Churchman: Why Pastors Should Flee the Ministry: A Meditation from the Pastoral Theology of Gregory of Nazianzus

Pastors, laypeople, and students typically respond negatively to the Church Fathers because they associate them with philosophical baggage, unnecessary arguments, and/or disputes. When we studied them in church history class the focus was upon how they argued for particular words (such as homoousios or monophysite) and would be considered divisive by today’s standards. Those we call the Fathers were pastors who most often entered into these debates because they saw the need to protect their churches from dangerous theology. They were primarily pastoral theologians. There is a deep well of spirituality and pastoral insight that can be gained from the primary writings of the early church pastors. I hope that a short reflection on Gregory of Nazianzus’ spirituality and meditation on the character and responsibilities of the pastor will help pastors see the value of reading the Fathers and, most of all, encourage pastors in their vigour for Christ and his church.1 Read more