Consequences of Seminarian Debt

Burdensome educational debt reduces the diversity of clergy.

Because of low pay in starting positions, students with a heavy debt load will simply not be able to respond to a calling. Without a solution to fund Episcopal seminary training, the priesthood could be limited to those who are independently wealthy or to those who rely on second jobs and/or financial support from their spouses. This will limit the diversity of clergy by age, gender and cultural background.

Burdensome educational debt reduces the options for graduating seminarians, forcing some to abandon their calling.

The cost of seminary education coupled with low salary levels for new clergy can be a major disincentive for young people considering a call. For even the most committed, gifted and able seminarians, the financing of both seminary training and the early years in parish ministry can be overwhelming.

For educational loan and credit card debt of $38,000, far less than the average for Master of Divinity (M.Div.) graduates, bank lenders say you need an income of $60,000 in order to pay living expenses and effectively manage your debt. (From The Christian Century, August 2004)

With median compensation packages (including housing allowance) for starting  Episcopal clergy at  $44,500 (2004 figure), many will find they do not make enough money to manage their educational debt.

Burdensome educational debt reduces the choices for churches calling clergy.

Especially smaller to mid-size churches, which represent a majority of Episcopal parishes, will have problems attracting qualified clergy, since those parishes often cannot pay enough for priests to effectively manage their debt, support even a modest standard of living, provide for healthcare, finance the education of their children and fund their own retirements.

The number of available clergy will be reduced overall, and the number who can afford to accept callings to smaller and mid-size churches will shrink even more. Without a solution to the seminarian debt problem, churches calling clergy will not be able to find who they need, when they need them.

The underpinning of the Funding Future Leaders (FFL) initiative is that a calling as a parish priest is an important, viable calling. The current way for funding a seminary education is an impediment to people entering the ordained ministry.