By Jeff Huett

DECATUR, Ga. – The Cooperative Baptist Fellowship is seeking deeper connection with bi-vocational and co-vocational clergy and has launched a short survey to learn more about their experiences and needs. 

Bi-vocational ministers serve a church and work outside the church for primary or supplemental income. Co-vocational ministers are those with a clear and definite calling in the marketplace that they never intend to leave.

Work outside the church for clergy is not new. The apostle Paul talks about being a tentmaker in the book of Acts. And there is a long history of rural pastors who served the church and worked on farms. Small churches and churches in economically challenged areas have long been led by clergy with secular jobs.

The term co-vocational, however, is a relatively new term. There is a history of clergy who have intentionally found employment outside the church because of their calling and even to gain experience in an area, such as media production, education, nonprofit management, that would benefit the ministry.

The survey will help CBF learn from bi-vocational, co-vocational clergy and work together with them to develop resources and inform programming. The survey will be followed up by focus groups made up of bi-vocational and co-vocational clergy.
Take the survey!