A 2013 Gallup Poll showed a decline in the trust factor for ministers. Only 47 percent of respondents expressed trust in the integrity of clergy. In the past, clergy have ranked near the top. On the other hand, ministers did better on the survey than journalists who had a score of 20 percent and members of congress who got a score of 8 percent. The lowest on the survey were lobbyists at 6 percent. Who was highest in the poll for trustworthiness? Nurses—who had the confidence of 80 percent of the respondents. Clearly those of us who serve the church as ministers have a lot of work to do to restore the public’s confidence.
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