Divine Calling, Organizational Voice

Abstract

Abstract The notion of divine “calling” plays a significant part in the narratives of many who seek to take up some form of “ordained” ministry within the Church. This article attempts to explore how the notion of “divine calling” as part of organizational discourse establishes a particular set of relationships between the individual and the organization, and thus contributes to the ways in which individual clergy identity is formed. Through intersecting a situated learning perspective with a Foucauldian approach to discourse analysis I seek to illuminate the particular mechanisms, technologies and strategies that are employed to maintain the existing system and its construction of Salvation Army officer identity in relation to the organization.