked great. Not being able to tell the difference between the two, I just picked one and turned it in to the Parks and Recreation class teacher. To my surprise, when I got my grade for the semester, I received a D. I went to the dean to discuss the grade, and his reply was "You did not write that paper." I told him I did write it, and that he could verify it by consulting my writing teacher. But he refused to do so and held firm in his decision to give me a bad grade. His unjust actions caused me to not only change my major but to transfer to another university. His criticism and unjust condemnation were detrimental to the cause (his department and his college). The same can be true of charging preachers who use the sermons of others with plagiarism (sin) and lacking integrity - it can be detrimental to the cause (the proclamation of the gospel of Christ).

Not all preachers are writers. Many are not trained in how to pick a topic, how to do research, how to write a sermon, or how to prepare an outline; and it shows. They just tell stories, talk, and maybe go from one thing to another (ramble). Yet they may have a love for truth and a desire to present sermons that are needed and that edify. They need and SHOULD use material from others. The idea that all sermons should be original is not practical, as one may not have the time nor the talent, and to require such is detrimental to the preacher's goals.

While plagiarism is always a concern in any profession, preaching the gospel is different from other professions. This is true because everything presented comes from the Bible, and believers want God's truth taught without unnecessary restrictions. We want the truth to be spread effectively and rapidly. We want people to hear the information they need to hear. While one may think his sermon is entirely original, it could be that he heard it years earlier, but forgot, and so his sermon is not original at all. But even if it is original, we want it to not just be heard by the audience where we present it, but we also want it to be used by anyone who deems it to be worthy of use in their preaching. If a preacher is not willing to share his material, then perhaps he is being stingy and does not really have the character a Christian should have. God forbid that any preacher should be angry, or feel he was sinned against, if a speaker who uses his material fails to mention his name.

In my first year of preaching, I had few resources (no sermon books and no Internet) and I was in need of help from others. It took me as much as 40 hours to prepare a sermon. A preacher was holding a meeting at a place where my kinfolks worshipped, and he was staying in their house. I saw his sermon folder and asked if I could copy some of his outlines. Unfortunately, he refused. He said, "You can follow me around in meetings." He was young, but it was not long afterwards that he died of a massive heart attack. I cannot even recall his name.

Does the person who wrote a sermon care if you use it? If he does, then maybe he is not the kind of person who really wants to see the gospel truths spread to the world as fast, accurately, and efficiently as possible. It is more likely that he WANTS you to use it. Preachers sometimes begin an article, or written sermon, with "I take no credit for the material in this article/sermon. It was put together from numerous sources." Some preachers conclude their published written sermon with “Use to the glory of God.” If they did not intend it to be used, they would not have made it available in book form or on the Internet; and so, I ask: Was the statement even necessary?

Years ago, in a discussion about using other preachers' sermons, I heard an older preacher say, when asked by another preacher if he could use his sermon, "Yes, if the preacher I got it from does not mind." Consider that if you give credit for a sermon you use, it may be that it was not even original with the person to whom you give credit.

My library contains dozens of sermon books. In addition, several websites have been set up by preachers who have made their best sermons available for all to read and for other preachers to use. Do they expect preachers to give credit if used exactly as written, or with some revision? Probably not. Do they expect credit to be given if only part of the sermon is used? Certainly not. If the sermons are in book form preachers often copyright the book. I do not think this is intended to keep people from using the sermons without mentioning their name in the presentation, but to keep others from copyrighting the book and thus stealing it for some ill gain.

Since sermons should be as brief as possible while presenting only what needs to be said, how effective would a preacher be (in presenting his sermon) if he took the time to give credit for everything he borrowed from other preachers? In preparing sermons, I often use material from numerous sources, usually after making significant changes. I do it similarly to how I was taught in college to do a research paper. I do a lot of research and carefully read everything and try to put the material in my own words. However, since, in preaching, the material is intended to be used by other preachers and it is a sermon offered for FREE, there is no reason to feel guilty about taking some liberty in the use of such material. After all, it came from others who share your passion for truth and evangelism, and they want and expect you to use it.

Does the congregation know your sermons are not always original? Probably. Do they care? Probably not. Do they want to hear a well-developed sermon that is presented in a way they can follow, understand, take home with them, and be motivated to take action? One would hope so. My preacher friends whose standards might be higher than what they should be might want to consider the thoughts brought to light in this article before discouraging preachers from using the material from others without giving credit in the presentation of the sermon.

One who disagrees with my take on this might argue that a preacher could cite the sources for his sermon in the last PowerPoint chart. But shouldn't the last chart be something that helps to motivate people to obedience, rather than distract from the words of the invitation? If citing sources in a sermon is something that you feel you must do, a better solution might be to display the sermon topic, with the sources, on your first chart long before you begin your presentation. Who knows, if you do this there just might be one or more perfectionists in the audience who will appreciate it and think you rival their level of moral integrity.