Comments on: Should Christian clergy be paid for their ministry?

By: Elizabeth P

Elizabeth P — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 22:09:59 +0000

wow what a good question,,,I see your point totally but unfortunately it’s not a black and white line there’s a whole lot of Grey area there,,,we all know there are good and bad people everywhere and that doesn’t exclude the church,,,i think of course they should be paid,, i think it looks better for them to live a little more modest,,i cant personally complain because my church has helped me out a lot with rent, food etc,,, and even though it is a calling it is also a career or job if you will, and a lot depends on the size of the church and yeah what the pastor does on the side does he complete that list of the funerals, marriages, counseling etc,,, we could even do a 180 and talk the same way about the politicians what’s up with john Edwards 1,200.00 dollar a month hair cut he’s a man he doesn’t even have the much hair what the hell can you do to a mans hair for that much money (i don’t understand) yeah but think about it, there’s something disturbing knowing are pastors are making more money then the president of the united states,,,there both suppose to be doing Gods work right?
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By: AdoreHim

AdoreHim — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 21:47:59 +0000

The Bible says that they should be paid. Jesus came to save the world- that was His purpose- and what is wrong with being paid a fair wage for preaching the gospel? The gospel is free, the gospel is the good news that Christ came to pay the price that we could never pay- but that does not mean a pastor should not get payed.
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By: singcountrybreeze

singcountrybreeze — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 21:26:59 +0000

Being a Pastor, Rabbi, Minister, or any other title of the same likeness; it is not a job, but rather a calling and a dedication to the teaching of God's word. There is plenty of Scripture, providing you believe in Scripture, to support that God intended for those that teach his word diligently and correctly to have their needs met through that ministry. But therein lies the difference of what this whole question is actually about. There is a difference between the needs of a man, and the wants of a man. God intended for those needs to be met, but for them to take in and above in access of what would be considered as actual needs is in fact considered greed, and therefore would be considered one of the 7 deadly sins.
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By: candi_k7

candi_k7 — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 20:56:59 +0000

to those of you who think that preachers, pastors, ministers or any other title that you want to put on them, only work on Sundays you are sadly mistaken..Not only do they "preach on Sunday" but they do weddings, funerals, make hospital trips and are on call in my church 24/ 7 to over 200 people who can call at any time to talk and seek guidance. not to mention that they also have to do a lot of studying and praying to be sure that they bring the right message to the people of God. So it is a full time job so why shouldn't they be paid?
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By: bandaidgirl

bandaidgirl — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 20:42:59 +0000

You would be surprised at how many preachers work outside of the church to earn a living. Most small churches cant afford to pay their preachers enough for living expenses, but give them something. Its the big churches who can afford it.

However the Bible clearly states we are to support our ministers. Jesus was supported by the people he preached to. Don’t you remember, Judus kept the purse….and he was a theif. Jesus didnt ever ask for money. He didnt have too. His Father provided always for him.
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By: jimmeisnerjr

jimmeisnerjr — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 19:59:59 +0000

While the pastor is working full-time to support the family, here’s what the clergy ISN’T doing . . .

visiting members of the church at home.
visiting members of the church sick in the hospital.
performing marriages.
conducting funerals (because people won’t die and be buried on Saturdays when the pastor’s not at work.)
attending church leadership meetings.
leading Bible study classes.
counseling un-happily married couples.
counseling couples before marriages.
meeting with other ministers.
attending development conferences.
assisting with the food bank in the basement.
visiting members in jail.
responding to the three or four calls a week from people needing help paying bills.
the list goes on and on . . .

Or, they can be paid to be free to be God’s hands and heart.

Godspeed.
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By: Evessheild777

Evessheild777 — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 19:20:59 +0000

I agree. Jesus did not ask to be paid, some people gave him and his diciples money, a place to stay, food… etc. but He never expected it. He didn’t ask anything of anyone except to listen to Him and to believe in Him and His teaching. I believe that He did it this way so that anything that was provided and given to Him and to His diciples would be something that Jesus could praise His Father for, whether they were given much or given little.
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*edit: It must be noted that depending on what people choose to busy themselves with or not busy themselves with has either "drawbacks" or "pluses" sometimes both… but if a person really loves living their lives for God, then there is no "drawback" (although some would not see it that way)… the privilage to preach the gospel is more than payment and so, it shouldn’t matter to them what they get, because living for God isn’t a way to get money, it happens to be the opposite: It is the hugest of sacrifices. That’s just the way it is…

There are still some churches where everyone has an outside, regular job although it does seem, that alot of people across the board have busied themselves and worried themselves to exhaustion… whether they have church duties, church volunteering, work outside church… or all of these. People delegate responsibilities and still they are busy. They do this so well, yet many of the people’s concerns just seem to grow, including the clergy’s. If they’re good at it.. and they usually are, sometimes this causes ministers/preachers etc. to feel that they are doing superhuman things and deserve more money and sometimes… much more money. (People outside church fall into this trap also). They begin to believe that they can only do everything God (or others) wants them to, by asking their congregants (or others) for money (or for more money). This creates the danger of a person letting their passion turn into pride, and sometimes then begin to take things for granted. True, this should never happen with the gospel, although I suppose it is understandable, because that’s all some people’s measure of faith will allow. Even so, I believe that if a person (at LEAST a proclaimed person of faith) lives a balanced and diligent life, then trusting God Himself for what they want and need, should suffice…

By: joseph8638

joseph8638 — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 18:59:59 +0000

You are correct. Preaching is service to God, and should not be considered a road to riches. All of the clergy I know do receive their income from secular sources, mainly those who benefit by the preaching.
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By: philo

philo — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 18:34:59 +0000

Paul said, "So also the Lord directed those who proclaim the gospel to get their living from the gospel" (1 Corinthians 9:14).

I think it’s a good idea to have paid clergy. Clergy ought to be experts on the Bible, history, theology, current events, etc. They need to be experts so they can be leaders. We need to have "go to" people in the church. If they have to get their living like the rest of us, then they won’t have any more time than the rest of us to become experts, and to stay current. They should be paid so they’ll have more time than the rest of us and can teach us and lead us.
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By: Damaris

Damaris — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 17:55:59 +0000

I know this is hard to believe, because what the world sees of Christianity is a lot of the mega-churches and the wealth that they have in their mega-cities, but my 2 pastors both work full-time for less than what they could, and each of their wives work the jobs that pay most of the bills. Neither of them could live off of what our small church is able to pay them. I see these 2 men minister to their church members as well as to non-church members every week. They spend more time doing the work they are called to OUT of their offices than they do in their offices, and I believe it’s supposed to be that way.

Being a pastor isn’t about sitting in an office all week long, writing a sermon, it’s about meeting the needs of a congregation and leading a congregation who reaches out to meet the needs of the surrounding community. That’s what my pastors do, and they put more than 40 hours into their jobs weekly. In my opinion, they should be paid.

However, if they were putting 5 hours into Sunday’s sermon on Saturday afternoon and calling it a week, I would take issue with them being paid.
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