The COVID-19 pandemic and general politicization of everyday life have had a real, tangible impact on pastors Let’s recap the negative forces that have come up throughout this Resilient Pastor series: The COVID-19 pandemic and general politicization of everyday life have had a very real and tangible impact on the expectations people have from their pastors, and in turn how pastors feel about their callings. We’ve seen a systemic shift in the sort of things churches ask for from their pastors, and that has coincided with an uptick in burnout. A new generation must soon step into church leadership, but many of them are overlooked, underdeveloped or unprepared for the role.

All of this may sound daunting, and there are definitely challenges ahead. But it would be a mistake to ignore the opportunities here.

If you sit with the findings of this research and the cultural shifts that have sparked them, you may see new avenues for churches to reach their communities and have an impact on the people in them. Pastors who take the time to understand how the culture is changing will be best equipped to take real, tangible steps to forge a path forward. The ideas and strategies for the next era of pastoral ministry might look a little different than what’s come before, but the results could change the Church and the world it reaches.

Pastors’ Emotional Support Would Be Welcomed

As we’ve seen, pastors feel most comfortable leading their churches at a congregational level—mostly through preaching at the pulpit. While many pastors consider preaching to be the cornerstone of their ministry work, Barna’s research suggests that their congregations and local community are interested in receiving other types of spiritual leadership.

There is fertile ground for churches to address some of the most pressing needs of our time—for instance, mental and emotional well-being. Many people with church experiences feel a local pastor would be equipped to help them with emotional support. This suggests that, despite the real threats to pastors’ cultural standing, most people would still feel comfortable turning to a pastor in times of crisis. Churchgoers in particular are eager (29% very likely + 37% likely) to seek pastoral support for an emotional need.

Now, perception is not reality, and just because people think that a pastor is trained to handle a mental or emotional health issue does not necessarily make it so. Only 37 percent of pastors feel that the church could have a meaningful impact on mental health issues. As we have seen, many pastors are already stretched thin, and they may feel like it’s unreasonable to add “mental health expert” to the already considerable list of “other duties as assigned” job expectations.

However, understanding that people both in and outside the church are open to receiving pastoral input on their mental health and emotional needs shouldn’t be ignored altogether. As churches train the next generation of pastors to be a peaceful presence in an anxiety-ridden age, seeking to provide mental health resources may introduce promising areas for ministry. If pastors can learn to be engaged and effective on this front, they may also gain respect and trust from their community in other areas as well.

Local Pastors Can Defy Stereotypes

While the decline of trust in pastors is real, it shouldn’t be overstated It appears true that a high-profile scandal in one denomination or part of the country can lead to reputational challenges for pastors everywhere. However, our research suggests that while people may be losing interest in celebrity pastors and big, flashy megachurches, they still see those as exceptions to the “non-celebrity” pastors and “non-mega” churches.

While the decline of trust in pastors is real, it shouldn’t be overstated. Remember, nearly half of people say they have positive opinions of pastors and priests—much more so than their celebrity counterparts.

One specific example: If you’ve been among the pastors leading a church through the tumultuous past few years, take heart. Your work has largely been a welcome, stabilizing presence to your neighbors in a season of uncertainty. Two-thirds of U.S. adults (65%) recognize their local Christian pastors as having been strong leaders through the COVID pandemic.

Further, keep in mind that the overall impression from the research is that the public is, well, mostly indifferent about pastors around them. This isn’t quite the same as having an inherent level of trust and respect for pastors, but it’s not disdain either. You could almost say that most unchurched people are undecided on pastors. Their next interaction with a pastor—maybe even with you—may well be the one that solidifies their opinion.

This is where the sort of relational community outreach people would like to see from churches could be beneficial. Pastors may be better equipped to reach out and build bonds of trust than they think. (And if you happened to be leading a larger or even a “mega” church, you still are in a unique position to offer refreshing alternatives to the stereotypes.)

The Future of Pastoring Will Be Paved with Honesty

Above all, our research suggests that people want pastors to be real The leadership of tomorrow doesn’t necessarily have to be defined by the past. Many people are willing and able to disentangle their local pastors from broader narratives of irrelevance or corruption. But they are also looking for a new type of pastor: spiritual leaders who are at least as focused on connecting over the day-to-day realities of life as they are on the Sunday morning sermon.

Above all, our research suggests that people want pastors to be real.

When we asked people what they hope to see portrayed by Christian leaders from the pulpit, the most popular answer by far is honesty, outranking qualities like knowledge, compassion, confidence and relevance. This holds true across all generations, regardless of whether people self-identify as a Christian.

Moreover, our research finds that people think it’s more important for a pastor to be honest about their doubts than certain about their beliefs. This also holds true across age demographics, regardless of belief. It’s fair to assume that most people are aware pastors don’t have all the answers and don’t even necessarily want them to. They’d rather have someone who can relate to them as they process their own questions and uncertainties.

There is a personal, powerful way forward for pastors in this country to lead their churches and their communities. Perhaps it is helpful to see that pastors’ collective obstacles in cultural leadership may be solved not by focusing on the culture at large but by attending carefully to a pastor’s own immediate sphere of influence. The opportunities are as real as the challenges for those churches that are willing to change course as needed, empower their pastors to do good for their communities, and reach the people around them with compassion and authenticity.

This Resilient Pastor series is produced in partnership with World Vision, Brotherhood Mutual and Gloo.

About the Research:

- 2022 data: Barna conducted 585 online interviews with Protestant senior pastors in the U.S. from September 6–16, 2022. Quotas were set to ensure representation by denomination, church size and region and oversampling was conducted to reach female senior pastors. Minimal statistical weighting was applied to maximize representation and the sample error is +/- 3.8% at the 95% confidence level.