Review: Ancient Wisdom for the Care of Souls: Learning the Art of Ministry from the Christian Fathers By Coleman M. Ford and Shawn J. Wilhite

by on July 3, 2025 | Comment

The church has had pastors since our very beginning. Although that observation may seem obvious, we may yet overlook the important point that the pastoral craft is very ancient. We likely often envision the pastoral role only in terms of our modern conceptions. Unfortunately, much of this conception probably fits an entrepreneurial business mold. We can see the pastor as needing to be the quintessential TED talk presenter with the savvy to direct a big organization. We reduce his contribution to marketing and CEO strategies.

The ancient practice of pastoral care reveals much more depth to the pastoral task than simply strategic management. Character, doctrine, spiritual practices and reflection, and a groundedness in the Christian tradition were all part of the priorities in pastoral practice. These priorities are well worth our consideration again.

Coleman Ford and Shawn Wilhite’s Ancient Wisdom for the Care of Souls provides snapshots into the ancient priorities in pastoral care and practice. This book comprises case studies of ten patristic figures who were notable for their contribution to the life of the church in some way or other. The purpose of the book is to consider how theological vision shapes pastoral ministry. Accordingly, Ford and Wilhite look at what doctrinal commitments were most formative in the church’s early years.

The strength of this volume is how it brings the past into conversation with the present. Each chapter opens with a discussion of our time and some modern state of the question of sorts. This initial discussion sets up an exploration about how one of the patristic figures worked through the issue in the ancient period. The contrast between modern and ancient practice gives real insight into the change in values over time, especially when it comes to the pastoral task.

The standout difference seems to be about pace and contemplation. The modern approach to pastoral care stresses management. Pastors are supposed to organize events, set expectations, create enthusiasm for programs, and garner steam for what feels like a movement. The ancient approach to pastoral care prioritized knowing God and how the truth about God comes to bear upon life. Pastors were meant to be those with wisdom more than strategy to help people stay rooted in the truth about God and how to live well before him.

I am going to pause for a moment to note what I think this volume’s weakness is. Often, I felt that the dive into each ancient theologian was left at a more surface level than one might expect in a book about recovering wisdom. The book seems to presume that we need to recover theological contemplation, margin for reflection, and a more robust sense of what life in the church under the means of grace signifies in pastoral practice and in the Christian life.

These discussions of ancient pastoral wisdom would have been greatly supplemented by more meditative reflection upon the truth raised in each chapter. How does each truth address the modern situation raised in the beginning of each chapter? How do we learn to put these ancient approaches into practice as pastors today? What will change about our lives if we do? The book in some ways reflects the modern weakness it critiques—our inability to ruminate and see how deeper reflection can produce a more satisfying result.

Nevertheless, we should not let that shortcoming distract us from this book’s real value. It does provide a thought-provoking introduction to several pastoral figures from the ancient period. It does sketch the significance of various features of ancient pastoral practice. Each of the truths highlighted is good and valuable as a facet of the pastor’s approach to caring for Christ’s sheep.

Perhaps the overarching takeaway is that our first value will shape our practice. The modern pastoral stereotype seems to value activity. The pastor is supposed to be the idea man who enables the sorts of activities that people want and think are connected to the Christian life. This outlook rests on the assumption that the Christian life is about involvement in a certain kind of busyness. We tend to Christianize various activities and then invest our stock in them as the way to walk with Christ.

By contrast, the ancient practice valued truth. The priority of truth entailed that the pastor needed to invest his time in understanding the truth. That means he needs habits of study and reflection. He is meant to bring truth to bear upon life, which means he needs a prayerful disposition and an outlook for applying doctrine for the comfort, support, and encouragement of Christ’s people. That means reflecting upon life and our place in the world rather than running from one activity and meeting to the next.

This ancient priority for truth shows that the longest standing practice of pastoral care is about strengthening Christ’s people according to what is real. Modern approaches to pastoral care likely have the result—if not the very intent—of distracting people away from causes of distress. The assumption might be that if we are distracted by Christian activity, then we should have less time for sin. Certainly, the numbing effect is that we have less time to feel the burden of the world and our problems. The ancient approach is opposite but ultimately a greater balm. It urges us not to be distracted from the issues of life and the world but to confront them with God on our side. The more deeply we know this true God and his work for us, the better readied we are for that endeavor. In this respect, Ford and Wilhite’s book is an excellent first foray into recovering the deeper methods of pastoral care.

©Harrison Perkins. All Rights Reserved.

Coleman M. Ford and Shawn J. Wilhite, Ancient Wisdom for the Care of Souls: Learning the Art of Ministry from the Christian Fathers (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2024).

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