Perceptions of stress on those in rural ministry: listening to church leaders

Abstract

This study examines the perceptions of eleven senior church leaders on the nature and extent of stress among rural clergy. Analysis of the interview data from these church leaders reveals five key themes: first, the unreasonable expectations laid on ordained rural ministers; second, their difficulty in maintaining a work/life balance; third, the need to share the responsibility for stress management between the individual minister and the wider church; fourth, the particular insights of church leaders who had recently worked in a rural setting; and fifth, the need for further research, especially into the effective deployment of limited specialist resources to support ordained rural ministers when in stressful situations. The senior church leaders differed in their ‘location of responsibility’ for managing stress and the enhancement of psychological health in ordained rural ministers. The recommendation is then made for an integrated approach in which the responsibility is shared between the individual minister and the wider church. The study concludes with the need for a large-scale survey of senior church leaders in several denominations into the management of stress and the enhancement of the psychological health of ordained rural ministers.