“I never learned this in seminary.”

Throughout my more than 12 years as an editor with Church Law & Tax, I’ve heard and read that statement countless times. Pastors often get into their roles, only to discover their theological and ministerial training did little, if anything, to ready them for the legal, tax, and financial duties and responsibilities of running a church.

What to do? Attorney and Senior Editor Richard Hammar has devoted his entire professional career working toward filling this knowledge gap. And his latest effort is now available to ChurchLawAndTax.com members: An article series covering 15 things Hammar believes pastors must know in order to effectively lead their congregations today. Among the topics covered:

• Governing documents;
• Parliamentary procedure and church meetings;
• Accountable reimbursement arrangements;
• Exemption from self-employment taxes; and
• The inspection of church records.

If you’re a pastor, this is a must-read series. If your role involves working alongside pastors, then you’ll want to forward this e-newsletter to them. Seminary may not have prepared pastors for these issues, but these issues won’t go away, so the “only way out is through,” as the saying goes. This series offers the pathway out.

One final note: Are you a Church Law & Tax Advantage Member? If so, make sure you’re registered for tomorrow’s live webinar with Hammar as he shares more thoughts about these 15 things.

Also this week:

• Q&A: We forgot to set our minister’s 2020 housing allowance—what should we do?
• As Palm Sunday and Easter approach, refresh your knowledge regarding the posting of videos of children at church events.
• Help us better understand sexual harassment in the workplace through this survey as we aim to help church leaders address and prevent it.