In many churches, the pastor’s salary is a quiet issue. There is a sense of discomfort from both the pastor and the members when the topic is broached. Such discomfort is unfortunate, however, because a number of churches will not seek every year to make certain the pastor is paid fairly.
A couple of prefatory comments are in order. First, we all know of the extreme examples of pastors living lavishly or mismanaging money. Those stories, though true, represent a small minority. Most pastors are not overpaid. And most pastors manage their limited finances well. Second, I am aware that many people are unemployed and that anyone who has a job should be grateful. That is still not a good reason to pay a pastor unfairly. As a final note, this brief article is relevant to all paid church staff, though my focus is here on the pastor.
In my 25 years of consulting and working with churches, I have discovered five common issues that are not always known by most church members. And lack of awareness of any one of these issues can have a detrimental impact on fair compensation for the pastor.
- A pay or compensation package is not the same as a salary. I cringe when I hear churches state a package to be the pay for the pastor. The package includes benefits such as health insurance and expense reimbursements such as business use of the automobile. No worker in a secular company adds their benefits and expenses and calls it their pay. Anything other than the cash payment (before taxes) the pastor receives should be reported in a totally separate category.
- There are many resources to find out what the fair compensation for a pastor should be. Many denominations provide their own compensation studies. But you can do an Internet search for “pastor pay” and see a plethora of resources that are available. And as a rule of thumb, you could seek to estimate what the mean income is for families in the church, and use that as a basis for compensation for the pastor. Churches that do not do their homework on pastoral compensation tend to underpay their pastors.
- Many pastors request no raises but would still appreciate one. Some pastors simply don’t want to deal with a critic who might question any raise given to a pastor. Others feel extremely uncomfortable talking about money in general, and use the “no raise” request to deflect further conversation. Some think it’s just the noble thing to do. But most pastors, in reality, would appreciate a fair raise to keep up with growing expenses. Don’t accept their requests as the last word.
- Many pastors are under extreme stress because they do not have adequate income to meet their financial obligations. Like anyone else who is under heavy financial burdens, a pastor can find his thoughts consumed with worry. Because he is so distracted, he naturally is less effective in his ministry. Both he and his family feel the pressure.
- Some pastors leave their churches because of pay issues. You will not likely hear a pastor announce in his resignation that he is leaving because of financial pressures. The reality is that, for a number of pastors, the issue of compensation is a major push from one church to another, or from the church to a secular vocation. It’s not that the pastor is in his job for the money; it’s that the compensation for his vocation is insufficient to meet his family’s needs.
Paul wrote these words to his young protégé, Timothy, in 1 Timothy 5:17-18: “The elders who are good leaders should be considered worthy of an ample honorarium, especially those who work hard at preaching and teaching. For the Scripture says, ‘Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain and, the worker is worthy of his wages’” (HCSB).
It is unfortunate that the few indulgent pastors who live lavish lifestyles get most of the attention. The reality is that most of the some 400,000 pastors in America are not overpaid; indeed many are underpaid. Those are the pastors who need our attention.
Posted on December 17, 2012
With nearly 40 years of ministry experience, Thom Rainer has spent a lifetime committed to the growth and health of local churches across North America.
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522 Comments
Hi,
Since I saw it come up several times throughout the conversation, I just thought I’d put it out there for those who may be interested…whether you are a pastor or on a board who makes decisions about paying the pastor…we have been members of a Christian Healthshare Network for over 8 years, and we absolutely love it. NEVER do we ever want to go back to “real” health insurance. We’ve had several needs over the years, all of which have been shared completely. Not only do we save tons of money as opposed to paying “real” health insurance premiums, we can choose our doctors and never have to worry about paying for things (through a premium) that we don’t agree with biblically. Plus, it is an incredible network of prayer and support. Love it, love it, love it. Samaritan Ministries. (Oh, by the way, we aren’t in paid ministry, but our church pays our pastor’s family share.)
I want to start out by saying that my church has AMAZING pastors and I feel pastors should be compensated fairly, but I don’t understand this focus on salary vs package and comparing pastoral position to a secular one on the basis of salary alone for one main reason…
The components of a pastoral “package” are often much more than the compensation package of a secular vocation. House and utility payments are almost never included with secular vocations and not having to pay those is quite significant, even if the taxes still needed to be paid. Remember that those of us in secular vocations not only pay house and utility payments, but we too pay taxes on the income used to make those payments.
