Herber #2 - The Pastor in Social Engagement

One of the difficulties of doing historical theology is understanding the social world of those with whom we engage. Much time is taken by researchers wresting with what theologians in former time understood by grand theological concepts such as Essence, Being, Reconciliation, and Incarnation. The depths to which ancient minds relied upon the accepted wisdom of the ancient Greeks or formed new paths through the Scriptural evidence is thoroughly probed. Other circumstances of their lives (manners, customs, politics, social conventions, food, etc) form the general background - enough to fill an amusing volume to be consumed during a beachside holiday, but rarely poignant to the big issues. As I come to this second, and final, post on George Herbert I think I have realised that the reverse is more often true in the realm of pastoral theology. The so-called Big Ideas are more often assumed by those writing (or passed over briefly) so that they can get to the main game of the practicalities of leading the flock in godliness. For our contemporary writers their culture is our culture and we don't give it much consideration. However, when a work like The Country Parson comes into our sphere our distance from the social world of the writer can put us at a serious disadvantage and so easily lead us into a quick judgmentalism. Such an attitude would be easy to take regarding the second half of Herbert's work, in which he considers the pastor's role in the contemporary social fabric. Herbert maintains that the country parson serves not only as spiritual pastor but as judge and doctor to those in his parish, prepared at all times to administer both spiritual and temporal remedies (XXIII). He is also to take a social survey of the lives of those in his parish, even going so far as to instruct his parishioners as to how their grown-up children should conduct themselves in worldly affairs (XXXII). He should also take an active role in local customs and festivals (if they are not spiritually abhorrent) of which his local people are fond (XXXV). If the modern pastor followed all such advice he would probably find himself with a lawsuit, a broken nose, and an aching posterior from watching endless games of Rugby League. Yet in Herbert's social context such advice was key in expressing a key Christian pastoral maxim - Care for the Whole Person. It is clear from the New Testament that ministry does not stop at the Word but it includes attention to what I like to call Christian Care. It is belief that ministry must care for the whole person and not merely body or soul that underpins Acts 6:1-6. Here spiritual and temporal ministry are not divorced but in fact work together. Other passages such as 1 Timothy 5 show that a minister is not only interested in the spiritual state of his congregation but in how their faith becomes applied to their life circumstances. The flock must not be left to care for themselves when there is a dire need. This, I believe, underpins Herbert's thinking at this point in his work. What now may appear to us as being presumptive meddling in the lives of others was in Herbert's context a healthy pattern of social engagement in an agricultural society where "basic services" like healthcare and access to justice were luxuries. The question is now how do pastors in the 21st Century set up healthy patterns of social engagement with their parishes as a whole? As Western society moves towards a Post-Christian status the temptation has been to retreat, to build an evangelical Maginot Line and hope for the best. But the Panzers are coming, and if we take Herbert seriously, the parson must take a firm stand in these matters, rebuking even the best in his cure, with no fear of the ridicule that comes with the office any yet holding himself in a way that makes it difficult for contempt to be shown to him (XXVIII). Challenging words. I must say that, despite Herbert's superior literary tone and his lack of clear theological reasoning, I found The Country Parson to be a stimulating read. Herbert wishes those who undertake ministry to be internally focused, but instead actively engaged with the outside world while conducting his spiritual duties in an ordered way that focuses attention on the work of Christ. In truth, I do not see the seeds of Latitudinarianism sown through this work, and it now makes more sense to me why someone like Baxter held up Herbert for high praise despite obvious differences in churchmanship. In order to get the best out of Herbert, I believe it is right to focus on the Principles rather than the Practices, as he wrote in rather unusual times. It is right to be charitable with Herbert as he was a man of genuine piety. This is not to say that his work is perfect, and if I was to go into a more detailed analysis of his theses I could raise strong objections. However, I believe that even modern evangelicals should not dismiss The Country Parson too quickly as being irrelevant or spiritually corrupt. Next Time: I know that I had said that I would move from here to the thought of Richard Baxter, but reading Herbert has led me to take a short detour. It was clear from Herbert's work that he was drawing on a rich theological heritage in shaping his pastoral views that I had not yet considered. So, before going on to Baxter, I will take two weeks to look at John Chrysostom's On the Priesthood. It will be a delight for me to get back to the Patristics (and a justification for the purchase of the full ANF and NPNF volumes) and I hope my readers will enjoy the journey with me. P.S. My blog stats inform me that I have been getting a number of reads from countries where I'm sure I know nobody, including a sizable chunk of people from Eastern Europe. If you do happen to live a fair way from Australia and you are reading my imperfect musings please let me know who you are and how you came to find this blog. If I know who you are I can be more engaging in my manner.