Preacher's kid (abbreviated as PK) is a term to refer to a child of a preacher, pastor, deacon, vicar, lay leader, minister or other similar church leader. Although the phrase can be used in a purely descriptive way, it may also used be as a stereotype.
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Contents
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Phenomenon
Children of clergy often experience pressure due to the expectations placed on them,[1][2][3][4] and may develop feelings of isolation and inner conflict as a result.[5] Parental workload (which, by definition, includes working on the weekend) may also be a source of stress.[4]
Some writers suggest that there is a "preacher's kid syndrome", in which children of clergy reject religion and the church.[6] Such rebellious children of the clergy are a stock figure in the Southern literature of the United States,[7] and this view is seen as a stereotype.[8]
Other writers note that children of the clergy (both Protestant and Jewish) may often become clergy themselves.[9] Martin Luther King, Jr. (son of Martin Luther King, Sr.) and Franklin Graham (son of Billy Graham) are examples.
Children of clergy may be more exposed than their peers to the defining events of life. Former UK prime minister Gordon Brown recalled that he learned much about life, death, poverty, injustice and unemployment as a minister's son.[10]
The "preacher's kid" phenomenon has been connected with the related one of "military brats" (children of active-duty military personnel).[11] Children of preachers who are missionaries (Missionary Kids) may also be third culture kids.
Stereotypes
There are two different stereotypes of the preacher's kid: In one, they are perfectly angelic role models,[12][13] in the other they are rebels at the opposite extreme.[12][13][14] The existence of these stereotypes is a source of pressure on children of clergy.[14]
Examples of the negative stereotype include the preacher's son from Maine in the film Gettysburg, described as the "best darn cusser I've ever heard",[12] and Jessica Lovejoy in the "Bart's Girlfriend" episode of The Simpsons.[12][15]
Sitcom Three's Company character Chrissy Snow played by Suzanne Somers played off a variety of stereotypes including the "dumb blonde", but also as daughter of Reverend Luther Snow (Peter Mark Richman), the character - as well as much of the show's humor - was developed around aspects of Chrissy's innocence and naïvety based on a stereotype of her religious upbringing in small town America.
Other terms
In Scotland, to be "children of the manse" is considered very influential on a person's upbringing.[10]
In German, the terms Pfarrerskind[16] and Priesterkind are used to refer to children of clergy.
Examples
References
- ^ Thomas W. Klink, "The Ministry as Career and Crisis", in Pastoral Psychology, v. 20 no. 6 pp. 13-19 (Springer: 1969)
- ^ Flanagan, Kieran (2009). A Sociology of Spirituality. Ashgate Publishing. p. 194. ISBN 1409402592. http://books.google.com/books?id=I8KGArdY_k0C&pg=PA194.
- ^ Douglas F. Campbell (August 18-20, 1995). "The Clergy Family in Canada: Focus on Adult PK's". Paper read at the annual meeting of the Association for the Sociology of Religion, Washington, D.C.. Erindale College, University of Toronto. Archived from the original on 2006-10-07. http://web.archive.org/web/20061007093506/http://www.erin.utoronto.ca/~Hitachi/pks.htm. Retrieved 2011-06-15.
- ^ a b J. Elizabeth Norrell, "Clergy Family Satisfaction," Family Science Review, Vol. 2, No. 4, November, 1989 pp. 337-346.
- ^ Levitz, Yisrael N.; Twerski, Abraham J. (2005). A practical guide to rabbinic counseling. Feldheim Publishers. p. 374. ISBN 1583308342. http://books.google.com/books?id=8N83IFNvsIgC&pg=PA374.
- ^ Edwards, David Lawrence (1995). Glimpses of God: seeing the divine in the ordinary. Chalice Press. p. 61. ISBN 0827212399. http://books.google.com/books?id=MPLW85nJhbYC&pg=PA61.
- ^ Ramsey, G. Lee (2008). Preachers and misfits, prophets and thieves: the minister in southern fiction. Westminster John Knox Press. p. 8. ISBN 0664232248. http://books.google.com/books?id=QE5yFLed6PgC&pg=PA8.
- ^ Ford, Aundria H. Hawkins (2010). From the Pastor's Daughter: A Testimony of Life in the Ministry Through the Eyes of the Pastor's Child. Tate Publishing. p. 88. ISBN 1607998033. http://books.google.com/books?id=h_r6mVkI1zAC&pg=PA88.
- ^ David Peterson, "Preachers' kids; The children of preachers saw life in their church or synagogue from the inside. Many rejected the preacher's life, but others were drawn to follow their father's footsteps." (Minneapolis Star Tribune, byline Oct. 11, 1997, accessed Nov. 21, 2008)
- ^ a b Taylor, Alan (18 August 2007). "To the manse born". The Herald (Scotland). http://www.heraldscotland.com/to-the-manse-born-1.836550. Retrieved 27 June 2011.
- ^ Kruger, Roger (2008). In Jars of Clay: Reflections on the Art of Pastoring. Hillcrest Publishing Group. p. 26. ISBN 1934248835. http://books.google.com/books?id=sfHkqluzkncC&pg=PA26.
- ^ a b c d Preacher's Kid - Television Tropes & Idioms
- ^ a b Fichter, Joseph Henry (1992). Wives of Catholic Clergy. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 152. ISBN 1556124740. http://books.google.com/books?id=gJmInUDEIbAC&pg=PA152.
- ^ a b Tara J. Allman, An Analysis of the Stereotypes of Preacher’s Kids and its Application on their Spouses, Masters thesis, Marshall University, 2007.
- ^ Pinsky, Mark I. (2007). The gospel according to the Simpsons (2nd ed.). Westminster John Knox Press. p. 85. ISBN 0664231608. http://books.google.com/books?id=Qlrh_eGSPZQC&pg=PA85.
- ^ Würzberg, Anja (2005). Ich: Pfarrerskind: Vom Leben in der heiligen Familienfirma. Lutherisches Verlagshaus. ISBN 3785909276.
Further reading
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Look up PK or child of the manse in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. |
- Amy L Woods (1995). Preacher's kid. Regent University, Virginia Beach, Va. OCLC 33477968
- Everett, Liz (July 20, 2000). "Preacher's kids not any different". Amarillo Globe-News. http://www.amarillo.com/stories/072000/bel_preacherskids.shtml.
- Keleigh Crigler Hadley (2009). Preacher's Kids: Secrets & Salvation (ISBN 978-1449504410) and Preacher's Kids: Wicked and Wise (ISBN 978-1451554106) (religious young adult fiction)
- Daniel L. Langford (1998). The Pastor's Family: The Challenges of Family Life and Pastoral Responsibilities. Routledge (ISBN 0789005840)
- Ruth A. Wallace (2003). They Call Him Pastor: Married Men in Charge of Catholic Parishes. Paulist Press (ISBN 080914171X)
- Patricia Tipton Sharp and Dorothy Schleicher (1999), "The Portrayal of Clergy as Parents in Juvenile Fiction Over Two Decades," Children‘s Literature in Education, Volume 30, Number 3, pp. 203-212.
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