"It's not just being called to the ministry that counts"
About this Quote
A lot of people like the romance of vocation; Somerville is interested in the receipts. "It's not just being called to the ministry that counts" punctures the cozy idea that a divine nudge, an inner voice, or a dramatic conversion automatically confers authority. The line is structured as a correction, almost a gentle rebuke: the real measure isn’t the moment of feeling chosen, but what follows from it.
The subtext reads like an argument with a certain kind of religious ego. In many Christian traditions, "the call" can become a credential, a shortcut past scrutiny: if God called me, who are you to question me? Somerville pushes back against that rhetorical shield. He implies that ministry is less a mystical badge than a sustained practice, accountable to a community and tested by results: humility, competence, discipline, the unglamorous work of care.
The phrasing matters. "Not just" signals he’s not dismissing the call outright; he’s downgrading it from headline to footnote. "Counts" is bluntly transactional, almost worldly, as if to say: charisma and testimony don’t pay the moral bills. There’s an implicit suspicion of performance religion here, the kind that prizes narratives of being "chosen" while neglecting the slow ethics of showing up, learning, serving, and not abusing power.
Contextually, the line fits a writerly tradition wary of sanctified ambition. It lands as a warning: spiritual language can be used to elevate oneself above ordinary standards. Somerville’s corrective is democratic in spirit - ministry, if it means anything, must be verifiable in conduct, not merely certified by calling.
The subtext reads like an argument with a certain kind of religious ego. In many Christian traditions, "the call" can become a credential, a shortcut past scrutiny: if God called me, who are you to question me? Somerville pushes back against that rhetorical shield. He implies that ministry is less a mystical badge than a sustained practice, accountable to a community and tested by results: humility, competence, discipline, the unglamorous work of care.
The phrasing matters. "Not just" signals he’s not dismissing the call outright; he’s downgrading it from headline to footnote. "Counts" is bluntly transactional, almost worldly, as if to say: charisma and testimony don’t pay the moral bills. There’s an implicit suspicion of performance religion here, the kind that prizes narratives of being "chosen" while neglecting the slow ethics of showing up, learning, serving, and not abusing power.
Contextually, the line fits a writerly tradition wary of sanctified ambition. It lands as a warning: spiritual language can be used to elevate oneself above ordinary standards. Somerville’s corrective is democratic in spirit - ministry, if it means anything, must be verifiable in conduct, not merely certified by calling.
Quote Details
| Topic | Faith |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
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