A sad report regarding the U.S. Army (and presumably the other services as well) having issues fulfilling the Clerical needs of those who serve. However, a lot of the denominations, both traditional and liberal, are having issue filling their needs. Part of it is money, as being a pastor (or equivalent) is not as well paid as many private sector jobs that require the same amount of education, but because there is such an increasing anti-religious, especially anti-Chrisitian, bias in society, I suspect that the perceived respect of pastors (or lack thereof) is a real turnoff.
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I dunno about anti-Christian bias, but I can assure you that growing up and watching the nonsense (and I chose that word over another) my dad had to endure as pastor, was enough to turn me away from “vocational ministry.” I had that figured out by the time I was nine years old.
I shouldn’t have said anti-Christian bias, perhaps. A better way of saying it is that at one point pastors had an important role in society. For various reasons, one of which is the poor character of many another is the turning away from the church, the church is not the center of much of the social life of a town (and has been replaced by nothing).
I agree that far too many pastors have to deal with more than they have to, need to, or deserve to. I have been told, by a “vocational” minister, that he wouldn’t do it if he were not called by God to do so, and I think that often, that’s all a pastor has.
😉 I think you’re right. I once told me dad that, to be a pastor, one must be honestly called by God OR he must be certifiably insane. Either way, he’s hearing voices.
Best,
Allen