So yes, please pay our clergy a fair salary, but it would be ridiculous to not factor the entire package.
Hi Mark,
I think you are misunderstanding the point. Yes, of course the housing allowance should be considered as part of a pastor’s salary. That isn’t the problem. Here’s what is:
If you ask a school teacher how much she or he makes, he or she will NOT include Health Insurance, the school district’s FICA contributions, the employer’s contribution to a retirement plan, reimbursement for expenses, etc … as part of the salary number that he or she gives to you. Oddly, many people consider all of those things part of their pastor’s salary. This creates a real apples to oranges comparison which makes it look like the pastor is doing far better financially than he is (This is a real problem in the broader church. Studies suggest that 3 out of 4 pastor’s wives wish their husband would leave the ministry for ANY other job because their husbands are paid so poorly).
A simple publicly available set of data exists to compare the salary of pastors to and that is to Commissioned Officer’s Salaries in the U.S. Military. The housing allowance for military officers is taxed the same way that the housing allowance for pastors is taxed (FICA but not income). Furthermore, the housing allowance is adjusted to reflect local cost of living conditions (e.g. It is much higher in Boston, MA than in Jackson, MS) so it is easy to find the allowance provided for a city near you. The only additional factor is that Military personnel are also paid a Basic Allowance for Subsistence (BAS) which you would have to add in:
1. Decide what level you want to compare your pastor to. I made Captain in the Marine Corps at 27 after 5 years of service and a B.S. degree. You will probably want to choose a range between a Captain with 6 years of service and a Major with 14 years of service. In my judgment, there is no need to pay a pastor the type of salary that a Lt. Col. or a Col. makes.
2. Look up and write down the Salary, Housing Allowance, and BAS for the rank and experience you selected.
3. Remember that the military also provides officers with retirement, health care, some life insurance, disability insurance, half of FICA, and essentially all expenses such as for business travel. It also provides for continuing education (It might be a good idea to ask if your church is paying for continuing education for your pastor). Therefore, none of these items should be considered in your pastor’s salary if you want to make an Apples to Apples comparison.
4. Do the comparison.
My guess is that the 45-55 year old pastor with a Masters or Doctoral degree in your church is making less than the 28 year old Army Captain with a B.S. and six years of work experience. You might want to ask if that is reasonable.
Best wishes,
David
David I love your example, let me add this thought. While housing allowance, and tax may be the same for clergy and military, your average soldier when he gets off duty can throw back a few beers, jeer at women, maybe get in abar room fight. Curse at subordinate soldiers (if your a sargent etc.) And the list goes on. Not one will lose his job for cheating on his wife. However the pastor can do none of this. We pay him not only for his life on the pulpit but mostly off the pulpit which is even more important. What’s the price tag for integrity
“No one will lose his job for cheating on his wife.”
That is a lie. Military men lose their jobs and ranks ect for cheating. It is very serious.
I appreciate this article, it was very beneficial as an associate minister. It saddens me that so many people think that ministers should simply do their job for free. Many will quote Paul and talking about bi-vocational ministry, But here is a little bit of truth about that, Jesus also says no man can serve two masters. Anyone that expects their minister to give full-time pay attention to the church and also work a full-time job is deceiving themselves. If you work a job outside of the church often it causes us to divide our attentions and our focus. Also when you see Moses establishing the priesthood the tribe of Levites was to receive their inheritance their living and their daily meals out of the offerings that were presented to the temple, A.k.a. the people of Israel were supposed to support their priests and leaders in ministry. I have been blessed to be employed in full-time ministry at a church that pays us fairly, but I do not do this position for the money because if I was working for the money, I would do something else! For all of those trying to get out of paying your pastors, please pay your pastor!
I didn’t read all 75 comments, but I’m wondering has anyone addressed the issue of “cost of living increase”? In a time when most workers are NOT receiving and increase, and in some cases are cut back, should a church automatically give an increase to the pastor and not other staff members? I did a little research and the “officially” calculated cost of living increase is the lowest it has been since 1975 or so….
What would you say to a church that has decreased in attendance by 80% in the past 10 years, (current pastor has been in place 5years) yet pays the pastor the same as they did when running 4-500? The pastor, while experienced in ministry, is not a seminary grad, yet makes in base salary alone, 150% of what an avg professional with a M.S. degree makes. Couple that with a consistent deficit in the church and you have a picture of our reality. The congregation is largely unaware of the salaries ( all are lumped together into one budget line). The personnel committee is unwilling to discuss them.
