How to Be a Pastor: Wisdom from the Past for Pastors in the Present

by Theodore L. Cuyler, Ray van Neste (editor), Justin Wainscott (editor)

In How to Be a Wisdom from the Past for Pastors in the Present, Van Neste and Wainscott have revived the neglected yet needed wisdom of a forgotten pastor, Theodore Cuyler. While Cuyler is all but unknown today, he was a leading figure alongside the likes of Spurgeon and Moody in his own day. Moreover, he was looked to as something of an ideal pastor, and his reflections from over four decades of ministry speak to important issues that are too often ignored in contemporary discussions about the role and responsibilities of pastors. While affirming the importance of preaching, Cuyler makes it clear that pastoral care of individual people is central to pastoral ministry. As he writes, “Set it down as a cardinal principle . . . that if you would interest people in the gospel and interest them in their salvation, you have got to interest yourself in them and all that belongs to them.”Whether you are just starting in ministry or have been a pastor for some time, the wisdom provided in this volume will be of immense help to you as you shepherd the flock of God that is among you.

92 pages, Paperback

Published January 5, 2024

Reviews

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really edifying pastoral reflections by a contemporary of Spurgeon.

[Rex Stewart · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sheesh. Hard to put into words how insanely good this was for me.

[Allison Wise · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.75! read for class!! reminiscent of The Reformed Pastor by Richard Baxter which is good since Cuyler referenced it as a work that influenced his own.

hahah honest moment here: This was an interesting experience for me because I was really self-conscious reading this book out in public. I felt like I was doing something wrong, and I wasn't allowed to read it because I am a woman. I know no one was even paying me attention, but I couldn't help but wonder what was going through people's minds as they saw a woman reading this book...I know this says way more about me and my own insecurity but yeah, I don't know this was enlightening to me that I am still carrying lingering wounds/apprehension/insecurity in this area. Thankful for the awareness and therefore the opportunity to run to the Father once again. Thank you Jesus.

[Ryan Linkous · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's so refreshing to read a book about classic pastoral ministry. Cuyler is clearly a gifted writer and communicator whose words pulse with a theological joy and passion, even at the late age in which he wrote this (perhaps because of it). He writes with eloquence about the need for pastoral visitation, prayer meetings, and how to "organize" a church for effective ministry.

Despite pastoring the largest Presbyterian congregation in the United States in the late 19th century (about 4,500 members, 2,000 of which were new converts), he has a passion for souls that is grounded in the personal. He has an appreciation for churches to be the ground zero of evangelism, conversion, prayer, and spiritual growth. Today, many of these have been outsourced (Cuyler decries the growing outsourcing of evangelism and conversion to traveling evangelists in his day, although he is not averse to hosting them and receiving their benefit).

Cuyler has a love for small churches, believing them to be great places for newer pastors to learn to attend to the person after a training that had them attending to books and ideas. This remains true today, although more and more pastors-in-training end up at subdivisions within megachurches or in church plants. In 1890, he's writing about how urban congregations are prone to accretion and excess in the unnecessary (although not always unimportant), whereas smaller congregations can focus on the basics. This remains true 130 years later. In addition to pastors, I wish more Christians and congregants pursued smaller churches as places of spiritual vitality and mission.

Given that his ministry was a generation behind Charles Finney and the 2nd Great Awakening, he still has a fondness for "revival" although he offers a theological vision for revival which is pretty healthy. He recognizes that it is God's work through-and-through, cannot be planned or contained. Churches and pastors must submit to the Spirit's work.

I think there is a dimension of Cuyler that might exhaust some readers today. His ministry seemed simple in some ways (study and visits everyday, focusing on proclamation and evangelism) but busy in others (meetings multiple nights a week). I have no idea his family life and how it might have permitted this pace of ministry. Also, ministering in Brooklyn, a place where pedestrian living was and is possible, is quite different than in our automobile-dependent communities.

It's reading this kind of work that fuels the fire of my ministry. It reminds me of the needed classical pastoral work of tending to souls and encourages me to carry on.

[John Lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love reading books by older pastors.

Never agree with everything (affinity for Finney made me turn my head at points), but tons of gems scattered throughout.

Cuyler clearly loved visitation and evangelism. Grateful for his wisdom

[Ben · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a short little book written by a pastor of over 40 years. He articulates some of his wisest council for young pastors. Some of it is a bit out-of-date, but well worth the time.