June 9, 2001
Source: The New York Times
On June 9, 2001, The New York Times reported that Protestant congregations are facing a shortage of ministers. "For Protestant denominations, religion officials say, the problem's roots include the attraction of more lucrative careers in what long was a booming economy, a wide variety of choices in religious life for seminary graduates and escalating retirements from a demanding job in which the pay is often modest and the hours are long. [In addition] diminishing membership within the larger denominations has meant that a growing number of smaller churches...wind up with little money to pay a pastor...The problem also affects Orthodox Jews."