Why the Dearth of Young Preachers? (Part 1)

According to Barna Research, half of all American pastors are 55 years old or older. Pastors 40 years old and younger constitute only 15 percent of the total number. These statistics indicate far more than the fact that the average gospel preacher is older than in past decades. They show that there is a dearth of young men entering into vocational ministry.

Why is this happening? What can be done about it?

A couple of years ago, at a state-wide pastor’s conference, I led a workshop to discuss this trend. While the older participants recognized and lamented the reality of what has been called the “graying of the American pastorate,” it was the younger participants who offered some insight into exactly why this is happening. In this article, I will focus on one of them.

One major reason for so few young men entering the ministry is financial. It is not just the materialistic spirit of the age, or that the ministry tends to pay modest wages. The problem is the cost of education needed to prepare for ministry. A generation ago, a young man could arrive at Bible college or enroll in seminary with nothing but change in his pocket, but with hard work and thrift he could still graduate debt free. Those days are gone. The cost of formal education has not followed the rise of inflation. Tuition for some Christian colleges, universities, and seminaries is four or five times what it was thirty years ago. Without scholarships or benefactors, many young ministerial students graduate with student loan debt that leaves them incapable of accepting a call from a church that offers only limited compensation.

In his interesting study, There is Life After College, author Jeffrey Selingo observed, “A growing number of emerging adults lack the financial flexibility to change jobs or to take low-paying positions that might be great career starters. Their problem? Student loans.” (pp. 12, 13) He concluded his book making the same point, “Debt determines your ability to move for a job, the salary you’ll need to earn, and the possibility you can strike out on your own as an entrepreneur.” (p. 248) This is no less true in ministry than it is in other fields.

An aspiring preacher, sensing God’s call, attends school to train for the ministry. He has been rightly told, “A call to preach is a call to prepare.” While completing his undergraduate and perhaps graduate studies, he has accumulated debt. He may also acquire a wife and perhaps a first child along the way. While in school he works at a secular job to take care of his family and to service his mounting debt. Upon graduation the loan obligation looms large. An opportunity for vocational ministry presents itself. But the pay package is less than what he is currently making and what he perceives that he needs. As Salingo wrote, he lacks the financial flexibility to move or take a low-paying position. So, he decides, for now at least, to decline the ministry opportunity. Time passes, and life happens — another child, a promotion, a house. Filling a pulpit, planting a church, or going to the mission field waits — perhaps forever. This scenario repeats itself again and again. How many churches in cities that are home to preacher-training institutes have numerous God-called college and seminary graduates in their pews on Sunday, who Monday morning are selling insurance, real estate, or are engaged in some career other than the one for which they trained?

There is no single easy solution to the financial problem of ministerial training. But there are several remedies that ought to be pursued. An obvious one is focused and increased scholarships for aspiring preachers.

A few years ago, I visited a friend whose son graduated from the same Christian college I did. He was then attending dental school. His debt load was considerable. However, neither he nor his father were at all concerned. The dental school he was attending boasted a 98% immediate placement rate upon graduation. With an average six-figure starting annual salary for graduates the debt would be serviced easily.

I receive numerous appeals from my alma mater and other schools asking for contributions to assist students with their financial obligations. One such advertisement featured an alumnus who was the executive vice president of a staffing agency. Thank God for successful graduates from Christian colleges! However, I must confess I have no burden to sacrifice to help people with their school bill who upon graduation will have a high earning potential. In the decades since I entered the ministry, only once or twice have I received a request from a fundamental Christian college or seminary specifically aimed at assisting a young man studying for the ministry.

I strongly support the idea of Christian education for any field of endeavor. However, it makes sense to direct financial efforts to more than improving facilities or maintaining the general student population of our Christian schools. Increased assistance must be provided for students studying for ministry — who upon graduation have a very limited earning potential. Most of these schools were started to train men for the gospel ministry. The mission needs a renewed focus. Men preparing for the ministry must be liberated from the constraining burden of student loan debt. If not, the graying of the pastorate will continue, and churches with vacant pulpits will find few candidates to fill them.

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David A. Oliver is the pastor of Ashley Baptist Church in Belding, MI.