What every congregational leader needs to know about clergy stress—and 18 easy ways to lighten their load

To care for clergy is to understand clergy—especially the stressors they face in their calling. Our new resource helps congregational leaders identify easy ways to lighten their load.  

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Trends in Ministry Flourishing

What every congregational leader needs to know about clergy stress—and 18 easy ways to lighten their load

According to our most recent survey of United Methodist Church (UMC) clergy in North Carolina, “understanding ministry demands and clergy pressures” is key to a positive working relationship with congregational leaders (a.k.a. congregants on what the UMC calls the Parish/Staff-Parish Relations Committee or P/SPRC). The most frequently cited reason for a negative relationship? A "poor understanding of clergy’s work." 

In other words, to care for clergy is—in part—to understand their stress. 

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Last year, we shared the top five sources of stress among clergy we interviewed. Now, we’ve created a resource called Bear One Another’s Burdens to help P/SPRCs (and, really, congregational leaders of all kinds) reflect on these challenges and identify actionable ideas to help their clergy feel seen, known, and supported. Because when clergy are healthy in their vocation, they can become the foundation of healthy communities.

READ: Clergy Share Their Top Sources of Stress  

After you have a clear understanding of the stressors facing your pastor, read through our list of ideas below and consider, Which of these might provide a starting point to address a challenge you identified?  

1. Ideas for Addressing Pastoral Challenges 

• Clearly discern expectations for the pastor(s) (especially around their availability) and communicate these expectations to the whole congregation. 

• Establish reasonable boundaries for the number of evenings each week that pastors will be away from home and family.  

• Evaluate the daily and weekly rhythms of your pastor. Be supportive of having guest preachers to allow for occasional time away. 

• Consider providing funds for clergy retreats or cohorts or support time for well-being practices such as meditation, prayer, or personal study. 

2. Ideas for Addressing Clergy’s Congregational Challenges 

• Be aware of how even 1-2 dominant negative voices might be influencing the culture of your congregation in ways that adversely harm clergy well-being. 

• Offer to have a member of the P/SPRC present as a witness to ensure a congregant’s criticism of clergy remains constructive.  

• Be willing to risk uncomfortable conversations with other congregants in support of your pastor.   

• Publicly and privately model a mature version of Christian discipleship that: 
  • Refuses gossip.  
  • Seeks understanding in the midst of disagreement.  
  • Advises individuals with concerns to talk directly with that person. 
  • Assumes best intentions of others and seeks to clarify challenges. 
  • Rejects behavior such as withholding funds as a means of exercising power within the congregation.  

• Introduce a congregation-wide practice of starting meetings with a centering practice like the Loving Kindness Meditation or prayer of St. Francis. 

• Adopt a relational covenant that establishes group norms for conversation. See Conversation #1 of Keeping the Faith to help you get started.  

• Incorporate resources such as the "Conversations Across the Aisles" sermon series and discussion cards into your church’s discipleship ministry.   

• Consider offering congregational training in nonviolent communication with the P/SPRC leading the way.  

3. Ideas for Addressing Clergy’s Personal Challenges  

• Respect and protect the privacy of your pastor’s family. Honor your pastor’s privacy as well, especially around marriage and children or lack thereof.  

• Allow adequate time for clergy to address family matters, particularly related to caregiving, major life transitions, or periods of grief and loss.  

• Recognize the stress of living in church-provided housing on the pastor’s family. Find ways to make the parsonage feel like home. 

• Honor the time it takes to transition to a new community when your pastor and, possibly, their family arrive.  

• Support your pastor in connecting to debt relief initiatives such as the Western North Carolina Conference Clergy Debt Reduction Initiative.  

• Beware of the lifestyle expectations of your community and your pastor’s ability to meet those expectations.  

While not all stressors faced by clergy originate from within the congregation, the unique nature of pastoral ministry and the demands of the job make clergy especially susceptible to stress, burnout, and compassion fatigue. It’s part of their job to educate congregational leaders about their needs and realities. But, as members of one body, congregational leaders like P/SPRCs can also do their part (as the UMC Book of Discipline encourages) to support clergy in their pursuit of wholeness.  

Your Serve Well Resource

Bear One Another's Burdens: A Handy Guide for P/SPRCs to Support Clergy in Times of Stress

Using interview data from NC-UMC clergy, we identified the most common sources of stress for clergy. In this guide, you’ll read about these notable challenges, along with suggestions for making a positive difference in their well-being.

If you’re a clergy person, consider forwarding this to your P/SPRC chair or another lay leader for discussion. If you’re a lay leader, consider forwarding this to your pastor and inviting them to share at an upcoming meeting or coffee date: What thoughts do they have on where the church might begin to offer more support for their well-being?

Bear One Another's Burdens expands our library of resources to support congregations. If you find it helpful, be sure to check out Loved and Cared For and Keeping the Faith, all available for free on our website.  

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About Us

The Duke Clergy Health Collaborative (formerly the Clergy Health Initiative and the Religion and Social Change Lab) translates original research into shared resources that help United Methodist clergy in North Carolina—and beyond—serve well and be well at the same time. 

Our work is made possible thanks to the generous time of our clergy and seminarian ministry partners and generous funding from The Duke Endowment. To stay informed of our latest research into ministry formation and flourishing, sign up to get our monthly Serve Well newsletter directly to your inbox.