Finding the Right Title in Ministry
When I was growing up, minister titles were not popular, and as a result, my father never came to my first communion. As a result, my mother did not feel the same connection with me as she would have if she had chosen a title that would have been “appropriate” to me. I do not know why people choose “minister” over titles like pastor, elder, or pastor, but it could be because some people have chosen to use those titles for different reasons, some of which are personal and some of which have nothing to do with being a pastor, elder, or pastor.
In my own family, my father chose “pastor” over the titles “pastor’s wife”, “pastor’s father”, or “pastor’s mother”. He chose this name because he had been a pastor for many years, and he also said that he was a “pastor” and not a pastor. The problem is that his title was not exactly “pastor”, but I could understand what he was trying to say. We were raised in a denomination that strongly believed in the Biblical teaching that a man should only become a pastor once he has had a congregation of several hundred people, had been ordained by the elders, and had been called “pastor”.
There are many different minister titles available to people who are called “pastor” in the church, and they come in all different shapes and sizes. Some are more professional sounding, and some are very personal sounding. I do not know if I would have chosen to go by my father’s name, but I am glad that I was given a name that was more appropriate to me. That is my story about finding the right title in ministry.
Interested in learning more about the National Association of Christian Ministers? See our Statement of Faith.