Why do non-LDS churches have a paid clergy?
Not all clergy are paid. Most are laypeople or volunteers. There are several classifications of ‘clergy’. There are the pastors, who are classed as the overseer of the church. There are the Elders, who are the spiritual leaders, and Deacons, who are ‘servants’, for lack of better word. Now I’m not saying that these are correct, but I’m just saying this is the current situation. In this world we need to earn a living. Clergy are usually people who have devoted their time to God and the church. They work full time in overseeing the church itself (as in the entity, the infrastructure etc, and not just the ‘congregation’. Therefore their time is taken in administration to keep the house of the Lord operating. Think back to the Levites. They were responsible for keeping the Temple running. They had no inheritance in the land – they lived of the Tithes of the other tribes. That was their work, and their income. Paid clergy are no different. As Christians, we are not saying that they are any
