We found a match
Your institution may have access to this item. Find your institution then sign in to continue.
- Title
CALLING AND CAREER IN CHRISTIAN MINISTRY.
- Authors
Christopherson, Richard W.
- Abstract
This is a study of the relationship between "calling" and "career" in the lives of American clergy. Data were collected through a series of intensive interviews with ministers and priests from various Christian churches. It is my thesis that pressure for success in a career makes the calling increasingly problematic; however, the "discovery and development of vocation" (Emmet, 1958:254) remain critical for modem clergy not only because the legitimacy of their work rests on traditional claims to selflessness and divine direction, but also because their own identity and personal worth are defined by the call. These issues are approached by investigating two areas of pastoral experience: first, the nature of the relationship between clergy and laity, especially as this impacts the clergy's authority in the church; second, the clergy's concern with growth and change as the basic purpose of their work; in conclusion, links between calling and identity are reconsidered.
- Subjects
ECCLESIASTICAL office; CHURCH; CHRISTIANS; PRIESTS; LAITY; MINISTRY &; Christian union
- Publication
Review of Religious Research, 1994, Vol 35, Issue 3, p219
- ISSN
0034-673X
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.2307/3511890