Biblical

Leadership attrition statistics

 

British Methodism: What Circuit Ministers Really Think - John M Haly and Prof. Leslie Francis. 2006

  • 69% of ministers said looking after more than 1 church gave them additional problems
  • 55% of ministers felt frustrated by spreading ministry too thinly
  • 31% of ministers felt they expected to know more about each church than they could manage
  • 74% of ministers felt their churches would grow if they could give more time to each
  • 63% of ministers said they expected too much of themselves
  • 61% of ministers said they did not have enough time for themselves
  • 59 of ministers said regularly took their day off
  • 58% of ministers said they spent too little time with their family
  • 45% of ministers said they felt emotionally drained by their ministry
  • 44% of ministers said they spent too little time with people with specific pastoral needs
  • 37% of ministers said they often feel lonely and isolated in their ministry
  • 16% of ministers said they felt undervalued as a person

 

From Frustration to Fulfillment : The final 10 years of licensed ministry Unpublished report prepared for the Church of England House of Bishops 2007

Reported in Church Times 29th June 2007

  • Identified a small number of clerics who have lost their sense of vocation and faith in God
  • Found that many older clergy including some bishops and archdeacons felt under stimulated because their talents are not fully used or recognised (50% of incumbents are aged 50 or over)
  • Younger clergy were found to be better at self promotion and would send in “floods” of applications for new jobs while older clergy often needed training in how to make applications.
  • They report says “De-motivation may be particularly acute for able candidates who see younger candidates chosen ahead of them in open competitive procedures”
  • Clerics’ standing in society has been affected by social changes that have left them with a sense of loss of status.
  • Recommended older clergy should be given “portfolio responsibilities” that would include recruiting, mentoring and supporting other clergy
  • Recommended a national vocational assessment for the over 50s

 

Speech by Peter Kaldor Director of the Australian National Church Life Survey at the Lausanne Researchers Conference, April 2008

  • People typically feel poorly equipped for the realities of church leadership 44% say it is more challenging than they expected and 30% say they are out of their depth.
  • Emotional exhaustion and ministry satisfaction are not opposites
  • Suggested leaders should build on strengths instead of focusing on weaknesses

 

Leaders Under Pressure by Peter Brierley, Boyd Myers and Lindsey Marshall

Results of a postal survey commissioned by Spring Harvest in the 1990’s 
  • When asked how well their pre-ordination training had prepared respondents for work as ordained ministers under 20 % said their training had prepared them very well.
  • Discovered that 95% of fulltime leaders were expected to take 1 full day off each week and 85% were managing to take their regular day off.
  • The leaders who were not able to take 1 day off per week gave the following reasons for not doing so: Not practical 32%     

                      Too many commitments 29%      

                      Must be available 21%     

                      Pressure of work 19%       

                      No particular reason 15%

                      Other reasons 24%

  • Found one in 6 pastors endure frequent conflict with their church (once a week)
  • Respondents were asked if they had ever considered leaving Christian service overall 29% said yes but 41% of those aged 50 – 54 years said yes.
  • The majority of leaders are involved in some element of team working but only a small minority had had training in team building, people management, or managing conflict.

 

Pulling out of the Nosedive by Peter Brierley, 2006

Found that

  • clergy looking after more than 4 churches found the strain too great.
  • 10 % of clergy 2,500 ministers are responsible for more than 5 churches.
  • 72% of churches have just 1 minister and 84% have no other fulltime ordained staff.
  • 53% of churches have part time or volunteer help

 

Burnout and the Practice of Ministry Among Rural Clergy by Christopher Rutledge in Rural Theology 2006 (quoted in Pulling Out of the Nosedive)

  •  “ unacceptably high proportion of clergy show signs of emotional exhaustion from their ministry”