Clergy Working Outside of Congregations, 1976-2016

• In Event: 1580 - Section on Sociology of Religion Roundtable Session
  In Refereed Roundtable 60min: Table 07. Religious Leaders and Shifting Religious Landscapes

Abstract

Changes in the American religious landscape are reorienting the composition of the professional religious labor force in the US. This shifting pattern of religious work raises questions about where clergy are working and the extent to which they may be working outside of congregations. Using nationally representative data from the Current Population Survey, we map trends in clergy working outside of congregations over the past 40 years. We observe slight increases in non-congregational clergy over this time-period patterned by demographic and geographical factors. Clergy who work outside of congregations are more likely to be women, live in urban areas, and have completed an advanced degree. We further identify clear differences in income between clergy who work inside and outside of congregations as influenced by gender and family composition. Our models show that female clergy working outside of the congregational setting earn around 2 percent less than female congregational clergy, 19 percent less than male congregational clergy, and 31 percent less than male non-congregational clergy. We suggest several factors that might account for these differences and their implications.

Authors

• Cyrus J. Schleifer, University of Oklahoma

• Wendy Cadge, Brandeis University