Is any religion like this?

Question

Is there a religion where the clergy gets no befeits from their job? No money, no power, and no other physical benefits at all from preaching about their beliefs. I ask because I've recently realized that the profiting of the clergy is the main reason i don't trust organized religion. I think I might be able to really get into a religion where the preachers preach only because they believe.

Unfortunately, christianity does not sufice for my requirements.

I am looking for a religion in wich the clergy not only don't get rich, they receive no physical or socio-political compensation at all.

Answer 1

Certainly there are those that really believe in what they preach, they are out there, keep looking.

But.....my mama used to say, wanna be a millionaire, do one of these three things;

1. Write a cookbook
2. Create a toy you can make for a nickle and sell for 3 dollars,
(thus, the hool a hoop) or today the computer.
3. Start a new religion.

I didn't do any of the the above, but I know those who have done one or all of the above.

Answer 2

You will never find such an animal. Religion was created to control the masses so in order for the few to do so they have to take from the masses to show they have the power and glory.

It is the same every place on arth. Some one has to pay for it all and that is most always the poorest of them all.

Yes there are people that willingly give up everything and preach the word to others. This does not mean there is not a selfish reason for this. Most of the time there is. Some use it to hide form the truth, some use religion to hide from the law and many other reasons. So far I have not ever met a person that did not have a mitive for what he was doing. Some good Some not so good.

Look at religion for what it is and not what some preacher tells you it should be. He most likely does not live the life he preaches.

Answer 3

There are over eight thousand different christian religions in the United States today. There are many that do not have paid clergy. I'm sure there are some that would fit your criteria. Many small baptist congregations have a preacher that was called to preach.

On the flip side, clergy are people too. They need to eat and sleep and have things to survive. That is where the money comes in. Some (in fact, many) people of faith have found and made lucrative careers by spreading their version of the word. I can see your trepidation and cynicism (I actually share your concerns).

I would suggest to you to look into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. They are the Mormons. I think you may like what you see. If not them, then I would suggest a small church (possibly baptist) with a preacher that has a regular job. In many rural areas, the preachers are also farmers. You cannot get more Godly than that.

You can get too deep into any religion just as you can go overboard with any activity. Keep your head about you, keep a healthy cynicism about what you are told, and study for yourself about the word. A preacher is a guide, not a guidebook.

Good luck.

Answer 4

There are protestant Christian pastors who don't get any money or benefits from pastoring, especially in small churches, where the Pastor's family is supported fully by the pastor's weekday job.

Of course there are also protestant Christian churches that feel that the pastor would be more able to help the members of his congregation if he didn't have to split his time up between pastoring and a weekday job, hence the paid positions.

I'm not sure how I feel about paid clergy positions...I see both sides of the spectrum, and stand undecided somewhere in the middle. :)

However, you need to look at the core beliefs and make your decision based on that. When it comes down to it, it really doesn't matter if so-and-so was paid for pastoring or not. He'll have his own judgement to face, and so will you, regardless of the other guy. Really search for the core beliefs and facts... falible man can always screw up what is good and right, so you have to look at the source.

Answer 5

Many preachers start out with a right heart, and then get caught up in the self-glory and lusts of the flesh. How hard it must be to stay humble when thousands of people are putting you up on a pedestal all the time. And many are just worldly and greedy and are preaching for a profit, sad to say.

My husband is a preacher of the Gospel. He is the pastor of the Church of the Sidewalk. He reads the Bible, prays and sings praise songs to God. He gives money to the poor and helps the homeless, helps those in need (car troubles, whatever) and often visits one blind old widow. He does not recieve money from anyone....God provides, and provides well through our jobs. We live in a great little house and feel so blessed to have it and to have heat and to have food - so many do not have such luxuries. My couch was a throw away that we put legs on and a cover, my dressers came from GoodWill, our cars are fine old clunkers, and yet we feel we live way too luxurious of a life. Why? Because we don't want to lust after worldly stuff, but rather after God's Heart.

If you are discouraged by some of these preachers, find a devout and sincere Christian man and let him mentor and teach you. Read your Bible every chance you get. God wants humble servants to preach the Good News, not Broadway entertainers to make Christians feel good when in fact they ought to feel really bad about all the stuff going on around them.

46 million dead babies since Roe v Wade. My husband cries, I cry, and Jesus cries about that. Let your heart be broken for God.

Answer 6

Well the problem you run into is you cant feed your family on beliefs. And the demands on a ministers time can be enormous with many working 50-70 hours per week. There simply isnt enough time to hold down a job on the side and study and stay devoted and put in the amount of time the church requires. The Bible said the worker is WORTH his wages and to in fact pay ministers. Should they be rich? No. But do judge your church in that regard and do what is fair.

Typically when people raise that objection though, it is because they are personally cheap and want to honor God with their lips and not put their money where their mouth is. God requires people to give 10% to keep his minsitries going here on earth. They shouldnt be greedy ministries mind you, BUT that is all part of the challenge of choosing a good Godly church to serve God and make no mistake; the people that do not serve God in this life have NOTHING to look forward to in the next one!

Answer 7

Is there a specific religion that prohibits clergy being paid or sustained for their religious work? Probably not. There are individuals throughout history that have eschewed material possessions for the pursuit of their faith; they are few and famous. Many Christian monks, especially the reformers, took vows of poverty. St. Francis of Assisi comes to mind. Read up on him; he was a really neat guy, and I'm not even Roman Catholic!

Unfortunately, the lure of money, property, and personal power over others is far-reaching, and infects even many who start out with pure motives. That is a world-wide problem, not just a religious one.

Answer 8

I don't know what your exposure is. If it is TV preachers then that is a very biased example because they tend to be more egocentric. There are many churches where the preachers (pastors) are paid a salary some where it is more of a stipend, not enough to support a family on, and they work other jobs. Just because there a many people in a church does not make it a good church. In fact just having many members may mean it is a false church that is what many call a "feel good" congregation.

Answer 9

In Wicca, every member is a priest/ess, and in most Traditions we simply aren't allowed to accept money for anything we do. Each Wiccan is expected to earn their own way in the world. Plus, since every member is a priest/ess, there's none of the "I'm the priest so I say so" happening as there sometimes is in other religions. Everyone is on an equal footing, at least in theory -- in practice, some people have more experience, but this doesn't make them the "head" of anything as a rule.

While an individual Wiccan might acknowledge the training and wisdom of an individual teacher, or the expertise of the High Priest/Priestess of a coven, they are not expected to follow their teachers as gurus but are instead responsible for their own learning and advancement in the religion. And when I was being taught, we were strongly encouraged to question everything we came across and test it to see if it made sense to us.

A relatively objective article, written by a non-Wiccan, on what Wiccans do and believe:

http://www.religioustolerance.org/witchcra.htm

Alternatively, you might try the Belief-O-Matic quiz over at Beliefnet.com and see which faith it matches you up with:

http://www.beliefnet.com/story/76/story_7665_1.html

Answer 10

Religion gets money to support their needs while on their mission. However, in the early sets of Christianity under Paul. he told his disciples to work in order to earn for themselves and then on their free time do the missions. He even emphasized not be a burden to those they are preaching.
If you want, you can accept payment or contribution from your preaching job and do not spend anything for yourself but give it to your organization as a support for the survival of your church. If it is your full time vocation, then you have to make way to eat so you stay healthy. If you are rich and determined to spend all your money to preaching, just count how long do you think you will last.