A relationship analysis between mentoring and leadership development within the United Pentecostal Church International

Abstract

The Oneness or Apostolic movement, which the United Pentecostal Church International (UPCI) is a part of, has historically had minimal formal educational requirements for ministerial licensure. In lieu of formal educational requirements it has been assumed that ministers and leaders have been developed by other means including mentoring. For this dissertation the researcher compiled and analyzed data on the relationship between mentoring and leadership development within the UPCI.

Examination of precedent literature includes laying a biblical foundation for mentoring by examining mentoring in the Old and New Testaments. Emphasis is placed on biblical examples of the five mentoring functions of teaching, sponsoring, counseling, encouraging, and befriending espoused by Leona English in Mentoring in Religious Education (English 1998). Attention was given to role-modeling as the foundation of mentoring in Scripture. Secular and Christian leadership literature along with mentoring literature are used to establish the importance of leadership development and to support mentoring as a viable means of leadership development.

To gather data for the study a survey was developed by the researcher and administered to the Board of General Presbyters (BGP) and the General Youth Committee (GYC) of the UPCI. These two groups represent the North American senior and youth leadership of the licensed ministry of the UPCI. The survey collected data relative to the groups' perceptions of their personal experiences of being mentored, their praxis of mentoring proteges, and their attitudes towards mentoring.

Analysis of the collected data indicated mentoring to be an integral component of leadership development within the UPCI. The two generations of UPCI leaders surveyed perceived the extent of mentoring's significance in their leadership development to be of the magnitude that they would likely not be in ministry or their present leadership position if it were not for the influence of their mentors. They also indicated an active praxis of mentoring proteges for leadership and strong positive attitudes towards mentoring's future in the movement. The BGP and GYC's experience, praxis, and attitudes relative to mentoring were more similar than contrasting. Members of the GYC, were more likely to have been formally mentored than the senior leaders, the BGP, and were more likely to be involved in cross-gender mentoring than the BGP.

The researcher concluded that mentoring has been and will continue to be an important aspect of leadership development within the UPCI. Leaders will continue to employ the five functions of teaching, sponsoring, encouraging, counseling, and befriending to develop their proteges for leadership. The data indicates that developing of more formalized mentoring programs and mentorship training programs would potentially enhance the quality and quantity of mentoring in the Oneness movement.