ABSTRACT
The contemporary parson has often been seen as a marginal man. He is the victim of secularization. The sacred cosmos is now segregated from the rest of life and those who interpret it are set apart. It was decided to interview parsons who had entered the ministry from established secular careers. The result of secularization is that religion moves from the centre of life to a highly marginal position. Secularization sharpens the division between the secular and religious spheres of life and belief, which represent separate and autonomous zones of reality. Modern industrial societies are plural societies, based on the division of labour and a sharp distinction between the public and the private. They are also highly professionalized societies, and professional roles tend to be effectively neutral and specific and restricted rather than diffuse. Many years of self-examination and looking for the hand of God typified the changeover from a secular to a religious career.
