Does Your Congregation Charge Fees for Services?
admin on October 28th, 2009
In Monday’s Alban Weekly e-newsletter we posted a mini-poll to learn more about congregations and fees for services. The poll was prompted by this article in the Detroit News which noted: “Some clergy members are now charging for services that once were provided for free, such as overseeing a funeral or providing spiritual counseling…”
We asked two questions, and here are the results to date. The poll is still open, so feel free to participate.
The category labels across tbe bottom of the two charts are unreadable!
I’m concerned that you’ve muddied the waters by not distinguishing between members vs. non-members and services vs. building use. I know the poll said “services” but some people may well read it and think that using the building is a service! Here I use “service” to mean the services of the minister.
In the three churches I’ve served since 2001:
No fees were charged to members – for wedding services or use of the building
No fees were charged to members for funeral services or use of the building
Fees are charged to non-members for wedding services and/or the use of the buidling
Fees are charged to non-members for funeral services and/or the use of the building.
Fees are charged to members for use of the building for special functions (e.g. anniversaries, birthday parties) that are not church functions.
these policies have been in place at these churches for years.
the church I am employed churches for weddings, funerals, volunteer user groups such as AA offer a small giving of what they can, we have 2 other churches who use our facility and rent, plus a english as a second language for women who is rent free as we see it as away for to outreach to our community which have a variety of immigrants from around the world.
We only have a wedding fee for non regularly attenders. We have a cleaning fee and a reset up charge, organist, if we have to supply a video person; we let outside groups use our church.
Every church I have served for the past 35 years has charged for weddings. Fees are lower or do not exist for members. Most of the fees are simply to cover the expenses of the church which means the church makes little or no money. Many of the fees, even for members, are to cover the time of staff involved in providing their time. It is fair to charge for the church when most couples are spending many times what we charge for the reception, dress, food, etc.
On the other hand no churches I have served in the last 35 years have charged for funerals. Neither members or non-members have been charged for funeral services. This is the time not to charge for services because families need support in the midst of grief.
Outside groups that are non-profit and benefit the church and community are only asked to make a donation, if they can, to cover the cost of the use of the building.
I see no problem charging fees to those who do not support the church. However the fees we do charge are small compared to what the open market charges for similar activities or rental space.
30 years in mainly inner city: all parishes had fee scale for use of church not for sacramts, but also priest’s right to pro bono judgement. understanding as pastoral care of community. Noted that “rich” parishes charged fees even % of wedding cost to couple. Jim+