Aaron, I’m still trying to process your post. I can’t tell if you’re advocating for further education “if the possibility is present” or just putting it out there for discussion. Given some our private conversations, i.e. not on this blog, I think it’s the latter. Either way, it’s still appropriate to discuss.

I have to say it’s a topic I often revisit given my situation. I think I could make that “if” a positive one. Just look at my circumstances. Financially, my family could afford it. We’re already here in Lville, so we wouldn’t be relocating. I already have good study habits from my undergrad; thus, it would make for a smooth transition allowing me to complete the program faster. The only downside is the sacrifice of time and emotion my family would have to make. And I don’t down play how big a sacrifice that is, especially for my wife and girls. Do I, therefore, meet the qualification of “if the possiblity is present?”

Now I want to make one distinction before I continue. My decision is whether or not to do an MDiv., not the Ph.D. And I do believe the MDiv. is more essential to a pastor’s education than the Ph.D. Thus, I would highly encourage a pastor to do an MDiv., maybe even make that “if” a reality. There’s more that could be said, but I’ll leave it there.

But if we’re speaking generally, I have to say formal education merely for the sake of formal education, even for a pastor, may not be the wisest decision. Keith may be getting at what is most important in a pastor’s education, and that is the tools for learning. I don’t think I could be an effective elder if I weren’t equipped with the proper tools. (Some of this harkens back to Dorothy Sayers’ The Lost Tools of Learning). And I wouldn’t have those tools were it not for Boyce or some equivalent education/training. Okay, one may be exposed to certain works and theological categories in his formal education he may not have otherwise. Nevertheless, that exposure is no substitute for the rigorous study a pastor is called to in his sermon preparation.

Posted in Church Life, Pastoral Ministry |