A searchable, downloadable PDF of the original review appears below. Dr. David Sherbino is Professor of Pastoral Studies, Ontario Theological Seminary and Associate Pastoral Staff, St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church, Islington.
Working the Angles: The Shape of Pastoral Integrity by Eugene Peterson. Grand Rapids; Eerdmans, 1987, 131 pp.
Eugene Peterson contends that American pastors, and I assume he includes Canadian pastors, are “abandoning their calling at an alarming rate.” This, according to Peterson, does not mean they are leaving their pulpits for secular work; rather, they no longer take their calling to ministry seriously and have, in his terms, become a “company of shopkeepers.” To be a religious shopkeeper implies that one keeps the customers happy, lures the customers away from the other competition and provides such services that they keep coming back and paying for more of the same. For many people this is just fine. The culture of the day, asserts Peterson, is focused upon self and not God, therefore many ministers direct their ministry with the goal of making people feel good.
What is the pastor’s responsibility? Peterson contends it is to keep the community “attentive to God.” This is accomplished by three pastoral disciplines that ultimately determine the shape of all other ministries. Peterson views these three disciplines as the angles of a triangle in contrast to the straight lines. The visible lines are preaching, teaching, and administration, the angles are prayer, Scripture and spiritual direction. Pastoral work that is disconnected from the angle’s action is not designed by God, therefore the need of ministry is to “work the angles.”
The final angle is the need for spiritual direction. This occurs when “two people give their attention to what God is doing in their lives and seek to respond to that action.” Since it is a process that can occur in a variety of situations, pastors must give full attention to what God is doing in the lives of individuals so they can discover the acts of God’s grace shaping these people into spiritual maturity. Spiritual direction is not only practised by the “clergy” but can be done by any Christian whose life is “immersed in the pursuit of holiness.” For those engaged in pastoral ministry this is what they will do most in their ministry. This will be a great challenge for ministers who spent the greater portion of their time in committee meetings and administration, and find themselves caught up in the rush of doing things in the church only to move on to the next event or project.
Working the Angles has been a stimulating and challenging book, calling all pastors to evaluate their ministry. Peterson does not write as an outsider, but out of his experience as pastor of Christ Our King Presbyterian Church, Bel Air, Maryland. I am convinced it is a book every pastor needs to read. You will be challenged, upset, exposed, and helped to get back on the right track. If you are not prepared to read this book with an open mind and a willingness to change, if change is needed, this book is not for you.