LOUISVILLE—The
General Assembly Council (GAC) on Feb. 14 adopted an ambitious
Mission Work Plan (MWP) for 2005-2006 that establishes five goals
and 24 concrete objectives for the mission enterprise of the Presbyterian
Church (USA).
GAC executive director John Detterick called completion of the
plan “a new day … a new chapter in the life of the
General Assembly Council.”
Clearly elated, Detterick told council members: “This
is the first time in 10 years that the council has taken charge
and proactively, intentionally set the direction for the work
of the GAC. For the first time, the council has together affirmed
who it is and what it intends to do. For the first time you have
given the staff strong leadership and direction.”
The plan would incorporate $8.6 million for new mission work
— in a budget being trimmed by at least $5 million over
two years.
The plan was developed during at least nine hours of intense
plenary work during the Feb. 10-14 GAC meeting, along with hours
of informal conversations and deliberations in the council’s
ministries-division committees.
The plan is based on eight “core values”:
Celebration — embracing our Reformed tradition
through Word and Sacrament;
Proclamation — listening for and sharing the
Good News of Jesus Christ;
Stewardship —giving, working and living faithfully
and responsibly;
Nurture — supporting and caring for each other;
Trust — communicating with integrity;
Openness — expecting to be transformed by the
God of justice and love;
Partnership — living in community with the PC(USA)
and the people of the world;
Vision — serving with joy, living in hope, hearing
and responding to diverse voices and obeying God’s will.
The goals:
Evangelism and Witness — “We are called
to invite all people to faith, repentance, and the abundant
life of God in Jesus Christ, to encourage congregations in joyfully
sharing the Gospel, and through the power of the Holy Spirit
to grow in membership and discipleship.”
Justice and Compassion — “We are called to
address wrongs in every aspect of life and whole of creation,
intentionally working with and on behalf of poor, oppressed,
and disadvantaged people as did Jesus Christ, even at risk to
our corporate and personal lives.”
Spirituality and Discipleship — “We are
called to deeper discipleship through scripture, worship, prayer,
study, stewardship and service, relying on the Holy Spirit to
mold our lives more and more into the likeness of Jesus Christ.”
Leadership and Vocation ̬“We are called to
lead by Jesus Christ’s example, to identify spiritual
gifts, and to equip and support Christians of all ages for faithful
and effective servant leadership in all parts of the body of
Christ.”
Role and Identity of the GAC — “We are called
to address opportunities and concerns which clarify the role
and responsibilities of the GAC in the life of the PC(USA).”
The Evangelism and Witness objectives include providing resources,
models and networks for church development, transforming existing
churches and strengthening rural and small churches; encouraging
and supporting racial-ethnic and immigrant new-church developments;
evangelizing people who haven’t heard the gospel, those
whose faith puts them in danger and those in places of “explosive
growth”; developing a mass-media campaign aimed at youth
and young adults and racial-ethnic communities; raising awareness
of evangelism opportunities through camps and conferences centers.
The Justice and Compassion objectives include responding to
poverty, disasters and the impact of economic globalization; advocating
for social, environmental and economic justice; and working for
peace and non-violence.
Among the Spirituality and Discipleship objectives are creating
educational resources that undergird the church’s mission
work; promoting experiences of mission around the world that inform
and inspire Presbyterians; celebrating different styles of Reformed
spirituality; and providing stewardship resources, models and
training.
The Leadership and Vocation Objectives include providing and
promoting leadership-development resources; developing and nurturing
leaders for national and international mission service; helping
congregations and governing bodies identify and deploy pastoral
leaders; encouraging Christian vocation, especially among young
people; developing and maintaining an online clearinghouse for
ministry resources; assisting congregations and governing bodies
that have a hard time finding pastoral leadearship; and working
with seminaries and strengthening their bonds to the church.
The GAC Role/Identity objectives include developing and initiating
a comprehensive communications strategy for the denomination;
developing a new mission-funding system for the church; developing
denominational structures to strengthen relationships with presbyteries;
and continuing to evaluate, assess and revise the mission work
plan beyond 2006.
MWP team member Ken Newbold said the next step—after the
MWP is approved by the General Assembly—will be “action
planning,” which he described as a matter of deciding “who
specifically is going to do what when and how, and what are going
to be the measures of success.”
Paul Masquelier, who retired recently as executive of San Jose
Presbytery, called the plan “a road map for the future,”
expressing optimism that falling revenues are not a permanent
condition. “God has a future for this church, and what I
like about this is it charts the way forward as more resources
become available,” he said.
GAC officials said they are determined to implement the MWP
despite an ongoing budget crunch that projects shortfalls in unrestricted
revenue of $4.85 million in 2005 and $3.15 million in 2006.
The 2004 General Assembly mission budget totals $124.8 million.
Mission Support Services Director Joey Bailey said $3 million
in potential savings have been identified, leaving the Council
with a $5 million deficit to cover in the next two years—$1.85
million in 2005 and $3.15 million in 2006.
Conceding that program and staff cuts are likely, Detterick said,
“Developing the 2005 and 2006 budgets will be difficult.
...our alternatives will be agonizing and our options will impact
the lives of colleagues.”
On the other hand, restricted, or designated, giving to Presbyterian
mission continues to rise. Contributions to Extra Commitment Opportunity
projects and to the denomination’s special offerings have
risen by a combined 60 percent since 1995. During the same period,
unrestricted giving has declined by about 20 percent.
Bailey said unrestricted giving by congregations declined to
$15.3 million in 2003. That’s 7 percent less than in 2002
and 14 percent below the 2003 figure. Therefore, projected unrestricted
revenue for 2005 has been revised downward to $33.6 million, $2.1
million less than originally predicted. Additional shortfalls
are projected in contributions from Presbyterian Women and from
income on investments held for the church by the Presbyterian
Church (USA) Foundation.
Bailey said two-thirds of the $3 million in savings in needed
in 2005 can come from underspending the budget. “We’ve
underspent our budget substantially every year of the last five
years,” he said.
Bailey said another $450,000 can be saved if two of the church’s
national conference centers, Ghost Ranch and Stony Point, assume
the full cost of their insurance. In 2004, they are covering half
those costs. Montreat already pays for its own insurance.
Another cost-saving proposal would shift 50 percent of the administrative
costs of the Mission Initiative: Joining Hearts and Hands (MIJHH)
campaign—about $450,000—from the unrestricted budget
to the campaign itself. The other half of MIJHH administrative
costs in 2005 can be covered by an existing bequest.
The council voted to allocate 30 percent of unrestricted funds
to the Evangelism and Witness goal area, 29 percent to Leadership
and Vocation, 19 percent to Spirituality and Discipleship, 17
percent to Justice and Compassion and 5 percent to GAC Role/Identity.
Factoring in designated money, the percentages are 28 percent
for Evangelism and Witness, 25 percent for Leadership and Vocation,
15 percent for Spirituality and Discipleship, 30 percent for Justice
and Compassion and 2 percent for GAC Role/Identity.
Staff leaders will be responsible for turning the broad brushstrokes
of the MWP into concrete budgets for the next two years. The 2005
budget is scheduled to be approved by the GAC Executive Committee
in early May and then sent on to the upcoming 216th General Assembly
in late-June for its endorsement.
Detterick expressed confidence that the council’s “ability
to decide what’s important and to prioritize with theological
grounding and a commitment to both evangelism and justice”
will “result in an abundance of people and an abundance
of resources for the work of the Presbyterian Church (USA).” |
