Posted on 08/19/2008 7:34:48 PM PDT by Alex Murphy
The average senior pastor in U.S. churches today makes more than $80,000 a year, a recent national survey shows.
Compensation packages, including benefits such as retirement, life insurance, health insurance and continuing education allowances, have increased to $81,113 per year for the average senior pastor. And pastors who hold a higher academic degree are paid up to $30,000 more per year than pastors without any post-secondary education.
The statistics come from the 2009 Compensation Handbook for Church Staff, an annual analysis of compensation packages at churches across the country, and at a time when churches begin planning their budget for the next year. This year, 4,800 U.S. churches, representing about 11,000 employees, were surveyed between January and March by the Your Church Media Group at Christianity Today International.
According to the survey, churches that draw 101 to 300 people each week pay senior pastors $72,664 per year, including benefits. The pay increases to $88,502 for pastors at churches that average a weekly attendance of 301 to 500 people, and then to $102,623 when attendance averages 501 to 750 people.
Compensation also increased among executive and administrative pastors who now earn an average of about $60,777 at churches of 101 to 300 people and $76,671 at churches of 501 to 750 people.
Pastors who lead music, choir or worship earn an average of about $51,954 at the smaller churches and $64,781 at the bigger ones.
Senior pastors, full-time secretaries and administrative assistants in the New England states have higher compensation compared to those in other regions, the survey also found.
Compensation is highest in suburban churches with suburban senior pastors making an average of 50 percent more than their rural counterparts. The pay is lower with churches in metropolitan areas, small towns and then in rural communities, respectively.
Meanwhile, executive or administrative pastors, bookkeepers and accountants earn the most in the Pacific region and administrators fare best in Tennessee, Kentucky, Alabama, and Mississippi.
Pay also differed among denominations. Pastors leading in Presbyterian and Lutheran churches earn the most with over $100,000 in compensation while executive and administrative pastors make more on average with independent and nondenominational churches ($80,469) than any other denomination.
The 2009 Compensation Handbook for Church Staff provides a complete analysis of 13 church positions and includes breakdowns for part-time, full-time, church size, income budget, and geographical setting.
Odd isn't it, that it isn't above most Pastor's pay grade to tell you when life begins.
poverty, chastit — oh, wait, nevermind.
bump
The “compensation” includes, usually, the whole package: housing, utilities, *insurance-health and life, sometimes a car, and use of a cell phone, *retirement benefits, etc. However, when added all up it is still quite a bit less than a UAW worker receives with all HIS/HER compensation.
Their jobs are only as stable as those of their congregations.
*Denominations try to get group insurance for the health and retirement.
Need to find one of those great paying full-time secretary jobs. ;) IMO, the article is about the exceptions, not the rules.
Members of Congress ($169,300) make more than twice that earned by pastors. This proves that the devil pays better than the church.
Yeah, but they have to work on Sundays......
$80 grand ain’t poverty, but it’s not rich either.
Around here if you make $80k you can barely afford to buy an entry level home.
In the Midwest it’s a pretty decent living though.
That doesn’t sound to bad for a job where you don’t have to worry about your mistakes since they were probably going to go to hell anyway .
The free housing for many ministers is worth a lot, but with so many houses donated to churches, the free housing doesn’t cost the church much.
The retirement and health benefits packages need to be compared to corporate arrangements. I think my company tacks on 30% of a salary to estimate benefit and retirement cost. So a 65K total minister cost they list, is only a 50K salary after 403B and health plan, 35K after housing.
Their jobs are only as stable as those of their congregations.
Not very stable at all.
Though.. This last weekend we attended a 50th anniversary dinner for the pastor who married us, back when. 50 years as a minister, in that one congregation. He's 78, still going. I doubt his pay is anything like the average "senior pastor"'s is, though.
I doubt that many pastors’ wives work outside the parish. They’re usually just as busy as their husbands in shepherding the church, so that’s $80,000 for the whole family. Not a whole lot.
Yes - I am being a little sarcastic but not too much.
Just curious, what do you do for a living and what do you make?
Well hey- try the LDS version. Members tithe which goes towards buildings, teaching supplies, that sort of thing. Bishops support themselves from the git go. Works right nicely.
Our whole yearly church budget is less than 20k.
