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Clergy Career Issues
Salary Study: The Associate director of the project, Dr. Becky McMillan, who has a Ph.D. in labor economics and is a recent M.Div. graduate of the Duke Divinity School, and Dr. Matthew Price, who is now the head of research for the Clergy Pension Group of the Episcopal Church, are currently undertaking in-depth analysis of clergy compensation. This study examines data from various denominations, including the United Methodist Church and others, as well as comparative data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (Current Population Surveys) from 1976-1999, and existing data from other studies to provide a picture of the current state of clergy salaries and the implications for the mission of the church. Rationale: Compensation issues are one of the thorniest issues in the side of the church. There are few good models of how local churches or entire denominations should create just and effective structures of compensation. Compensation is also seen as a key factor to clergy morale and satisfaction as well as to the attractiveness of ordained ministry relative to other professions. These studies will allow us to assess the range of clergy salaries, different types of added compensation, and how compensation varies by church size, region, denomination, and age, gender and race/ethnicity. This study raises important theological and ethical issues about the significance of money in our culture, the relation of compensation to calling, and what constitutes just compensation. Analyses of clergy career characteristics and of the supply and demand for ordained leadership in selected Protestant denominations. Dr. Patricia Chang of Boston College is undertaking these two studies. Rationale: In an effort to understand both the state of ordained leadership and how good ministry is nurtured and supported, we need a better picture of the various paths that clergy pursue over the course of their careers and the peculiar demands that career changes bring to clergy. How can seminaries and denominations better provide timely resources for clergy at these critical junctures in their career? How can we help clergy to be more intentional about career development issues? The supply and demand study is especially timely as various Protestant denominations are beginning to report clergy shortages. On the supply side, how are these shortages related to the age distribution of clergy, to what appear to be an increase in resignations and early retirements, to recruitment, and to clergy resistance (in some denominations) to considering calls in small rural or inner city congregations? On the demand side what is the impact of growing numbers of small congregations unable to afford full-time, seminary trained pastoral leadership? What are the alternatives for providing pastoral leadership to these congregations? Both studies are important for understanding the current state of ordained pastoral leadership. Study of expectations and experiences of pastoral search committees and pastor-parish relations committees in securing pastors. Dr. Adair Lummis of Hartford Seminary is conducting this study, interviewing chairpersons of these committees. She is also interviewing middle judicatory officials about the same topic. Rationale: To our knowledge no study has ever been done of the experiences of pastoral search and pastor-parish relations committees. This project aims at understanding the experiences of these committees, how they go about their work, the expectations of pastoral leadership that they bring to their work, and the role played by middle judicatories in providing assistance. Study of morale issues, stayers and dropouts in selected Protestant denominations. This study, to be undertaken by Professor Dean Hoge of Catholic University, will have some parallels with Hoge,s study of recently ordained seminarians (above) and also coordinate with the national survey of clergy described above. The study will identify a sample of clergy who have left ordained ministry, especially those who have left to enter a secular occupation. Three denominations will be included: the United Methodist Church, the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), and the Southern Baptist Convention. Interviews will be conducted with these ex-pastors and their responses compared with samples of currently active clergy from these three denominations. The study will replicate, where possible, questions from the 1970 study of ex-pastors by Gerald Jud, Edgar Mills, and Genevieve Burch. It will pay special attention to whether gender is an important contributor to dropping out. It will also provide overall morale issues among stayers, e.g., continuing clergy in the three denominations. Rationale: Other than the earlier Jud et al. study, limited work has been done to understand why some clergy leave ordained ministry through resignation and/or early retirement. This is be an important issue for women clergy who appear to be dropping out in greater numbers than clergy men and also as a contributor to clergy shortages. Understanding better why people leave should give important insights into the work life of clergy, their morale, the contribution of external pressures in the decision to drop out, and ways in which the larger church system provides (or fails to provide) adequate support for its pastoral leaders. Study of pastors who have been fired from their congregations in three denominations. The study will be undertaken by Dr. Alan Klaas, an independent researcher and congregational consultant. He will identify congregations and clergy who have experienced forced resignations and do in-depth interviews with the pastors, congregational leaders, and middle judicatory officials involved in the firings. Rationale: This study will provide some parallel insights to the drop-out study (above), but it will concentrate especially on clergy who have been forced to resign from their congregations and the circumstances and processes surrounding their firing. Reports from several denominations indicate that forced resignations of pastors have increased in recent years. What are the reasons for this increase? If they are result of congregational conflicts with their pastors, what kinds of conflicts were they? What role did middle judicatory officials play? What kinds of training in conflict management or interventions by third-party consultants would have helped? Not only will this aid in understanding the state of ordained ministry today, but we anticipate that it will provide guidance to pastors, congregations, and denominations in dealing with pastor-parish relationships before they reach the stage of forced termination. |
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