Ministerial Relief & Assistance
Ministerial Relief & Assistance has been a constant for over 125 years as way to give back to ministers, spouses and lay employees via donations. This fund was established to care for those who have fallen into troubled times and need a helping hand from their church community. Today, we offer over a dozen programs to support our colleagues throughout their ministerial career (and beyond). Learn more about these important programs and how you—or someone you might know—could benefit from them.
+1.7 Million
Amount distributed in 2021 to ministry colleagues across the life of the Church.
Ministerial Relief & Assistance Programs:
New & Active Clergy, Staff & Students
- Student Gift Membership
- Parental Leave Assistance
- Clergy Wellness
- Low-Interest Loans
- Reserve Chaplain Dues
- Gift Pensions for New Church Planters
- Vocational Counseling
Giving back to those who have given their all.
Pension Fund began in 1895 as the Board of Ministerial Relief, charged with the task of raising funds for clergy in need. Even though the organization has changed, our mission hasn’t. Ministerial Relief and Assistance is the Church’s way of giving back to ministers, their spouses and lay employees.
How it Started:
In 1895, Ira Chase, a Civil War veteran, former governor of Indiana, and a pastor, died unexpectedly, leaving his wife and four children to care for themselves. Rhoda Jane Castle Chase, his widow, had been blinded as a result of contracting smallpox as a Red Cross nurse during the war, and so she and her children faced serious challenges. Wise and compassionate church leaders saw their need, and in response collected an offering on her behalf. That offering purchased a small plot of land and a modest home for the widow. She accepted, on the condition that when she and her children no longer needed the home it would be sold and $1000 of the profit would be used to support someone else in need. Ministerial Relief and Assistance (MR&A), created solely to provide assistance to clergy and their families in times of need, was born.
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