Black United Methodist Church pastors in North Carolina and South Carolina are paid “substantially less” than their White counterparts because cross-racial appointments for Black clergy are difficult to come by, a 12-year study reported.
At issue is the racial makeup of United Methodist congregations in the two states, as well as the wealth disparity between White and Black congregations, according to researchers David Eagle, assistant research professor of global health at Duke University, and Collin Mueller, assistant professor of sociology at the University of Maryland.
White UMC congregations tend to be more affluent than Black ones, the report indicated, which means those bodies can pay pastors more.