More than half said love (59%), proud of them (53%), or rewarded (52%).
Slightly fewer said they felt encouraged (48%) or connected (43%).
• Few retirement-age pastors or missionaries said they feel
disappointed (16%), disconnected (16%), betrayed (8%) or bitter (2%).
• When asked to think about their overall life today, including
relationships, spiritual health, finances and physical health, about
three-quarters (74%) agreed that their life is close to ideal in most
ways. Similar numbers described their current life conditions as
excellent (76%), while more than 8 in 10 (86%) said they are satisfied
with their life today.
• In describing their overall health, 72% said they are active
and healthy, while 14% said they have physical disabilities that
limit them.
• Some survey respondents said they spend a significant amount of
their time caring for the health of someone with disabilities (5%), or
have been diagnosed with a mental illness themselves (3%).
• Around 4 in 10 (41%) agreed that having more help with their
own health or the health of someone they care for would help at least
a little.
• Retirement-age ministers are most likely to say information,
tips and best practices for maintaining good health would help the
most (25%), along with financial assistance (21%), and Medicare
supplementary insurance (19%).
• When asked about meeting with someone at least once a month
to openly share struggles, 61% of those surveyed said they talk with
their spouse. One-third of respondents (33%) said they meet with a
close friend, while 19% said they talk to a Bible study group in their
church, and 3% said they meet with a counselor.
• However, just over a quarter of respondents (26%) said they don’t
regularly meet and share with any of these.
• Around 7 in 10 (69%) said they have at least three close friends
whom they see or speak with at least once a month, with 17% saying
they have 10 or more.
• Still, 21% said they see or talk to one or two friends, and 10% said
they don’t have any friends outside of family that they meet with at
least once a month.
• Around half (48%) agreed that if they had more help connecting
with new friends, it would help improve their overall well-being at least
a little. A quarter of respondents (25%) said it would not help at all.
• More retirement-age ministers said they would benefit from
making friends who have had a similar experience in ministry (25%),
making friends who live near them (23%), and relating to a church in
which they are not in leadership (20%).
• Three-quarters (76%) of the survey respondents are confident
they will have enough money to live comfortably through
retirement, with 31% saying they are very confident.
• However, almost half (47%) of the respondents said they are often
concerned about the financial security of their family and 27% said
their physical needs or those of their spouse have caused significant
financial strain.
• Virtually all retired ministers (94%) receive Social Security
benefits. Around 3 in 5 (59%) said they have a pension plan with their
current or former employer.
• Retirement-age pastors and missionaries are most likely to say
they need help managing retirement funds (22%), finding work
suitable for retired ministers (17%) or learning how to stretch their
current resources (16%).
For the full report with more findings and research, visit https://
lifewayresearch.com/2019/10/23/retired-pastors-satisfied-and-
optimistic-but-see-room-for-improvement.
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