What Do We Expect From Our Pastors?

Recently I had the opportunity to read through the book Ancient Wisdom for the Care of Souls by Coleman M. Ford and Shawn J. Wilhite. The book draws out the ancient perspectives of the pastoral office from the writings of Church Fathers such as Basil of Caesarea, Ambrose of Milan, Augustine of Hippo, and John Chrysostom, to name a few. These were pastors who worked in a pagan society, unwelcoming to Christianity. They were also pastors who were, in some cases, less than a century removed from Apostles like Peter, James, John, and Paul. Evangelicals may not hold these men as high as the Catholic or Orthodox Churches, but these pastors, filled with the Spirit, have depths of wisdom to inform our view of the pastoral office.

What struck me as I sampled the various writings of the Church Fathers was their focus on the relational and spiritual components of pastoral work. So much of their works discussed interactions with people both, prayer, meditation and pondering of God, and the ministry of the word. Humility is important, love is important, and the thoughtful pondering of the things of God is important. Glaringly absent was advice about management style, administrative ability, or competency of programming. In the eyes of the Church Fathers, the role of the pastor is twofold. It is to love God: to pray, to meditate upon Scripture, to ponder slowly and thoughtfully the things of God, and to fall in love with the Shepard of the sheep. It is also to love people: to know them, to share their burdens, to help them pray, to help them meditate upon Scripture, to help them ponder slowly the things of God, and to walk with them toward He who is love. In short: to care for souls.

Now, does this mean that we no longer expect pastors to manage the church office, administrate the various tasks, or plan events? Yes and no. The moment there is an entity, there is a need for the management of that entity. It would be foolish to say that no management and administration is necessary. However, it may be a good idea to learn from the priorities of the Church Fathers when we as congregations hold expectations for our pastors. When I think about my own pastor, is it more important that he administrates well, or that he gives a thoughtful answer to my questions of God? That the church office is a well-oiled machine, or that he dedicates time to relationships with each of his congregants? Perhaps it is not an either/or dichotomy, but it cannot hurt that we as congregants more fully understand the priorities of our pastor.

Samuel graduated from Steinbach Bible College in 2024, where his focus was in youth ministry.