Working the Angles: The Shape of Pastoral Integrity

Media:	Paperback
Author:	Eugene H. Peterson
Publisher:	Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company
Release date:	01 May, 1987
List price:	~~$16.00~~
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Working the Angles: The Shape of Pastoral Integrity

Average rating: Stars

Mastering the obvious as the straw man taps out. . .

In "Working the Angles" Peterson opens with the statement "American Pastors are abandoning their posts, left and right, and at an alarming rate. . . they have gone (...) after other gods. What they do with their time under the guise of pastoral ministry hasn't the remotest connection with what the church's pastors have done for most of twenty centuries" (1)

With this statement, Peterson goes on to explain the reasons behind this abandonment and the ways to rectify the situation. His thesis can be found on page 3 when he states, "Three pastoral acts are so basic, so critical, that they determine the shape of everything else. The acts are praying, reading Scripture, and giving spiritual direction. Besides being basic, these three acts are quiet. They do not call attention to themselves and so are often not attended to"(3).

The rest of the book is an explication of these three pastoral acts in three sections: Prayer, Scripture and Spiritual Direction. These three sections are full of insightful and helpful personal observations from Peterson and do an effective job of describing the type minister that anyone reading this book longs to be. In short, this book describes the ministerial style of Jesus, which is helpful when described but a little more difficult in practice.

Although the content of this book is interesting, it is written against an opponent that doesn't exist and gives answers that are painfully obvious in a way that is antagonistic and alienating. Where are these ministers who completely reject that reading the Bible, Praying and some sort of Christian Accountability (what Peterson calls Spiritual Direction) are necessary? Peterson rails against the whoring throng of ministers who have rejected these basic tenets with righteous indignation, the problem is these people don't exist. The people who do exist are those who have gotten confused and beaten down by the demands of the "job" and have lost their sense of calling and maybe don't pray enough, or read their bible enough or have any accountability. Unlike Peterson, I would not liken these people to those who have "bowed the knee to Baal"(3).

It is undeniable that there is a problem in contemporary Christianity w/ burnout among ministers (although It is false to assume that this is a contemporary phenomenon). When confronted with this objective fact, there are two answers. One is championed with "hot indignation" by Peterson and points to a causal relationship between "doing" and "being," as if these pastors had only been let in on the revelation that reading the bible, praying and friends were good things.

On the other hand, this book would have been great had it presupposed that the situation that some ministers find themselves in was not a conscious choice nor is it a result of some sort of undiagnosed narcissistic complex that drove them to ministry so that they could be seen (for the record, there are many more careers one could choose that are a little more glamorous. . just a few!). This book could have been written with the same pastoral insight and concern that it is hoping to engender in its readers.

If you're a pastor who is feeling out of control and looking for some good insights into life as a minister . . . read this book and skip the intro.

Working the Angles: The Shape of Pastoral Integrity - Eugene H. Peterson

Refreshing and Helpful

This is the fourth Peterson book I've read, all of them directed towards pastors. It is also the best. Peterson argues that like a triangle, the shape of pastoral integrity is determined not by its "lines" (preaching, teaching, and administration) but by its angles (prayer, Scripture reading, and spiritual direction). When a pastor "works" these "angles" his ministry has integrity and power.

Peterson devotes three chapters to each of these angles, ransacking Scripture, literature, myth, parable, history, and his own experience with daring and delightful prose. Every chapter is refreshing. These are some of the most helpful pages I've read as a fairly busy pastor who occassionally struggles with burn-out. Peterson reminds me of the importance of keeping Sabbath (a day to pray and play), using the Psalms as a guide for prayer, hearing God speak through Scripture (not just reading the words off the page), and paying attention to how God is working in the ordinary and mundane details of my life and the lives of others. This is a wise book. I'm sure I will read it again.

Eugene H. Peterson - Working the Angles: The Shape of Pastoral Integrity

Good basic text for aspirants and pastors

Peterson's work gives a simple yet accurate image of three necessary ingredients for developing an aspirant into a pastor. He boils it down to three "angles" of prayer, Scripture, and spiritual direction connected by the "lines" of preaching, teaching and administration (5). He rejcts the "gimmicks" that might be offered to short-circuit the process, gimmicks that might polish one's exterior image yet do little to strengthen one's heart, soul, spirit, or relationship with God (7).
His discussion of the angle of prayer is good and solid theologically, yet offers little new information or inspiration. I found this section of the book to be the weakest.
His section regarding Holy Scripture was the one I found to be the best. He makes the interesting and little-expressed point that "reading Scripture is not the same as listening to God" (87). He advocates "contemplative exegesis" to uncover the living story of Scripture through sound and oral tradition rather than printed information. I agree with his insistence that pastors should refrain from distilling Scripture into so many neat packages of morality and lessons, and instead preach and teach the stories with all of their messy, graphic, and even embarassing details. One can visit a museum and see neatly arranged items and artifacts of a country, or one can travel to that country and live, work, and sweat in it, eat its food and speak its language. Again, this section is the strongest.
Regarding spiritual direction, Peterson defines it in somewhat ambiguous terms, which was frustrating to me at first. However, he rightly points out that most such direction occurs in spontaneous and "unplanned but 'just right' moments" (160). Reading this chapter makes me suspect that spiritual direction could be a challenge for those considered to have a "Type A" personality. I strongly agree with Peterson that a pastor needs a spiritual director who will keep him/her balanced and attentive to the voice of the Holy Spirit.

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