I see nothing wrong with this salary. When you consider most pastors are are on call 24/7, this really adds up to nothing in light of the hours they put in. Our pastor also holds a full time job during the week working at his business as a commercial landscaper. Every first Sunday we have a pastor’s offering. He gets what is given to that offering, and that amount varies weekly from little of nothing to very generous depending upon who gives. No one is pressured, it’s not announced as a special offering, it’s just a day set aside to bless him for all he does. He gets a very small percentage of the offerings on the other Sundays. This is one thing the advisory board insisted upon. He was offered a salary, and it was approved by our advisory board, but he refused stating he would rather the money go to “kingdom work” instead. My grandfather was a pastor for 30 years and never took more than 600.00 a month as a salary. He made his living as a painter. Even when he drew Social Security he refused anything more. My grandfather was available to his congregants 24/7 as is my current pastor. One thing I admire about our Pastor is that he is very open about church finances. Anyone at anytime can request to see how much we take in and where it goes.
I would have to conclude then that your entire congregation makes less than $200,000.
In my experience as a former church treasurer, I found that those who made less gave more and more faithfully than those whose incomes were higher. I always thought that sad. That’s just my own experience though.
Good point.
10 tithing adults support the pastor
20 tithing adults support the pastor and the building
30 tithing adults support the pastor the building the mission
Does anyone here think that $80,000 is a high salary?
Couldn’t buy much of a house in the coastal states on it.
It is kinda funny that here on Free Republic we frown on people begrudging other people for the money they make. It is the politics of envy. Yet if by some chance a Pastor, who works 24/7/365.25 happens to make more than a hamburger flipper then he is looked upon with suspicion.
Ah, the religion of envy.
Every Christian should look at his job as a ministry. He is working to provide for his family and to be a witness to non-believers in his ethics and to provide offerings for the furtherance of the Gospel. The Pastor is merely a partner with his congregants and what they pay him is nobody's business except those who pay it, and even then it is probably better that they don't know. I don't know what my pastor makes and I don't care. I only pray that he makes more than I do since he has a much greater responsibility than I do. I suspect, however, that he makes much less than me. If that is the case, then he celearly deserves more.
That would be close. We do have some attendees though that tithe like most Christians tip their waitress. You know the kind, a dollar no matter how big the bill.
Bravo.
We as Christians we are all in the ministry.
We all have our roles.
The pastor or lead elder has their role and it is good that they are well paid for it.
Waitresses are like Elephants. They remember. If you are a regular at a restaurant and you are a lousy tipper, then the chances are you have eaten a loogie or two in your lifetime.
There is no worse witness than a man who publicly prays over his food and then leaves the restaurant without giving a generous tip. The absolute worst witness is the guy who leaves a tract instead of a tip. There is a special place in hell reserved for that guy.
My guess is that the average pastor is FAR below this figure. At least, that's the case for all the pastors I have known (in two dissimilar denominations, and while serving on church council and as treasurer at two churches).
Managed restaurants for 8 years, half of them before I was a Christian. Seen 'em all.
As far as the 20k vs 200k topic, we do have some unsaved in the crowd too. But we have seen big improvements in that area this past year.
I used to work with an attorney who worked 10 hours a day 5 days a week as an attorney and then worked 6 hours a day seven days a week as a senior pastor of a growing church. He never took a salary from the Church.
The church has grown and he now pastors the largest church in his city and as far as I know he is still working at least 30 hours a week as an attorney to feed his family and not taking a salary from the church. But then, unlike most pastors, he doesn't need a salary from his church. But if he were making $200,000 a year as a pastor, I would certainly not begrudge him. He's clearly worth more than that to his congregation.
LOL "senior", we only have one. We have less than 45 people as attendees. Parsonage is church owned. Pastor teaches one course at a local Christian school.
Why do I have the feeling that when they passed the plate you never gave anything?
Yes - I am being a little sarcastic but not too much.
Me too.
Are you not willing to give until it hurts? Where is the sacrifice in giving less than that which causes you some pain?
Or having an associate pastor stand up and talk out of Malichi about who's robing God.
Do you have a problem with a pastor reading God's word?
I got sick of this dog and pony show years ago.
You gave up giving?
Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. (Malachi 3:8 KJV)
Why was the tithe put into place? Because the Levitt's were with out an inheritance. Is your pastor or priest without an inheritance?
