What are the clergy reading?
December 13, 2003
Well, you can see what I’m currently reading on the left sidebar and what I’ve read on the right sidebar. But, I guess I don’t really qualify for “clergy” - although a good friend of mine who sings Baritone with me in our local community choir promised to refrain from making sexual jokes around “a man of the cloth” [he was referring to me...I love it!].
Duke Divinity School’s Pulpit & Pew project conducted a survey of clergy from eight denominations. They wanted to know who was actually reading, and what were they reading. The average time for clergy to spend reading (reading material that is not for their sermons) is 4 hours a week. Episcopal clergy were highest at five hours per week; Nazarenes were lowest at two hours.
To check out their full report, go here: Pulpit and Pew. I think that people in ministry definitely need to be reading much more than they/we do. I know many pastors who don’t read anything at all. This is not good. It’s not good for the souls of the pastors, or the souls of people in their congregations. Interesting note on women authors in the 3 traditions: Women authors do not fare well on the lists. The lone woman author among the top 12 is Barbara Brown Taylor, and she appears only on the mainline Protestant list. Other women authors appear further down that list: Kathleen Norris, Marva Dawn, Elizabeth Achtemeier, Roberta Bondi, Sue Bender, and Annie Dillard. Below the top dozen on the Catholic list one finds Dianne Bergant, Joan Chittister, Joyce Rupp and Rosemary Radford Ruether. Not a single woman made the author list of conservative Protestant clergy.
Below is a brief summary of who is reading what. All I have to say is GO CATHOLICS AND MAINLINERS!
Catholics
1. Henri J. M. Nouwen
2. John Paul II
3. Raymond Brown
4. William J. Bausch
5. Walter J. Burghardt
6. Scott Hahn
7. Anthony de Mello
8. William Barclay
9. Richard P. McBrien
10. Karl Rahner
11. C. S. Lewis
12. Mark Link
Mainline Protestants
1. Henri J. M. Nouwen
2. William Willimon
3. Frederick Buechner
4. Max Lucado
5. Eugene Peterson
6. C. S. Lewis
7. Marcus Borg
8. John C. Maxwell
9. Lyle E. Schaller
10. Philip Yancey
11. Walter Brueggemann
12. Barbara Brown Taylor
Conservative Protestants
1. Max Lucado
2. John C. Maxwell
3. Charles Swindoll
4. John MacArthur
5. Warren Wiersbe
6. Philip Yancey
7. Rick Warren
8. C. S. Lewis
9. Matthew Henry
10. Charles Spurgeon
11. T. D. Jakes
12. Eugene Peterson
Posted in 
Adam Walker Cleaveland: 
December 13th, 2003 at 4:25 am
thanks adam for encouraging us to read more! sometimes i think we need to be given permission to read…like put it into our job description…we really can’t be who god wants us to be if we stop learning and stop listening and stop seeking new things!
thanks too for noticing that women are losing in the publishing field of churchland…
you made me happy to be anglican today! we read more na na na na! just wish more of us could actually apply what we read!
if you haven’t read joyce rupp check her out! you’d really like her devotion “fresh bread” cause it isn’t set up for a daily thing! also
you might try “cup of life” since i know you are a coffee guy…she uses a cup/mug for meditations!
have a great christmas! hope you get lots of new books in your stocking! lilly
December 13th, 2003 at 11:20 am
Adam,
I am surprised that your boy Johnny E. (Eldridge) is not on that list for Conservative Protestants. Perhaps he needs to write a few more books.
Interesting blog, sir.
Josh
December 13th, 2003 at 11:55 am
Hmmm……very interesting. Interesting name on the list: Marcus Borg,
Also, interesting to see who made it on each list. Nouwen, Lewis,
Catholic list doesn’t even ring a bell!
I like it. Good find.
December 13th, 2003 at 12:32 pm
I wasn’t surprised to hear that Episcopal clergy read the most. At my Episcopal seminary we are assigned so much daily reading it makes my eyes cross sometimes. Occasionally I wonder if we aren’t reading so much that it becomes easier to disengage from the process of being with Christ in the world.
December 13th, 2003 at 12:47 pm
I don’t mean to make judgements on the conservative protestant list, but I have read enough Lucado, Warren, Swindoll to have flags go up for me with that list. interesting stuff.
December 13th, 2003 at 8:10 pm
Hmm… so Nazarenes don’t read much. I guess some of us prefer changing the world, instead of just reading about it…
Signed,
Andrew the Nazarene Who Wouldn’t Be Caught Dead Reading Max Lucado
December 14th, 2003 at 5:47 pm
When Eugene Peterson and Walter Brueggemann are below Max Lucado I don’t find much hope for the Mainliners. It’s a diet of white bread.
December 15th, 2003 at 4:56 pm
As you look ahead towards inquiry and candidacy, let me suggest that you read The Contemplative Pastor, by Eugene Peterson. I think that therein you’ll find the answer for why clergy don’t spend more time reading. For that matter, Gene takes pastors to task for doing everything but being pastors in just about any of his books, so you really can’t go wrong if you look for the answer with him.
September 10th, 2007 at 7:31 pm
Jason,
John Paul II was the Pope in 2003.
I highly recommend Scott Hahn. I found him to be quite enlightening.