Parishes currently do their best to support their priest and other clergy, though very few are able to provide a salary. Arrangements suffice, often only barely, and only in ‘normal times’; but when challenges arise (medical, family-related and so on), there are often no resources available. And this is in reference only to our current clergy: we need to be thinking for the future, including encouraging young men to take up lives of service to God in our parishes, knowing they will be supported and helped in caring not only for us, but also for themselves and their families.

The Clergy Support Fund therefore strives to supplement each parish’s local arrangements for its clergy with centralised assistance for all priests and deacons of the Diocese, aiming to finance:

1. Pension provision;
2. Subsidies for salaries and medical insurance;
3. Emergency assistance in cases of illness, death and exceptional circumstances;
4. Assistance with the birth, medical treatment and education of clergy children;
5. Assistance to widowed matushkas and children;
6. Life insurance for clergy;
7. Continuing education and professional development for clergy.

In order to successfully undertake this necessary work, it is one that must involve every parish — and not just every parish, but every family and parishioner, in a way that is feasible and realistic.

This is first and foremost about restoring a culture that has diminished in recent decades. New parishioners often arrive in our parishes, discover established churches with serving clergy, observe that the bishop visits, that events are held, candles sold and activities managed — in other words, there is an impression that everything is already there, everything is functioning, and that this is sufficient. Small donations are made in plates or collection boxes, occasional gifts are given, feeling that this, too, is sufficient.

What is often not known to our newer parishioners, but which is well known to the older generations as well as to the clergy, is that everything we have in the Church today, we have because of what was given and done by those before us. Our forebears were deeply conscious of the need for each Orthodox Christian actively to support the Church, since it is the Church that stands at the centre of our lives.

Our Diocese, therefore, seeks actively to foster a growing understanding amongst all our faithful of the fact that we, each of us, are called to live ‘for all and on behalf of all’ — and above all with a spirit of active care for the clergy who have served, are serving, or will yet serve in our Church; for those who have already laboured and given their lives and strength to her; for their families, and especially for the matushkas, particularly widowed matushkas and orphans; for those who are currently serving and have daily needs; and for those who are preparing to dedicate their lives to God, His Church and His people.

Seeking to enact such care effectively, we understand the principal pillars of the practical support of our Church to be our pious faithful, the parishioners in our churches, rather than occasional wealthy donors who may be here today and gone tomorrow, or who may themselves no longer have the means to help. If we are all contributing, we will know we have the means to meet the needs of our beloved Church.

This understanding, this truly Christian culture, is something that we recognise needs to be fostered in the hearts, souls and minds of our contemporary parishioners for the sake of the future of our Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia!

The method by which the Diocese's Clergy Assistance Fund operates is simple, but we are convinced it will transform the landscape of our care for our clergy and their families. It relies on a foundation that is systematic, regular and affordable — and therefore sustainable.

The method: The Diocese actively invites every family or adult parishioner, in every one of its parishes, to donate a suggested minimum of €10 / £10 / CHF10 per month to the dedicated Clergy Assistance Fund. We know that everyone’s finances are difficult, but this amount is manageably affordable: it is equivalent to one cup of coffee with a pastry and a bottle of water, which everyone allows themselves and their family more than once a month. We are not asking for dramatic financial sacrifices from anyone! This is a small contribution, but if it is made every month by every family or adult parishioner in the Diocese, then very quickly it will result in substantial funds being accumulated. We estimate that, for example, in its first years it could yield approximately €200,000 annually, to begin fostering its endowment. Larger monthly or one-off donations from more financially well-off parishioners are, of course, very welcome, but they do not form the foundation of the system.

This will only work, however, if this call is taken up in every parish, actively! While sometimes there is a fear of speaking about financial matters, as if it is somehow shameful to consider them in the context of our religious lives, we understand that due attention to these practical necessities is in fact an essential part of our pious living-out of the Orthodox Faith, and so we un-shyly and even with energy speak to our faithful about the importance of supporting the Clergy Assistance Fund.

The structure of the fund — Diocese-wide and at the parish level.

In order to accomplish this systematically, an appropriate organizational structure has been established, after thorough consultation with the clergy, discussion at the Sobor of Bishops and work blessed by our Ruling Bishop.

