The Spiritual Practices of South African Clergy - by Shaun Joynt (Hardcover)

About the Book

Spiritual Practices of South African Clergy: State of the Clergy explores five denominations from the Global South who participated in a study focusing

Book Synopsis

Spiritual Practices of South African Clergy: State of the Clergy explores five denominations from the Global South who participated in a study focusing on how clergy practice the disciplines of meditation, prayer, fasting, and Bible study, and the impact those disciplines have on them and their ministry.

Review Quotes

I feel like I will endorse any book about the Biopsychosocial-Spiritual wellbeing of clergy! Should it not be as clear as daylight that if we are called ldquo;to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built uphellip;rdquo; (Eph 4:12 NIV) that we should be equipped too? This is the point of Ephesians 4: whatever gift one may have, one needs equipping to do what that gift was given for! This book is an honest attempt to help the academic and the ministering community to assess where we are and how we are doing. I am convinced that the publication will help / encourage everyone of us who is serious about our calling to grow and take care of our Biopsychosocial-Spiritual wellbeing.

In an era that is marked by a renewed ldquo;turn to spiritualityrdquo;, members of faith communities are increasingly searching for a way to practice their spirituality in a holistic and meaningful way. Clergy, by way of openly engaging in their own ldquo;rule of liferdquo; (in reference to St Benedict of Nursia), are able to demonstrate both the active and contemplative dimensions of spirituality, thereby facilitating the development of authentic spiritual practices in their respective faith communities. This publication provides evidence of how that is already taking place and is an important contribution in a context (Africa and South Africa) where faith and spirituality are ways of interpreting onersquo;s reality.

My key takeaway from this well researched and much needed study by Dr Shaun Joynt of the spiritual practices of clergy within the South African was twofold: One the one hand, if clergy want to live faithfully in the house of their own proclamation, we need to explore what a meaningful practice-based faith looks like in our lives. On the other hand, in exploring what a practice-based faith may look like, clergy will find that they have more in common than they realize with clergy from doctrinal streams other than their own. I warmly commend this study to all who have concern for clergy spiritual well-being.

When spiritual life becomes work, much is lost. When the clergy lose, the people also lose. In this book, voices from the South explore the healing, enriching and fulfilling potential of spiritual practices from the perspectives of different Christian traditions, denominations and academic fields.

About the Author

Shaun Joynt is research associate at the University of the Free State, lecturer at the University of South Africa, and postgraduate supervisor at the South African Theological Seminary.