What outgoing senior pastors do after a transition
Percent of outgoing senior pastors by next role, 2024 (in percent)
Key finding
Highest: Depart the congregation entirely (56%). Lowest: Move into co-pastor or associate role (15%).
- Depart the congregation entirely: 56%
- Move into lay leadership or membership: 20%
- Move into co-pastor or associate role: 15%
Source: Barna Group, Planned Pastoral Transitions Lead to Better Outcomes · Barna surveys of pastors and others who experienced a senior pastor transition in the past 5-7 years. Article published 2024-04-04.
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Questions about this statistic
What does this statistic show?
Highest: Depart the congregation entirely (56%). Lowest: Move into co-pastor or associate role (15%). Depart the congregation entirely: 56%. Move into lay leadership or membership: 20%. Move into co-pastor or associate role: 15%.
Who published this data?
Barna Group, 2024. Source: Barna Group, Planned Pastoral Transitions Lead to Better Outcomes (https://www.barna.com/research/pastoral-transitions/).
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About this data
Leader Insights collects statistics about U.S. churches from published research by organizations such as Lifeway Research, Barna Group, Springtide, the American Bible Society and PRRI. Every number is checked against the wording of the original source before it is published, and each statistic links back to the study it came from. Figures are reproduced from the publishers named above; see the source for full methodology.