The Diocesan level: The Clergy Assistance Fund operates as an office of the Diocese of Great Britain and Western Europe of the ROCOR. It is administrated by a Council comprised of 7 people, chaired by the Ruling Bishop; and has a smaller 3-person Board. The larger Council consults, exercises oversight, and reports to the Diocesan Assembly and clergy of the Diocese; while the smaller Board handles the operational work and day-to-day management, reporting to the Council. All rules concerning the collection of contributions and the distribution of assistance are discussed and established collectively.

Funds collected monthly by the faithful of each parish are transferred into regional bank accounts of the Clergy Assistance Fund, specially created to house the the funds for this initiative and nothing else. The activities and financial reporting of the Fund are wholly transparent, with detailed reports made available centrally through the Diocese, verifying the income and expenditure of every penny.

The Parish level: In order for the Clergy Assistant Fund to be a success, a key element is active involvement by every single parish. With the Bishop’s blessing, our parishes throughout the Diocese are currently in the process of establishing in each church a ‘Parish Charitable Committee’ (something that was commonplace in the pre-revolutionary days of the Russian Orthodox Church), consisting of active laypeople and others. The members of these parish committees will strive, through their personal example and through active and continuous communication with all parishioners, both old and new, to help revive a culture of constant care for the clergy of our Church — especially by encouraging each family in the parish to establish a regular, monthly contribution to it.

Contributions to the Fund are voluntary donations and not some form of 'Church tax' — none are required to contribute. But the faithful of our Diocese know they must think seriously: the spiritual care of ourselves, our children and future generations depend to a significant extent on their personal contribution to this God-pleasing work!

The beginning of such an initiative as this is a big step — but we must take it, and take it together!

Officially launching in September 2026 on the Feast of the Nativity of the Theotokos, the first phase of the Clergy Assistance Fund's operation is the establishment in each parish of the charitable committees and the beginnings of signing up families for regular contributions, to begin to build the Fund's endowment. The next stage of the its operation will be putting it to use: actively supporting the clergy of our Diocese and their families. Appeals for aid will be invited, and the Council will review each one, taking into account the particular circumstances of the parish and the specific situation of the person receiving assistance.

One of the intentions of the Council is that some resources from the Fund will be used to assist serving clergy in setting up a suitable life insurance policy and managing its premiums. This is one of the simplest ways of ensuring longer-term support for clergy families, since payments on such policies, upon the repose of the clergyman, will be immediately available for the support of his widow and children. The Fund will look after other matters also: providing support in obtaining medical insurance or needed procedures; contributing towards the costs of educating the priest’s children; caring for the needs of his matushka, supplementing pension support, and so on.

In light of all this, are you ready to help with the support of our Clergy? As we have begun to speak of this new initiative around the Diocese, the most common question we have been asked is, 'How can I help?'

Here are ways you can support the essential work of the Clergy Assistance Fund:

• Sign up to make a regular, monthly donation on behalf of yourself or your family! This is the heart of the system, and we need every family or adult parishioner to take part. We ask you to set up an automatic, repeating monthly contribution with a suggested minimum of €10 / £10 / CHF10 — but you can of course contribute in any amount you wish. What is essential is the regular monthly pledge, so that the Fund receives regular and predictable income for use in supporting our clergy. In order to sign up and start contributing, talk to a member of the Parish Charitable Committee in your parish: ask your Priest if you don't know who the members are. And if you have any difficulty, confusion or questions, you may reach out directly to Deacon Pavel Lisitsin, a member of the Fund Council, who will gladly guide you through the process of getting things set up.
• Volunteer to help in your parish: The success of this initiative really depends on the involvement of every family in every parish — it won't be successful if only a handful of people in various places are involved. So, consider joining the Charitable Committee in your parish (or helping set it up, if it is being newly formed), so that you can help 'spread the word' to other families in your community, urging them to sign up and take part and providing them with help in doing so.

We have the opportunity, with the establishment of this Clergy Assistance Fund, to make a substantial, transformative and permanent improvement to the life of our parishes, our Diocese and our Church — may we rise to this spiritual task, and may God help and bless us all!