It would be interesting to know the percentage of ministers who use the title "Dr." in a formal professional manner, e.g., church signs, business cards, letterheads, etc., whose doctorates are honorary--not earned. Any research on this?
Thou shalt have no other gods before Me I seriously doubt that any research has been done in this area, but it is a very interesting question since the title "Dr." gives such perceived credence to the qualifications and validity of the preacher. That title has become our golden calf, our new god. I think that there is a commandment or something that says we shouldn't have any gods before us...
No research but an observation. First, the commonly used joke that D.D. stands for *donated dignity*. Second, I have noticed a trend for larger churches within mainline denominations to hire clergy with *earned* doctorates (generally a DMin). I almost got the impression that if you did not have one First UMC or First Baptist Church would not be hiring you. I think the real doctorate adds perceived prestige to the congregation. The Honorary doctorates I have noticed among Episcopal & Roman Catholic Bishops who seem to acquire DD's after being elevated to Bishop. This is not universal as there are Bishops with DMin's or PhD's. The great ArchBishop Fulton Sheen was a brilliant scholar with a PhD from Catholic University of Louvain. North
....maybe we need to look at those independent churches that confer unaccredited doctorate degrees to individuals who have made financial contributions in support of the church's mission(s). One church and seminary in Toronto has given honorary doctorate degrees (DMin and DD) to most of its parishoners.
Little five year old Johnny comes trotting down the isle during the worship service. The minister, Dr. John Doe, walks to the podium. Beckoning to the head usher (Dr. Smith) Dr. Doe says, "Dr. Smith, would you kindly escort Dr. Johnny back to his seat." Dr. Smith immediately escorts Dr. Johnny back to his seat, stating to his parents, "Dr. & Dr. Jones, please keep Dr. Johnny in his seat." As the parishioners (doctors) exit the building at the conclusion of the service, the church cat is sitting in the birdbath just outside the front entrance. The head usher (Dr. Smith) yells, "Quick, somebody catch Dr. Puddy Tat before he eats Dr. Tweetie." Next day in seminary class Dr. Jiles is asked a theological question by an M.Div. student. "Well," Dr. Jiles responds, "Dr. Wentworth (the local winebibber who donated $5 to the seminary) is perhaps better qualified to answer this question than I." The church has indeed been DMin-ized.
Interesting. A DMin is an earned doctorate (the DD like a DLit etc are honorary). Are there no laws regarding the awarding of earned doctoral titles as honorary degrees. Could the church start awarding honorary ThD/PhD.'s? North
It is interesting the the church world seems to give us both the most difficult degrees and the the easiest degrees, degrees with great credibility and degrees with no credibility. I have a friend with and M.Div from SMU. It was a 3 year, full time, 90 smester hour master's degree (my combined masters and doctorate hours only totaled 117 graduate hours). My sister, a nun, recently completed a masters degree in sacred letters (for religious education) which took 5 years part-time work and 60 hours, plus a thesis that was submitted to the vatican, and my cousin ( a priest) completed a Doctor of Sacred letters in Rome. It ook 5 years of work after his 3 year masters degree!!! At the same time I have a neighbor who is a local pastor. He never completed college. He was awarded an honorary doctorate andnow uses Dr. in his title! Go figure!
Indeed, Michael. I know a guy who did not finish high school, yet has two honorary doctorates--both from unaccredited less-than-wonderful religious schools. And yes, he uses the titles professionally. In the vernacular of my roots, "Maaaan, somethin just ain't right here."
Absolutely. A seminary will have an established program that requires students to complete exams, coursework and (in some cases) field experience. It would require an average of 125-150 semester hours and 2-3 years to earn a Master of Theology degree. Now on the other hand, if the institution happens to be a relatively small unknown church that calls itself a "church and seminary", the student only needs to wait for the color printer to warm up..........go figure.
