Does an Aging Population Explain High Clergy Ages?
For most traditions, the disproportionate aging of clergy is a crucial challenge. Lovett H. Weems Jr. highlights some of the findings in the National Congregations…
Browsing: Young Clergy
Articles
Number of Young Elders in the United Methodist Church Reaches a Record Low Number in 2023
Lovett H. Weems Jr. highlights the decline in numbers of young clergy in the Lewis Center’s annual Clergy Age Trends Report. A dramatic decline in…
Clergy Age Trends in the United Methodist Church: 1985-2023
Download the 2023 Clergy Age Trends Report. Highlights of the 2023 Report Young Elders Reach New Record Low Number The recent decline in the…
The Changing Contours of Youth Ministry: An In-Depth Interview with Deech Kirk
What new approaches to youth ministry are emerging in our post-Covid era? Ann Michel interviews Deech Kirk of the Center for Youth Ministry Training. He…
“The Changing Contours of Youth Ministry” featuring Deech Kirk
Podcast Episode 127 What new approaches to youth ministry are emerging in our post-Covid era? Deech Kirk of the Center for Youth Ministry Training describes…
Who will be God’s Agents of Pastoral Calling?
Many pastors recall that it was another pastor who first invited them to consider their call to ministry. Yet it seems fewer and fewer pastors…
Still Fewer Young United Methodist Elders in 2022
Lovett H. Weems Jr. reports that the declining number of young elders in the United Methodist Church has accelerated while the number of young deacons…
Number of Young United Methodist Elders Hits Historic Low
The Lewis Center for Church Leadership has released its annual report on clergy age trends in the United Methodist Church. This year’s statistics show that…
What’s Keeping Younger People from Ordained Ministry in the United Methodist Church?
Ann Michel of the Lewis Center staff shares the results of an informal survey among younger adults who have sensed a call to ministry in…
Top Leading Ideas Articles of 2020
Each December we take a look at the most popular Leading Ideas articles of the year and give our readers a second chance to glean…
Addressing the Root Causes of the Crisis of Younger Clergy
Few doubt that struggles over the United Methodist Church’s stance on homosexuality and uncertainty about the future of the denomination are factors in the recent,…
Episode 68: “Finding Solutions to the Young Clergy Crisis” featuring Bishop Janice Huie
What strategies support and encourage young people entering ministry? In this episode Bishop Janice Huie shares the importance of listening deeply to young people, embracing a holistic approach, and sustaining our commitment to younger clergy in face of new challenges.
A Call to Overinvest in the Young
Bishop Janice Huie calls for a new approach to engaging younger people in the church. She argues for overinvesting in young people who don’t sit…
The Crisis of Younger Clergy in the UMC: Young Clergy and Candidates Speak Out
Clergy Age Trends in the UMC: 2005-2020 reports that the number of elders age 35 and under has fallen nearly to the record low recorded 15…
Young Elder Numbers Return to Near Historic Low in UMC
Lovett H. Weems Jr. reports that the number of young elders in the United Methodist Church has dropped precipitously in the past two years. The…
Clergy Age Trends In The United Methodist Church: 1985-2020
Download the 2020 Clergy Age Trends Report. Highlights of the 2020 Report Decline in the Number of Young Elders Continues Since reaching the record low…
Clergy Age Trends Give Cause for Concern
Lovett H. Weems, Jr., highlights some of the findings in the Lewis Center’s annual Clergy Age Trends report. Of note is a major downturn in…
Clergy Age Trends In The United Methodist Church: 1985-2019
Download the 2019 Clergy Age Trends Report. Highlights of the 2019 Report Dramatic Decline in the Number of Young Elders Not only did the number…
6 Trends Revealed in 2018 Clergy Age Report
Lovett H. Weems, Jr., highlights some of the significant findings in the Lewis Center’s annual Clergy Age Trends Report. Of note is the modest downturn…
Young Clergy Effectiveness: Good News-Bad News
Data from the Lewis Pastoral Leadership Inventory™ (LPLI) suggest that younger clergy share many of the same strengths as their older colleagues and that they…
5 Reasons the Church Still Needs Young Clergy
For many years the Lewis Center has monitored the presence of younger clergy in the church. Why do these trends still matter? Lovett H. Weems,…
Clergy Age Trends In The United Methodist Church: 1985-2018
Download the complete 2018 Clergy Age Trends Report. Highlights of the 2018 Report Number of Young Elders Holds Steady at Somewhat Lower Level After three…
Clergy Age Trends In The United Methodist Church: 1985-2017
Download the complete 2017 Clergy Age Trends Report. Highlights of the 2017 Report Number of Young Elders Shows Downturn in 2017 After three consecutive years…
Clergy Age Trends in the United Methodist Church: 1985-2016
Highlights of the 2016 Report Decade-Long Modest but Steady Increase in Young Elders Continues In 2005, the United Methodist Church reported the smallest percentage of…
Young Clergy
In recent decades, many North American churches have suffered a serious and sustained decline in the number and percentages of clergy under the age of…
Lewis Fellows
For Gifted Clergy Seeking to be Nimble Leaders Program Overview The Lewis Fellows is a peer-learning experience offered by the Lewis Center for Church Leadership…
Young Clergy Numbers Grow Among Young Clergywomen
For over ten years, the Lewis Center in partnership with the General Board of Pension and Health Benefits has reported annually on Clergy Age Trends in…
Research
The Lewis Center seeks to advance the knowledge and practice of church leadership with targeted research on issues that are vital to the church today. Our…
To the Point: Suggestions for Churches with a Single Pastor
All clergy face many challenges. But single persons in ministry can face a unique set of challenges around maintaining boundaries, privacy, and social connections, particularly…
To the Point: Suggestions for Churches with a Young Pastor
Churches that receive a young pastor need to remember how lucky they are. Many congregations say they want a younger pastor, but few have the…