Southern Baptists churches lead other denominations in the percentage of pastors under the age of 35 at a time when the number of young people serving in the pulpit is reportedly decreasing.
According to information provided by the Alban Institute, 11 percent of pastors serving in Southern Baptist churches in 2000 were 35 or younger.
Based in Bethesda, Md., the Alban Institute is an organization that supports congregational life. Alban said it based its figures on 700 churches sampled.
The next highest number of pastors younger than 35 was among the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod and Unitarian Universalist Association, with eight percent each. However, those numbers show a decrease from previous years.
The Lutheran Church Missouri Synod said 18 percent of its clergy was under the age of 35 in 1981, with the Unitarian Universalist Association reporting a similar statistic based on 1975 figures.
United Methodists and the Presbyterian Church follow, with each reporting seven percent of ministers under the age of 35. That is followed by Roman Catholic pastors, of which six percent are 35 or younger.
With such low percentages of pastors being under 35, these figures seem to point to a “graying” among pastors.
Phillip B. Jones, director of strategic planning support with the North American Missions Board, said the average age of a Southern Baptist preacher is 48.
Jones added the median age of an interim pastor is 70.
However Jones tried to downplay any conclusion that the majority of pastors in the Southern Baptist convention are older, citing the average age could be markedly different five years from now.
“This is a snapshot of one point in time,” Jones said.
The median age identified for Southern Baptist preachers is “not a huge shift, but a noticeable one” in the immediate past, according to Jim Swedenburg, associate in the office of LeaderCare and church administration with the Alabama State Board of Missions.
“It’s probably a little bit older,” Swedenburg said. “I do think that there’s a trend that we’re beginning to see.”
At the same time, he believes there are factors contributing to older pastors serving in churches, which should not be a cause for concern.
“I think there are more people going from youth ministry to the pastorate and from associate pastor positions to the pastorate than we had 10 or 15 years ago,” he said.
“Back then, most people wanted to start in a smaller church and work their way up,” Swedenburg said. “People aren’t as comfortable with that kind of mindset now — those that like to work with smaller churches go straight to those churches and the folks who want to work in larger churches tend to take a position other than pastor so that they can become a pastor later on.”
Among interim pastors, Swedenburg said the median age is within an expected range.
“The fact that interim pastors’ median age is 70, that’s not that old when you consider most of them are retired pastors,” Swedenburg said..
The older age of pastors is not being reflected in seminary enrollment, with a “traditional” number of younger students enrolling.
Shannon Baker, director of public relations for New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary, said 447 students between the ages of 26–30 enrolled at New Orleans during fall 2000.
“That’s been our traditional thing all along,” Baker said.
The second highest number of students enrolled at New Orleans — 394 — is aged 20–25, according to information provided by Baker.
“The total number of students that we had enrolled in fall 2000 that were age 35 and under was 1,218,” Baker said. “The number of students that were age 36 and older were 967. Our traditional student has been between the ages of 25-35.”
Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas, offered a similar statistic. Although a breakdown was not available, a spokesperson said the median age of students enrolled there is 33.
Lawrence Smith, a spokesperson for Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky., also reported most of its students are still under the age of 30, based on enrollment for the 1999-2000 school year.
Smith said the highest number of students were those ages 21–30 at 38.1 percent. Although he could not offer specifics, he added enrollment for the current year seems to indicate the seminary is continuing to attract younger students.
“Our average age this year has dipped below 30,” Smith said.
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