Clergy Glut

There are more than 600,000 ministers in the but only 338,000 churches in the US, according to the Yearbook of American and Canadian Churches. For instance, there are four Presbyterian ministers looking for work for every job that's available. At the same time, there are 300 churches that are members of the Tennessee Baptist Convention without a pastor. The average church has only 75 members, so many congregations cannot afford a full-time pastor. The Association of Theological Schools says seminary enrollment is down more than six percent in the last five years, so the number of pastors without churches is likely to fall over the next few years.