Caring for the Preacher’s Soul
May 3, 2023 : 10:00 am by Zoom
The soul of the faithful preacher is a crucible in which the holy words of God get mixed
together with the ordinary words collected all week long through hospital visits,
committee meetings, and pastoral counseling, as well as those from the newspapers and
social media. The sermon is where this holy conversation becomes a sacred moment.
The greatest danger to the sacredness of the sermon is the pastor’s own soul. Sometimes
our souls get in trouble because of something going on in the congregation or our
relationships. At other times the issue is our own struggle with God. Often, we are just
soul weary.
This workshop will consider the unique threats to the pastor’s soul, and it will explore the
ways the Holy Spirit renews and enlivens us for the spiritually vulnerable act of climbing
behind a pulpit to say, “Hear the Word of the Lord.”
Facilitator: The Rev. Dr. M. Craig Barnes
President Emeritus, Princeton Theological Seminary
Craig has served as the pastor three Presbyterian congregations and was a professor of pastoral ministry at Pittsburgh Seminary before becoming the president of Princeton Theological Seminary. He retired in January 2023 and continues to speak and write about pastoral leadership. He has nine published books including Pastor as Minor Poet, and Diary of a Pastor’s Soul. He is married to Dawne Hess Barnes. They have three fabulous children, four delightful grandchildren, and a frisbee-addicted Bearded Collie.
This workshop is part of a monthly workshop series on preaching, the first Wednesday of every month from 10:00 to 11:30 am. For an overview of the series, Click Here