Pastoral Lust
My soul longeth, yea, even fainteth for the courts of the Lord: my heart and my flesh crieth out for the living God. (Ps. 84:2)
In sum and principle, I recognize only two requirements for a pastor: the doing of his duty in passing on the gospel to those who desire to hear it, and keeping his nose clean (both in fact, given the strength of the Opposition, being stupendous accomplishments)—without serious regard to the variety of stimulations that mere taste tends to convert into the essence of piety or worship, and which he is called upon to control from higher ground.
But a true minister of the gospel must—must—be a man who is in love, and remains in it his whole life long. The holy eros must drive him and be evident to his people, so as to awaken and nourish their own desire (if they have it) for the Truth, Beauty, and Goodness of the one, true God and the passionate hatred of idols which must unapologetically accompany this love. It's not just that this is a "pastoral requirement," but that there is no call to the ministry without it.
S. M. Hutchens is a Touchstone senior editor.
• Not a subscriber or wish to renew your subscription? Subscribe to Touchstone today for full online access. Over 30 years of publishing!
personal subscriptions
Purchase Print &
Online Subscription
Get six issues (one year) of Touchstone PLUS full online access including pdf downloads for only $39.95. That's only $3.34 per month!
Get a one-year full-access subscription to the Touchstone online archives including pdf downloads for only $19.95. That's only $1.66 per month!
gift subscriptions
GIVE Print &
Online Subscription
Give six issues (one year) of Touchstone PLUS full online access including pdf downloads for the reduced rate of $29.95. That's only $2.50 per month!
Transactions will be processed on a secure server.
bulk subscriptions
Order Touchstone subscriptions in bulk and save $10 per sub! Each subscription includes 6 issues of Touchstone plus full online access to touchstonemag.com—including archives, videos, and pdf downloads of recent issues for only $29.95 each! Great for churches or study groups.
kindle subscription
OR get a subscription to Touchstone to read on your Kindle for only $1.99 per month! (This option is KINDLE ONLY and does not include either print or online.)
Your subscription goes a long way to ensure that Touchstone is able to continue its mission of publishing quality Christian articles and commentary.
more from the online archives
32.6—November/December 2019
on Taking Heed of the Parallels Between the Crises of Yesterday & Today by Korey D. Maas
22.8—November/December 2009
on the Real Men Behind the Christmas Carol by Michael Baum
calling all readers
Please Donate
"There are magazines worth reading but few worth saving . . . Touchstone is just such a magazine."
—Alice von Hildebrand
"Here we do not concede one square millimeter of territory to falsehood, folly, contemporary sentimentality, or fashion. We speak the truth, and let God be our judge. . . . Touchstone is the one committedly Christian conservative journal."
—Anthony Esolen, Touchstone senior editor
