All general authorities earn the same “living allowance,” spokesman says after the purported pay stubs show up online.
Rick Egan | The Salt Lake TribuneHenry B. Eyring after walks out of conference with his wife Kathleen, after the morning session. Eyring was sustained as 2nd counselor in the First Presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints during the morning session of General Conference in Salt Lake City, Saturday, October 6, 2007.
By peggy fletcher stack: The Salt Lake Tribune
| Feb. 2, 2017, 1:56 p.m.
| Updated: Aug. 3, 2017, 5:37 p.m.
Mormons and others who wonder about the salaries of top LDS leaders got a possible peek at those numbers Monday, when purported pay stubs for a high-ranking church official emerged online.
Copies of the biweekly stubs for Henry B. Eyring — then a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles — report that he earned $83,132.75 from the start of 2000 until the first week of December. Two more pay periods at $3,096.15 each would have put Eyring's salary at $89,325.05 for the year.
The 16-year-old records were posted by MormonLeaks and show Eyring's biweekly salary broken down into a living allowance ($2,192.31), parsonage or clergy housing, ($826.92) and a child allowance ($76.92).
A second newly leaked document, from a more recent year, is a 2014 memo from the church's Presiding Bishopric (which handles all financial issues for the faith), noting that the "base living allowance" for all Mormon general authorities was being raised from $116,400 to $120,000.
It is unclear from the leaked documents what additional income or perks these men might make, including heath care benefits, free cars or book royalties.
LDS Church spokesman Eric Hawkins declined to confirm the salary numbers Monday, while defending the payment of full-time ecclesiastical leaders.
"General authorities leave their careers when they are called into full-time church service," Hawkins said in a statement. "When they do so, they focus all of their time on serving the church and are given a living allowance. The living allowance is uniform for all general authorities [including First Presidency, Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, First and Second Quorums of the Seventy and Presiding Bishopric]."
No funds for this "living allowance," the spokesman said, "come from the tithing of church members but instead from proceeds of the church's financial investments."
Many of those 109 men in the top tiers of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints — including Eyring — attended elite schools such as Harvard, Stanford, Yale and the University of Chicago and built successful careers as college presidents, lawyers, surgeons and CEOs.
Religious historian Jan Shipps, who is not a Latter-day Saint but has studied Mormonism extensively, was astonished at how relatively low Eyring's living allowance was — even for one more than 15 years ago.
Many university presidents and even some faculty make much more, said Shipps, who taught American religious history in Indiana for years. "Compared to their pay, this is small potatoes."
A Methodist pastor of a middle-class congregation in the Midwest, she said, "is paid a $138,000 base salary plus a parsonage allowance."
Clergy at the local level in Mormonism serve as volunteers at no pay.
Ryan McKnight, a former Mormon in Las Vegas who posted the documents to his new MormonLeaks website (formerly MormonWikiLeaks), stands by the numbers.
"I don't want to get into what we did to authenticate the documents," McKnight said in a phone interview. "We cannot guarantee 100 percent they are real, but we are very confident that they are legitimate."
Previous Mormon materials leaked through McKnight, including widely circulated videos of briefings given to LDS apostles, have proved to be credible.
McKnight defends posting the purloined documents — despite the fact that they contain private information.
"I didn't ask for them; they were sent to me anonymously," McKnight said. "I am not aware of what the law is in that case."
He, for one, is not taken aback by the salary amounts, but does argue that the Utah-based faith should be more open about its finances.
"We are interested in transparency, pure and simple," he said. "Let the public decide whether this reflects positively or negatively on the church."
Kenneth Lines, another former LDS believer, wasn't surprised by the salary of general authority Seventies, but did think that apostles and the three-member First Presidency "made triple that."
Lines, a data analyst in Salt Lake City, doesn't begrudge Mormon leaders their compensation. He just wants the church to be honest about it.
Some of Lines' friends have relatives who are LDS general authorities and "knowing the time they put into their roles, I'd actually say they are underpaid," he wrote in an email. "However, these same friends are proud to say their relatives are not paid ... which I think is dishonest."
Unbelievers with family still in the faith, Lines said, "just want to see a more honest, forthright religion that doesn't seek to hide its finances and actions from its membership."
pstack@sltrib.com
Twitter: @religiongal
Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake TribunePresident Henry B. Eyring, first counselor in the First Presidency, speaks during the morning session of the 186th LDS General Conference at the Conference Center in Salt Lake City Saturday April 2, 2016.
Leah Hogsten | The Salt Lake Tribunel-r First Counselor Henry B. Eyring, President Thomas S. Monson and Second Counselor Dieter F. Uchtdorf share a laugh during the afternoon session of the 186th Semiannual General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City, October 1, 2016.
Leah Hogsten | The Salt Lake Tribune President Thomas S. Monson draws a laugh from Second Counselor Dieter F. Uchtdorf and members of The Quorum of the Twelve Apostles during the 186th Semiannual General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City, October 1, 2016.
Leah Hogsten | The Salt Lake Tribunel-r First Counselor Henry B. Eyring, President Thomas S. Monson and Second Counselor Dieter F. Uchtdorf during the morning session of the 186th Semiannual General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints at the Conference Center in Salt Lake City, October 1, 2016.
As an enthusiast deeply knowledgeable about religious institutions and their financial dynamics, I'd like to delve into the article discussing the purported pay stubs of high-ranking LDS (Latter-day Saints) leaders, particularly focusing on Henry B. Eyring, a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles at the time.
The leaked documents, posted by MormonLeaks, reveal details about Eyring's biweekly salary, totaling $83,132.75 for the year 2000. This amount is broken down into a living allowance ($2,192.31), parsonage or clergy housing ($826.92), and a child allowance ($76.92). A more recent memo from 2014 indicates an increase in the "base living allowance" for all Mormon general authorities from $116,400 to $120,000.
LDS Church spokesman Eric Hawkins, while not confirming the specific salary numbers, defends the payment structure, stating that general authorities, including those in the First Presidency, Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, and other leadership positions, receive a uniform "living allowance." He emphasizes that these funds do not come from the tithing of church members but from the proceeds of the church's financial investments.
It's worth noting that the leaked documents do not provide information about additional income or perks, such as healthcare benefits, free cars, or book royalties, that these leaders might receive. The article mentions the astonishment of religious historian Jan Shipps at how relatively low Eyring's living allowance was, especially considering his position and the time frame.
The discussion extends to the educational and professional backgrounds of many LDS leaders, highlighting that several of them attended prestigious institutions such as Harvard, Stanford, Yale, and the University of Chicago, and had successful careers as college presidents, lawyers, surgeons, and CEOs before assuming their roles in the LDS Church.
Critics, represented by individuals like Ryan McKnight of MormonLeaks, argue for transparency in the LDS Church's finances, suggesting that the public should be allowed to decide whether the compensation reflects positively or negatively on the church. McKnight defends the release of the documents, stating that they were sent to him anonymously, and he believes they are legitimate, even though he cannot guarantee their authenticity.
The article also includes perspectives from former LDS believers, such as Kenneth Lines, a data analyst in Salt Lake City, who expresses a desire for the church to be more honest about its finances. Lines acknowledges the dedication of LDS leaders but insists on transparency, emphasizing the importance of an open and forthright approach to financial matters within the religious institution.
In summary, the article revolves around the disclosure of purported pay stubs of LDS leaders, the breakdown of their living allowances, the defense of the payment structure by the LDS Church spokesman, and the calls for transparency and honesty in disclosing financial information from critics and former believers.
