Wow! I have to say that I'm not familiar with this, and frankly, surprised at how common it seems to be. In the congregation I grew up in, to my knowledge the men (and a few of the women) had jobs. Most of the women were stay at home moms, but even my mother worked part-time as a school aid. My father and his best friend (who eventually got baptized along with his wife, who was a secretary) were supervisors at the electric utility company. I knew commercial artists, teachers, radio announcers, maintenance workers at a local college, train conductors and bus drivers, office workers, a nurse, a fireman, insurance salesmen, construction workers and a "brother" who was a disc jockey (and quite a local celebrity) who they eventually hounded and persecuted until he had to quit his job because they didn't think his notoriety was "appropriate." (ah, kill dreams and talent, won't they?) There was even a woman in a local congregation who owned a bar! I won't say that no one in the congregations I attended in later years received benefits, as I don't know everyone's circumstances, but I don't think it was a common practice where I grew up in New York, since I didn't know it was happening in large numbers until I first read about it here. Maybe it was the fact that the economy in New York demands a higher salary to afford the high cost of rent, car insurance, etc.

Last Edited By: cangie Jan 1 14 7:27 AM. Edited 2 times.