Servant Leadership Development in Church-Based Pastoral Training Programs

Abstract

SERVANT LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT IN CHURCH-BASED

PASTORAL TRAINING PROGRAMS:

A MULTIPLE CASE STUDY

Aaron Francis Filippone, Ed.D.

The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, 2016

Chair: Dr. Shane W. Parker

Biblical scholars have stated that a church cannot exist unless she is organized under qualified leadership. What does it mean to be “qualified,” and how does one obtain the servant-like qualities mentioned in the New Testament? A balanced approach to pastoral training will equip leaders for the wide range of theological and practical challenges he will face. Leading a local church requires more than the academic ability to parse Greek verbs and exegete difficult passages. This research determines the level at which budding pastors are learning the experiential qualification of being servant leaders through the training received within church-based pastoral training programs.

The purpose of this multi-case study is to determine how servant leadership is being developed in selected church-based pastoral training programs. For this study, data was collected using questions that were formulated from the components of the Organizational Leadership Assessment. Research helped to identify the factors that led to the development of servant leadership. The participants of the case studies were the leaders of local church pastoral training programs.

This study utilized phenomenological methodology to produce descriptions of themes and patterns from qualitative interviews with stakeholders in the church-based pastoral training programs. The central phenomenon being studied in this research was the development of servant leadership qualities within church-based pastoral training models. The research utilized three cases to formulate a multi-case study approach for the purpose of determining possible similarities among the research samples. The goal of this research was to develop a set of best practices found within church-based pastoral training programs that seek to train pastors to be servant leaders. The findings of this study will be a valuable asset for those developing and leading church-based pastoral training programs.