Mennonite Church USA (MC USA) Church Vitality office, in partnership with Everence, has updated its compensation guidelines for pastors and conference ministers for 2022-2023. The updated pastor salary guidelines and resources are available here.
These resources help to support ministers, congregations and conferences as they negotiate salaries and determine fair compensation. They are also useful tools for pastoral search committees and new seminary graduates applying for their first pastoral positions.
“Pastors enter congregational ministry because they love God, and they want to share that love with others,” said Rachel Ringenberg Miller, MC USA denominational minister of Ministerial Leadership. “For congregational ministry to be sustainable for our pastors, fair compensation matters. When hiring a pastor, ask if they are carrying seminary debt. If the answer is yes, I strongly encourage the congregation to consider how much the congregation can offer to support the pastor in paying off their seminary debt,” she added.
MC USA’s pastor salary resources include:
- An updated pastor salary worksheet (available as a printable PDF and savable spreadsheet) that enables the user to customize a recommended base salary based on factors such as experience, education, responsibilities, geography, housing and benefits.
- Interpretive comments, which explain the formulas behind the worksheet and provide additional guidance for special situations, part-time employment, interim/transitional ministry, sabbaticals, and parental/family and medical leave.
- “Negotiating the Pastor’s Salary,” a guide on best practices for salary negotiations.
- An updated geographical calculator, which adjusts for variations in the cost of living across the country.
- A customizable template for a covenant of understanding with the pastor/minister.
- An updated guide for retirement benefits.
MC USA Church Vitality office and Everence increased the base salary and unit values for compensation by 4.7% over the 2021-2022 guidelines, as a reflection of the Consumer Price Index in April 2022. They also updated the geographical unit values, based on the 2021 “Effective Buying Income” index obtained from Claritas. The unit values are updated annually in April, per denominational practice.
In addition, the pastor salary worksheet includes a new section labeled, “other,” which provides for increased flexibility in calculating compensation packages.
“Conferences and congregations may use the ‘other’ field to address specific financial needs, such as to help a new pastor reduce seminary debt,” said Ringenberg Miller.
MC USA offers a wide range of other resources for pastoral wellbeing through its “Wellbeing in Ministry” website hub (https://www.mennoniteusa.org/wellbeing-in-ministry). These resources include a well-being checklist, guidance on pastoral assessments and evaluations, information on pastor-congregation relations, and an overview of The Corinthian Plan, MC USA’s health coverage for pastors and church workers.
Everence, an agency of MC USA, helps individuals, organizations and congregations integrate finances with faith through a national team of professionals. Everence.com
Mennonite Church USA is the largest Mennonite denomination in the United States with 16 conferences, approximately 550 congregations and 59,000 members. An Anabaptist Christian denomination, MC USA is part of Mennonite World Conference, a global faith family that includes churches in 59 countries. It has offices in Elkhart, Indiana, and Newton, Kansas. MennoniteUSA.org
By MC USA staff