Number of burnt out pastors continues to grow, according to survey

Jardine Malado Thursday, October 20, 2016

The pulpit in Covenant Presbyterian Church, Long Beach, California | Wikimedia Commons/Kaihsu Tai

A survey has revealed that a majority of pastors considered themselves overworked and deemed themselves incapable of meeting the demands of their pastoral duties.

ExPastors recently released the results of the online survey that was conducted between February and April 2015. Among 275 respondents, 62 percent said that they were serving as a pastor. Six percent said they stepped away from their duties but decided to serve as pastors again. Thirty-two percent said they were no longer pastors.

As much as 60 percent said they doubted their call to the ministry. Sixty percent of the respondents considered themselves overworked and 81 percent admitted that they felt incapable of meeting the demands of the job at times.

More than half (53 percent) admitted that they were constantly fighting depression and 63 percent considered themselves lonely. Seventy-seven percent said they experienced burnout and 85 percent said they thought of leaving the ministry.

About 55 percent of the respondents said their churches had less than 200 members. Eight percent led churches that had 800 to 2,000 congregants. Only one percent said they had more than 2,000 members in their church.

"Some pastors are just absolutely crushed," said Greg Atkinson, executive director of ExPastors, told Baptist News. The organization's website helped pastors and ex-pastors by providing resources that focuses on their spiritual, mental, physical and emotional health.

Atkinson said that the declining attendance also contributesdto the pressures of being a pastor. Ministers often dealt with their stress by isolating themselves which caused them to fall into addictive behaviors that often involved drugs, alcohol and pornography.

He added that these behaviors led the pastor towards burnout, mental illness, termination, quitting the ministry and suicide. He noted that it was important to assess the attitude and situation of the pastors adding that it is equally important to take appropriate action.

Atkinson advised pastors to take care of their physical wellbeing through exercise and healthy diet.

"If you don't get healthy, you won't return to ministry," he said.