Dear Confused,
I am a pastor. While churches vary in practice I think the congregation should know exactly what they are paying each pastor and it would be a reasonable think for you to ask the leadership of your congregation to provide greater clarity.
I am sorry to hear that your church has experienced such a sharp decline in membership but this may not be very good reason to cut the pastor’s salary. One of the regrettable aspects of pastoral compensation in the U.S. is that it is commonly assumed that pastors should be paid more for serving in larger churches. At the same time, when pastors leave small churches to go to larger churches which pay better – we become upset that the pastor is doing it just for the money. We can’t really have it both ways. Furthermore, a church is not a small business enterprise. Growth or decline in membership is not a reflection of the pastor’s faithfulness. I suspect that your pastor is under an enormous amount of pressure because of the declining membership and the congregation should make an extra effort to lift him up in prayer.
I’m really surprised that your pastor makes 150% of what a typical professional with a master’s degree makes in your community. I live in an expensive part of the country, but where I live that would put the pastor’s salary around $150k not including benefits. As a pastor, I know a lot of other pastors and I don’t know any who pastor churches of less than 1,000 people who are paid like that. You may want to check to get the facts straight. Please remember to do an apples-to-apples comparison. As Thom Rainer pointed out, many people wrongly compare the total compensation package for a pastor (including the benefits) with the salary of non-pastors.
Best wishes,
David
David, thanks for your reply. In our local area, most professionals with master’s degrees earn 40k annually. Our pastor, who only holds a B.S. degree earns 60k base salary alone. Our church size is largely irrelevant except to show that while people, and thus giving, has decreased, the salary has not. Your suggestion earlier to check military pay tables isn’t a bad idea. Checking federal tables for chaplaincy shows him to be overpaid (remember he’s not educationally qualified without an m.div.) and in the military he’s not far from par with a senior captain. So, thanks for your comments, but our current situation is different than you imagined.
My husband and I are 37 year non denominated missionaries in Haiti. We were there for the quake, all the coup d’etats, hurricanes and disasters that never made the news. Every day we minister the gospel to 2,000,000 Haitians through our Creole Christian TV show that is aired on 100 stations from Boston to the farthest South and East border of Haiti. We have never received a salary, no one has ever asked us if we need one. We do not have a compensation package, our health ins and life ins is over $1000.00/month! We may have to discontinue both this year. Stress? We fast when the stress threatens to derail our lives and ministry. In six months in 2009 I didn’t eat for 82 days. It works God sent a miracle of provision. Leave the field b/c of pay issues? We’d sooner deny Christ. I wish someone would write an article about missionaries and what it means to leave family, friends, country and all the conveniences of the States w no pay!
Is it ok for a faithful pastor at small church with very low pay to prayerfully consider a vancant pastor position at a larger church that is able to paid a larger salary? Of course he will seek God’s direction just like any other Christian working in any other profession. Even though he is genuinely pastoring for the right reasons, is it wrong for him to desire a better pay, benefits, to be close to home or to wanna live in a different state?
Absolutely. It is more than okay, but it is actually justified. Your first order is to love Christ and serve Him faithfully. Then you love and serve your family faithfully. Then you love and serve your church faithfully. If another position comes open that God gives you direction on and it better allows you to support your family, then to stay simply because you’re fearful of perception is almost idolatrous.
Thanks for your post. As a youth minister I had to make the gut wrenching decision to leave a church that I loved due to financial issues. I have often wondered whether I had been carnal instead of spiritual, or selfish instead of unselfish. I know that I didn’t have selfish motives, but it hurts when you know people you love think you were just using them as a “stepping stone.” I also doubted myself because a mentor that I love and trust doubted me. Anyway, I still love those people but I still need reassurance from time to time because the experience still stings. Your post was timely. Thank you.
D.K.
I salute the pastors (and their wives) who endure the financial hardship to stay in the ministry. I was full-time for nine years…have now returned to a full-time secular job and pastor part-time. It is not nearly as rewarding but it is necessary. One issue was health insurance which I desperately need….another issue was the pay. My predecessor often said, “The custodian makes more than I make.” And he was right on the mark. God bless all of you!