Three (More) Things I Learned in Seminary

More things you shouldn’t have to take on more student debt to learn

Earlier this summer, I wrote about five things I learned in Seminary. I tried to keep these to big bombshells, the kind of thing that most parishioners don’t know but that are relatively common knowledge among people studying religion and the Bible every day. But there is a lot more to the Seminary experience than most people know. So here are five things, more personal things, that I learned in Seminary, and which have shaped my approach and understanding of my own religion long after graduation. This is a reflection of my experience at a liberal, mainline, Lutheran Seminary with a variety of denominations represented by students and staff, so not every Seminary is like this, this is just my experience.

Aside from struggling with everyday stuff, it’s important to note that clergy experience a higher than average rate of substance abuse.

Your Pastors Are Human

Growing up in the church I looked up to all the pastors I had. I listened to them preach every Sunday, saw them lead ministry groups, and hung out with them during youth retreats and lock ins. Pastors were people I respected. Some of them were larger than life. Some of them had what seemed like infinite…