- For the movie starring LeToya Luckett and Durrell Babbs see Preacher's Kid (film).
Preacher's kid (abbreviated as PK) is a term to refer to a child of a preacher, pastor, deacon, vicar, minister or other similar church leader. Although the phrase can be used in a purely descriptive way, it is often used pejoratively or stereotypically. It is mainly used in the United States.
Some clergy live in social networks that impose uncodified and perhaps unconscious expectations about the conduct, not only of the clergy themselves, but also the members of their families.[1] Children of church leaders are often subjected to greater scrutiny by the community than other children. People around them, including their parents, often set higher moral and behavioral standards for these children. Due to the greater visibility of these children, their mistakes are magnified and given extra attention. In addition, these children often sense that they are treated differently from others and can react in various disruptive ways. The term also has connotations of itinerance, with the preacher's kid following their parent on the latter's postings to different congregations.[2] Finally, preachers' kids witness the day to day business of their religious congregations more intimately than the non-clergy members do, and become familiar with church administration and the social dimensions of dealing with the congregation at an early age. A large number of the children of Protestant and Jewish clergy go on to become members of the clergy themselves.[3]
Preacher's kid syndrome is a situation in which the parents of a preacher's kid are attuned to everyone's problems but those of the kid.[4]
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Stereotypes
All of these factors lead to a preacher's kid stereotype. There are two general stereotypes of preachers' kids.
- Stereotype one
Preachers' kids act as if they are "holier-than-thou." They preach their beliefs to anybody they encounter. They do not like to be wrong about what they preach, even in the opinions of others. They may be also prepotent, and in some cases, spoiled brats.
- Stereotype two
Preachers' kids start out as good, faithful children, but anywhere from their preteen years to their adult life, they rebel. They do anything they can to avoid the church and its practices. They may deny their parents outright or they may be rebellious behind their parents' backs.[5][6]
Famous examples
References
- ^ Thomas W. Klink, "The Ministry as Career and Crisis", in Pastoral Psychology, v. 20 no. 6, pp. 13-19 (Springer: 1969)
- ^ DeLeon, David (1994). Leaders from the 1960s. Westport: Greenwood Press. ISBN 0313274142.
- ^ 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)
- ^ Coats, Karen (2007) . Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books [0008-9036], volume 60, p.332
- ^ "Rebel Graham Son Finds His Cause". Albuquerque Journal. May 4, 1998.
- ^ Maxwell, Bill (May 13, 2001). "A Preacher's Kid is exposed". St. Petersburg Times. http://www.sptimes.com/News/051301/news_pf/Columns/A_Preacher_s_Kid_is_e.shtml. Retrieved 2008-11-20.
Further reading
- Amy L Woods (1995). Preacher's kid. Regent University, Virginia Beach, Va. 1995. 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.
External links
- Douglas F. Campbell, The Clergy Family in Canada: Focus on Adult PK's, read at the annual meeting of the Association for the Sociology of Religion, Washington, D.C., August 18-20, 1995.[dead link]
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