Ashburton College
Minister of Religion Amorangi
Ministers of religion provide leadership, guidance and training for members of a religious group.
Ministers of religion may do some or all of the following:
- conduct religious ceremonies and deliver sermons or talks
- build a community of faith, and develop relationships within it
- help people prepare for religious ceremonies
- help people deal with life events, and their spiritual life and faith
- co-ordinate volunteers
- study religion
- train leaders for church, community and youth leadership
- administrative work.
Useful Experience
Useful experience includes:
- involvement in your religious community
- work with religious youth groups
- work as a counsellor or teacher, or any work helping people
- public speaking.
Personal Qualities
Ministers of religion need to be:
- good listeners and communicators
- able to relate to people of all ages and backgrounds
- good at public speaking, leading and teaching
- patient and trustworthy
- able to keep information private
- stable, resilient and able to cope with stress
- well organised, with good planning skills.
Skills
Ministers of religion need to have :
- a strong faith and a vision for their community
- knowledge of the spirituality, traditions and ceremonies of their religion
- people skills, and understanding of people's problems, behaviours, and emotions
- counselling and conflict resolution skills.
Conditions
Ministers of religion:
- work irregular hours, weekends and evenings, and may be called on at any time
- work in churches, synagogues, mosques, temples or other religious facilities. They may also work in schools and universities, hospitals, offices, prisons and homes
- may work in stressful conditions as they help people face challenging events
- may travel locally to visit their community or nationally for conferences.
Subject Recommendations
A tertiary entrance qualification may be recommended. Useful subjects include English, languages, history and classics.
Related Courses
Ministers of religion specialise in their own faith.
Some Christian ministers may work on outreach projects or do missionary work overseas. Experienced ministers may teach ministry students.
Years Of Training
Entry requirements for ministers of religion differ depending on the religion. However, you must:
- have a strong faith
- feel that you are called to the ministry
- have an active involvement in your faith's community
- satisfy your faith's representatives that you have a genuine calling, and are a suitable person to become a minister of religion.
Some religions prefer their ministers to have a university degree.
You may be able to do further training, such as Honours or a Master's degree, in theology, ministry or religious studies, by distance study while you work.
The Vulnerable Children Act 2014 means that if you have certain serious convictions, you can’t be employed in a role where you are responsible for, or work alone with, children.
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