I was listening to a radio program today and one of the guests was from a non-profit organization that helps disabled veterans.
He said they were ALL volunteers. I don't think the host of the program believed him at first.

He asked, "You don't have ANY paid staff members?"

"No. They are all volunteers, including the people who made our website and the people who do our taxes."


Imagine that...a charitable organization where nobody gets paid!

Mormon church loves to say they don't have a paid clergy, but we all know what that means.
I wonder how different the church would look today if they had actually followed that principle from the beginning?

I went to a Lutheran church one time and they passed around a big gold bowl in the middle of the meeting for everyone to put their donations in.
Then they sang a special hymn while the deacon held the bowl up in the air at the front of the chapel.
Somehow, Mormon church seems even more focused on money.

The issue is accountability and transparency.

Salaries are legitimate, but need to be specified.

AA provides a good template. Except for administrative personnel, it is completely volunteer, with the emphasis on the local groups.

As businesses and non profits grow they tend to become corrupt, just look at walmart, Mr. Sam was a great guy who just wanted to sell women's panties at a discount price, but then the money kept rolling in and now they've destroyed small businesses driven competitors to bankruptcy, theyve employed sweatshops in Malaysia, all so the Waltons dynasty can make more money.

I heard the "no paid clergy" constantly as a kid as a brag and proof of being the one true church which eschewed worldliness and riches. No filthy lucre for our leaders!

Silly me. I thought that included the prophet and apostles in the unpaid column. Everyone I knew assumed that. Lying by omission.

The downside of "no paid clergy" is that it is also "no trained clergy." You end up with Brother Rasmussen as the bishop, who didn't want the job, but his wife threatened to leave him if he turned the job down, because she wanted to be the bishop's wife.

The church certainly COULD train the leadership better...if they wanted to.

But, how much training does it really take when your policy is: "Do exactly what is in the handbook"?

Sure, I'm a never-Mo, but a bit of training shouldn't be too complicated to run, once a curriculum is set up.

Each stake could have periodic, or on-going, evening classes for men (oh, heck, women too!) who aspire to certain important callings in their ward. Members could take them and, upon completion, would be part of a pool of candidates for various offices: bishop, counselors, youth, RS, leadership in priests' quorum, etc. It doesn't mean they'll get called, but would indicate a willingness to serve, and provide a pool of such candidates.

Curriculum would include church policy, doctrine, legal responsibilities, leadership principles, maybe public speaking, conflict resolution. The program would remain voluntary and unpaid, but provide some qualifications and weed out unsuitable candidates.

OTOH, it could also be correlation on steroids.

caffiend Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Curriculum would include church policy, doctrine,
> legal responsibilities, leadership principles,
> maybe public speaking, conflict resolution. The
> program would remain voluntary and unpaid, but
> provide some qualifications and weed out
> unsuitable candidates.
===============================

That it is not currently so configured suggests taking care of people is not the priority.

Hmmm . . . what possibly could the priority be.

The "official" church stuff now says no "local" paid clergy.


You know, so you can dodge questions about MP's and GA's.

It was not that long ago (late 19th century) that bishops and stake presidents (and patriarchs) DID get paid. Either a set salary, or a percentage of the tithing they collected.
Patriarchs charged a fee for a p blessing.

It's scriptural:

Elders, bishops, and high priests should be paid for their services. (D&C 42:71-73)

Now *that* is interesting. Veddy.

Hmmmn. How can I use this? Let's see . . .

Yep, remember well emphasizing NO PAID CLERGY as a missionary.
That and the big deal of being able to trace my Priesthood lineage directly back to Peter/James/John and Jesus hizzelph.

Young and dumb and gullible and trusting of those who I now know never, ever deserved that trust.

"No paid airline pilots, we all just do our best here!"

What, that doesn't sound so good to you?

On a Wing and a Prayer Airlines.

Has a nice ring to it, no?

When we first moved to Utah, our next door neighbors, certain they could convert us, used this as a selling point for the LDS church. They harped on the issue of "No Paid Clergy" as though that was reason enough to join their church.

>>I went to a Lutheran church one time and they passed around a big gold bowl in the middle of the meeting for everyone to put their donations in.

The difference is, in most mainstream churches, there is not the expectation to tithe (contribute 10% of one's income.) From having researched it long ago, most members in the mainstream churches voluntarily contribute in the 1-3% range. I know in the Catholic church in which I was raised, a very poor person would not have been expected to contribute at all. Plus, most churches publish their budgets either publicly or internally to their membership. The church members normally have input into the budgets. Each congregation typically sends only about 5-10% to their central church headquarters/governing body, and charity to the community at large is often a part of their budgets as well.

These churches also normally pay their staffs. They have paid ministers, assistant ministers, youth ministers, organists, and secretaries.

So I would make the argument that although a basket or a bowl may be passed, the members are only expected to contribute a modest amount of their own choosing, and they get more in the way of services and accountability in return. I don't think the Mormon church has anything to brag about here.

TSCC wants an OUT.

It's the person, not the product.

Scapegoats