New Research Reveals Factors That Cause Pastors To Quit

Few pastors step away from the pulpit, but what compels those who quit? Lifeway Research found only 1.1 percent of all U.S. Protestant pastors leave pastoral ministry before retirement age each year. Analysis comparing Lifeway Research’s studies of current and former Protestant pastors reveals factors that predict the likelihood of leaving pastoral ministry. “Experts can theorize what keeps pastors in the pulpit, but only a comparison of pastors who have stayed to those who have left can point to what matters,” said Scott McConnell, executive director of Lifeway Research. “This rare opportunity to see what helps and what diminishes a...