Please show me where it says to give a tithe of a sacrifice? Where does it say that giving must cause a pain in the new testament it says God loves a cheerfully giver not a painful giver.
You show me where the tithe was carried out in the NT and I will believe you.
You show me where the tithe was carried out in the NT and I will believe you.
Actually in the early church they gave 100% to the church for distribution.
The law of Tithing is older than the law of Moses.
And this stone, which I have set for a pillar, shall be God's house: and of all that thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto thee. (Genesis 28:22 KJV)
It is an honor and not a duty
Honour the LORD with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase: (Proverbs 3:9 KJV)
I suppose you are not required to give a dime. You are saved (if you are saved) by grace and not by works. However if you love the Lord I would think that you would honor him with your substance and with the firstfruits of all thine increase.
However, since you have such a bad attitude towards giving to God, I would be inclined to advise you not to give anything. God does not need your money. OTOH, as an act of honor, you really ought to give it to him.
But don't.... Unless you really want to honor God by your giving.
I do give but I will not be beaten and pastors do not beat the sheep. If you want to go back to Gen for the tithe then what did Abraham give? Was it not the spoils of war? so how does this have any bearing on the NT saint? Let me ask you this what was the tithe for?
A full time pastor should be fairly compensated. My rule of thumb is that his salary should reflect that of the congregation. If he makes less than the average member he is looked down on as the hired help. If he makes more it may lead him to act snooty.
Making the same average amount allows him to move in the the same circles outside of the church as his sheep and live life with them.
*And yes I mean he, not her.
Yes and their home is paid for also.
Not much when y0ou consider its 7 days a weeks 24 hours a day on call and he throws in the wife for all the “pastors wife” functions.
God gave me talents and abilities to earn a very comfortable living in the professional world. But He also ordained me to ministry. The world sees the Osteen’s ministries, the shinning Crystal Cathedral and the post war mega church that has emerged in that past 50 years. In reality 87% of protestant evangelical churches are with memberships of 125 or less.
Professionally trained in the secular world. And professionally trained in seminary with those have chosen ministry as vocation. There is no such animal as a part time minister.
The apostle Paul was a bivocational, as was Amos and many of theprohets. I have a freedom in the pulpit that few others have. The small church is very much alive and well and doing what it is commanded. I, as others like me free resources for ministry of the church.
Time? It is a scarce commodity, but in reality most people waste more time each week than what they work. My day starts at 5 am, and usually finishes at 8:30 unless emergency matters take me.
No .. I don't do things like Rotary meetings. I'm not often a guest speaker at civic groups ... but I do sit on 5 different boards or am a trustee at various community entities.
My time is governed in 15 minute segments, each day and everyday. Time is the only constant that all share equally in. Life is to live and share ... each minute has it's own accountability ... and I strive to fulfill each minute to tbe best of my god given abilities ... “Walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wisemen ...Redeeming the time because the days are evil.”
The tasks we are given by our Provider come with enough time to complete them to his honour and glory ... It is a way of ministry that I would never think twice about.
My point is that you or your contemporaries are often not available during the day when emergencies pop up. For example, when my father lay dying my pastor was able to spend two full weekdays with us at his bedside.
I would dare say that most bivocational pastors would have that luxury to do that, their “civilian” jobs would not allow it.
Again, this is not a slam, but an observation.
Thanks again for what you do to further God's kingdom.
In my Methodist denomination, minimum pay is set by the geographic region that we call an “annual conference.” In our conference, and we’re not that unusual, the minimum pay for an ordained elder is right under $34,000 a year. That generally has a parsonage with utilities ($3500), health care ($15,000),travel ($5000), and retirement ($4,000) on top of that for a total package in the neighborhood of $55-60,000.
“Giving households” is a better measure of church giving than is attendance. One should probably divide attendance by about 4 to get at the number of households. Some of those might be visitors, inquirers, etc., so not all would be “giving households.” A church of 200 attendance, for example, should have about 50 giving households. If the average wage in our region is $35,000 a year, then one should expect less than 175,000 a year in church giving, since so many people do not tithe on gross income or do not tithe at all.
When one adds on any loan expense for church buildings, expenses for maintenance, utilities, fees, services, etc., then that would leave in the neighborhood of 60 or 70 thousand to run programs with.
Obviously, if one adds a youth pastor, praise & worship director, etc., then that 60-70 goes immediately out the window.
