Page Four
THE COLLEGIATE
October 12,
Sharp Has Concern
For Future Pulpits
(Continued From Page Two)
Second In Series
dents from 20 Protestant de
nominations and the least effect
ive recruiter was discovered to
be the high school guidance
counselor.
Recruitment for church voca
tions becomes increasingly dif
ficult in a time when the minis
try is no longer the prestige pro
fession that it was once. Space
programs, large universities, gi-
g a n t i c scholarship programs,
mass communications media
have all heralded the new hero—
the scientist and mathematician.
There is more glamour and
publicity for those who explore
outer space than for those who
probe inner space. The appeal of
ancient manuscripts, the study
of Greek, Hebrew and Latin are
not as appealing, for many, as
feeding data to the electronic
computer.
Young people are going to be
hesitant to consider seriously
church vocations because of the
wide-spread attacks upon the
profession by vocal right-wing
elements. It is tough enough to
minister to all of the people of
the parish without having “pot
shots” taken at you from dis
gruntled outside political ele
ments. Youngsters hear the
barbs of “pink,” “traitor,” "ra
dical,” “Communist,” but sel
dom hear that no clergyman of
good standing in a major de
nomination in America has ever
been convicted of being a Com
munist.
The best recruiters for church
vocations are (1) ministers and
(2) parents, in that order.
The Economic
Whether we like it or not,
ours is an affluent society. And
unfortunately this is a major
factor in the ministerial short
age. The church has priced it
self out of the market. Some
would state that the other way;
however, the facts will substan
tiate that the ministerial pro
fession is terrible underpaid. It
is not the multiple roles that
ministers must play, nor the bur
dens of the office that cause
them to drop out.
Do you hear of large numbers
of medical men dropping out?
How about lawyers? Certainly
we will agree that the physician
has a most demanding schedule.
People call him at all hours
and expect miracles of him. Why
are we now hearing calls for
more medical schools and less
seminaries? Physicians are not
leaving medicine because they
are willing to endure the multi
ple roles imposed upon them for
they are beimg paid adequately
to assume the demanding roles
of medicine.
Clergymen have to pay the
same prices at the stores for
clothing and food as do the more
fortunate people of other pro
fessions. It costs the minister
as much to educate his children
as it does the engineer or
lawyer. There is more oppor
tunity for competent clergymen
to advance in position and salary
in other professions. A capable
young minister told this writer
recently that he was offered
an executive position at $25,00 a
year. One of our graduates this
year with a bachelor of science
degree in chemistry started to
work for $10,300 per year. The
sad thing is that he came to
study for the ministry in another
denomination. I am sure he will
be a good layman, but we need
intellectual ministers.
In most churches the budget
is subscribed by lay people who
give from one to five dollars
a week to the church. The pro
fits of the affluent society have
not gotten into the church in
sufficient amounts for competi
tive salaries to be offeted.
Educational
A final factor which accounts
for the ministerial shortage is
the educational factor. This is
closely related to the fi
nancial factor as well as the
prestige factor. The minister is
expected to go to four years (rf
college and three years of semi
nary. In an equal amount of
time this person could obtain a
law degree or medical degree ot
a doctorate in most academic
disciplines. The minister, how
ever, after seven years of ex
tensive and expensive study ob
tains a master’s degree, a de
gree which he could obtain for
one year’s graduate study in
practically every other field ex
cept religion.
This is the first year that the
three years of graduate ^udy
in a seminary culminated in a
master’s degree. Previously he
would receive another bachelor’s
degree (bachelor of divinity) for
three years’ work.
We would do better to trim
the fat off of our seminiary de
gree requirements and have the
minister go two full years as
a full - time student for which
he would receive a master’s de
gree and then if he wanted a
doctor’s degree let him go an
additional two years and com
plete competent graduate work
for a doctor’s degree. This could
easily be done by removing
courses which duplicate under
graduate pre - theological work
and by strengthening those
courses which remain in the cur
riculum. Such a proposal, if o^-
ried out, would speed up the
process of getting qualified min
isters (m the field and at the
same time would give opportu
nity to the exceptionally bright
young person who wanted a doc
torate to pursue it.
CONCLiOSlON
It is time we put the matter
where it belongs—in the hands
of dedicated church men and
women. They will have to de
cide how important the church
is, whether it deserves an ade
quate leadership that has some
ecfuality with other professions,
and whether or not the mes
sage of redempition in Christ
Jesus is important enou^ for
our day to guide their own chil
dren toward this kind of life
commitment.
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Foreign Students Making
ACC Campus Their Honii
By BETH BEST
(Editor’s Note: This is the
concluding article on our for
eign students. The article this
week features Michel Belanger
of the Republic of Panama and
Anya de Bruijn of Wassenaar,
Holland.)
Michel Belanger, now in his
sophomore year at Atlantic
Christian, is from Colon, Repub
lic of Panama and came to our
campus on the suggestion of his
older brother who attended ACC
several years ago.
Michel plan? to major in ac
counting and to continue his
studies in graduate school. Mike
has found that a smaller school
is more beneficial for a foreign
student, for he is enabled to
know more students personally.
When he first arrived in the
United States he was surprised
at the newness of everything
such as the buildings in the
cities. Disappointment was his
reaction when he saw our idea
of a city; he imagined a city
to have great numbers of peo
ple, and wondered how we could
say “the city of Wilson.”
But college students he thinks
to be much the same as in
Panama, except that American
students are more tolerant po
litically. Mike’s only complaint
is that most American students
are not really interested in for
eign students; he remarked
that there has been “only one
student who asked me about
Panama.” It is his wish to get
to know more students in order
to be able to create better un
derstanding.
Newest
The newest foreign student on
the campus, Anya de Bruijn,
came to the U.S. two months ago
from Wassenaar, Holland. A
freshman, Anya plans to major
in psychology; however, after
college she hopes to be able to
travel throughout the U.S., es
pecially to the northern region
ANYA
MICHEl-
in order to compare it with the
southern region. She is now
taking sophomore level courses
because of her excellent train
ing in the secondary school at
home; she attended secondary
school for 6 years, with 13 sub
jects in a year. English was
one of the subjects which she
studied during those 6 years, but
until coming to AC she had
never written a composition in
English.
The decision to attend AC was
not her own; she applied to the
Netherlands America Institute to
attend college in the U.S., her
application was sent to several
colleges, and AC expressed the
desire to give her a scholar
ship.
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Anya has found southerners
be “very, very nice people”;
has been impressed with
helpfulness and hospitality
tended. The greatest surprise
her was the degree to it.
everything in college life is i
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are more prepared to live
their own, even to the polji
renting their own rooms rai
than living in dorms. Howe
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groups of well-known peoplj
Anya admits encountering!
one difficulty in adjusting
American students, and thai
the lack of understanding on
part of students when she I
to understand some of the p
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to the challenge of college
in a strange coamtry.
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