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Among the many practicalities and the all-too-worldly demands of lay and ordained ministry, Christian leadership is fundamentally theological in its source, substance, and ends. Drawing on the great pastoral theologians of the early church, St. Gregory of Nazianzus and St. Augustine of Hippo, along with exemplary leaders in later Anglican and other traditions, this essay outlines the basic principles of pastoral and lay leadership. Special attention is given to the relationship between theology and the many practicalities of leaders' work, the ministry of the word, the doctrine of the Trinity, the spiritual or pastoral interpretation of Scripture, and the importance of regular study for the work of Christian leadership.
Several years ago, the director of supervised ministries at Yale Divinity School surveyed the school's graduates, who were working in a variety of lay and ordained ministries. When asked what subject they wished they had studied more in divinity school, the answer was surprising. What the majority wished they had studied more before beginning full-time ministry was not parish administration or pastoral counseling, as expected; nor was it worship leadership and sacramental practice, or even Bible or ethics. It was theology.1
The desire of seasoned ministers to know more theology reflects an awareness - perhaps one that can be fully appreciated only after several years of professional ministry - that theology lies at the center of the work of Christian leadership and the identity of a sound Christian leader. It also expresses the realization that most of the "practical" aspects of ministry are best learned on the job anyway, and a sense of regret that one did not take more advantage of the concentrated period of learning that seminary affords. I place the term "practical" in quotation marks because I want to suggest that we should strongly resist the idea that the less theological something is, the more practical. The point runs deeper than mid-career regret; it speaks to the very nature of theology and practical ministry. When twenty-first-century ministers or the early church fathers speak of the centrality of theology for pastoral leadership, they are not talking about one subject among many - as if one could pay attention to either theology or church budgets but not both. The idea of theologically centered...