I’d say that the 80,000 mentioned in this article is high for our area, but since it is in terms of total package, it isn’t that high an income.
Since you are bragging about not paying a tithe, I have to conclude that you give less than 10%.
The Jews gave 10% at the command of God. The early church gave 100% at the request of the Apostles.
If you want to go back to Gen for the tithe then what did Abraham give?
IIRC he gave whatever God told him to give. He was willing to give his own son. Abraham gave 1/10th to Melchezedek. Jacob gave 1/10th as an honor to God.
Frankly I would think that 1/10th is the minimum a believer ought to give and if he gives less than that, he has no cause to complain if the pastor is beating the flock. Those who think they are being beaten by the pastor are probably those who know in their hearts that they are not giving enough, but would rather complain about the message than put in another dime.
Let me ask you this what was the tithe for?
As it is shown in Proverbs, the tithe was a means upon which man could honor God with the firstfruits of that which God has given him. While one can argue that it is not a requirement for a new testament Christian, I think it is fairly clear that what God requires of Christians should be no less than that he required of Israel.
Let me ask you this. If you are giving all that God requires of you, then what business is it of yours if the pastor calls upon the congregation to dig a little deeper than they have been in order to keep the church afloat? As was stated here earlier, a lot of christians are satisfied putting a dollar in the basket. Is it not the duty of the pastor to remind his flock that they owe everything to God and that giving to God is a means whereby we can honor Him?
Giving is a part of worship. We sing praises to God. We pray to God. We thank God for our blessings. We read from his scriptures as an act of worship. And as an act of worship, we give back to God the firstfruits of that which he has given us. That belongs to Him and if we pridefully refuse to give it back, then we are indeed robbing God.
A Farmer who refuses to give back a tenth of his harvest to the earth eventually has no seeds to plant for the next harvest. We give God the seeds and he gives back the Harvest.
First off, I did not mean this as a slam against bivocational ministers. You guys certainly are pulling more than your fair share of the load here on earth.
My point is that you or your contemporaries are often not available during the day when emergencies pop up. For example, when my father lay dying my pastor was able to spend two full weekdays with us at his bedside.
Emergencies. If you are fortunate, when your minister is not available the supply will send a retired minister, and it will be an old darling you have known for years and love as much as if he were a member of your own family. If not, you might get a decent, spiritual and committed Christian with no talent for making an immediate connection to strangers. That isn’t much comfort when someone is dying and you need that connection.
Many years ago one of my closest friends, an elderly member of the congregation, called to tell me that her husband was dying. (He had been sick for a long time.) Their daughter, a woman a few years older than I, one of sophisticated Manhattan gels was also my friend. I could hear her in the background, hysterical. Not good.
My husband had just flown off to one of these conferences and would not be back for several days. The family didn’t want a stranger, so they asked me to come. I was a young engineer, with no pastoral training whatsoever. I was married to the minister, a much older man and an experienced clergyman, and that was the extent of my experience.
This was before the days of cell phones, so I couldn’t reach my husband to get some pointers. I was able to leave work and go directly to their house, where they dying man was resting in reasonable comfort.
I stayed with the family until my husband was able to get back, which took about a day. To my surprise, the family wanted me there. My infant son was in the living room sleeping on blankets on the floor. Nobody seemed to mind.
Thinking back, my utter incompetence at ministering must have provided some comic relief.
I prayed with them, but anybody could have done that. Pastoring, giving them the assurances they wanted was what was difficult. I could only tell the old man, who had been a thoroughly decent individual, but bad-tempered, curmudgeonly, and a thorough pain in the a** for as long as anyone could remember, that he hadn’t exactly been a sweet peach, but then neither had I, that I was pretty sure that wherever God was sending him, I was certain that I would be going to the same place. The old man smiled at that and my idiotic (but not untrue as far as personalities are concerned) comment put him at his ease. He died before my husband’s plane landed.
God was in control. He always is. I could only show up and do my best.
I will say a prayer for your father.
If every Christian Gave God back what is rightfully His
(10%)
Pastors would never even have to blink and eye about thier salary.
But alas most Christians don’t tithe so the issue remains
The Only Scripture in the Bible where Father tells us to try Him.
It should be out of Joy and Love for the Father that you give. Never out of guilt or have to. Father God demands the tithe but will not take it from you by force.
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