Date

4-2020

Department

School of Music

Degree

Doctor of Worship Studies (DWS)

Chair

Jerry L. Newman

Keywords

Worship Pastor, Longevity, Search Committee, Onboarding, Qualifications

Disciplines

Christianity | Ethics in Religion | Liturgy and Worship | Religion

Abstract

Within contemporary Western Protestant evangelicalism, congregations rely heavily on search committees for onboarding pastoral staff. Though this measure for pastoral acquisition is commonly practiced throughout contemporary Western Protestant evangelicalism, the ambiguity and/ or unexpressed expectations of the committee inhibit the securing of a candidate who offers greater longevity and effectiveness, thus provoking subsequent and frequent pastoral turnover. Provided the innate need for mitigating the unintentional oversight and understudied approach by the pastoral search committee, this research investigates and assesses the governable factors on the committee’s behalf that calibrate the search towards securing compatibility by way of effective leadership and longevity. This qualitative study seeks to examine and itemize the biblical qualifiers for pastoral leadership, and the effects of acquisition oversight by pastoral search committees, in addition to, the results of deliberate and decisive supervision by the pastoral search committees. The study is significant in that a lack of literature with respect to the correlation between the qualifications of worship pastors and the professional-pastoral demands necessitated for vocational ministry is insufficient. Inasmuch, many congregations succumb to acquiring unfit practitioners who are ineffective and/ or short-term leaders. The research is likely to uncover an alarming insufficiency in the professional-pastoral instates provided by the seeking church, in addition to a gross inconsistency of linear practice across the spectrum of the contemporary evangelical church.

Download

Share

COinS