Emotional damage in pastoral ministry: Contributing factors and effect on pastors’ performance

Abstract

This study examined the contributing factors to the emotional damage resulting from ministry demands that leave pastors stressed depressed due to burnout that affects pastors’ performance at the Central Kenya Conference. A descriptive research design using the Phenomenological method was adopted. The study targeted 40 district pastors out of 201 within the eight stations in the conference and eight pastors’ representatives. The research utilised interviews and questionnaires as protocols for collecting data. Five (5) participants from every eight stations were purposively selected. The questionnaire was then administered to the participants who had been selected. Additionally, interviews were done with the representation of eight pastors’ as informants to deduce their particular views and perspectives on emotional damage. Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis was adopted in analysing the data. In the analysis process, several themes emerged that describe what causes emotional damage among the pastors: 1) Failure to receive forgiveness, 2) failure to forgive, 3) ministerial stress, 4) seeking a position, 5) financial challenges, 6) personal influence, 7) loneliness, 8) distraction and conflict, 9) ministerial placement, 10) anger This paper recommends ways pastors can experience emotional healing to improve their pastoral effectiveness.