Language and the Market Society by Mautner Gerlinde;

Author:Mautner, Gerlinde;
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Economics, Finance, Business & Industry
Publisher: Routledge
Published: 2010-02-11T16:00:00+00:00

incongruous, to say the least, in a business setting. On the other hand, there is equally strong evidence that a good deal of emphasis is now placed on the managerial demands made on clergy, and that these are phrased in ways that are to all extents and purposes indistinguishable from what we are accustomed to reading in ads for secular appointments. To describe the ideal vicar, adjective-noun combinations and coordinated evaluative adjectives regularly include instances such as “effective communicator”,17 “energetic and committed leader”18 and “excellent team player”.19 Occasionally, both discourses come head to head in a single adjectival or nominal group, as when the Diocese of York, advertising a position in the market town of Pocklington, says that it seeks a “prayerful and dynamic priest”,20 or when the Diocese of Canterbury is looking for a vicar who “is able to combine strategic leadership with pastoral warmth and sensitivity”.21

Finally, in an interesting parallel with the local council ads discussed in Section 4.3, the church ads also adopt a decidedly promotional tone when describing the churches and parishes concerned. Historic attractions, beautiful surrounding scenery, well-appointed vicarages and good transport links would be typical strong points intended to lure the clerical job seeker. In addition, like the ideal candidate, places too are extolled as “dynamic” and are placed within a strategy discourse: “We are a dynamic vision-orientated church of about 300 people”,22 says one ad; another reads: “Our church is strategically located in the heart of the busy town-centre of St. Helens, with over ten thousand people passing by each day.”23 The future incumbent is expected to lead the church “in choosing the most effective opportunities presented by our town-centre location”. And yet, in this case too, a switch back to spiritual discourse follows in the very next sentence: “We are open to new ways of being church as the wind of the Holy Spirit blows”. The Holy Spirit, at least, is allowed to blow quite freely. Even ineffectively, perhaps?

Polemics apart, what the close proximity of managerial and spiritual discourses reveals is the tension felt by contemporary churches between nurturing faith and answering to the market logic of continuous growth, efficiency and change.

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