wfn.org | Presbyterians Give Gifts of Knowledge ... Christmas Joy Offering

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23-November-1998 
98389 
 
    Presbyterians Give Gifts of Knowledge, 
    Caring  Through Christmas Joy Offering 
 
    by Evan Silverstein 
 
LOUISVILLE, Ky.-Fostering the gift of knowledge and helping retired 
Presbyterians in trouble is what the Christmas Joy Offering is all about. 
 
    And if one program planner has her way, this year's offering will be a 
very big gift indeed - at least $6 million. The traditional date for 
congregations to receive the offering is Dec. 20, this year. 
 
    "What would make me feel warm and fuzzy is if we raise $6 million or 
more. Then I'll feel 
warm and fuzzy," said offering coordinator Stevie Finn, associate for 
interpretation with the Congregational Ministries Division. 
 . 
    "It's a goal we set for ourselves and we need to obtain that," she 
added. "This offering has increased in giving over the past several years 
and it's very good to see. It really is. There's a lot of interest in it." 
 
    The program supports the eight Presbyterian racial/ethnic schools and 
colleges and the assistance programs administered by the Board of Pensions 
for the special and emergency needs of former church workers. 
 
    History only need improve itself marginally for Finn to realize both 
the goal and  fuzzy feeling. Last year's "Go Tell It on the Mountain" 
offering raised $5.367 million. This year's effort had already brought 
about  $2.8 million as of late October, Finn said.. 
 
    Funds are raised through donations made by church members and through 
the purchase of stained glass Christmas angel ornaments, a new addition to 
this year's offering. The three-inch decorations are $3.00 each. Also sold 
are bulletin covers with art depicting 1998's theme: "Bring Joy to Every 
Longing Heart." The covers are $3.75 per package of 50. 
 
    It's being called "every longing heart since we basically help the 
young and old alike,'` said Finn. "Because we're helping students as well 
as retired servants of the church." 
 
    The ornament and covers may be ordered by calling Presbyterian 
Distribution Service at 1-800-524-2612. 
 
                           A history of giving 
 
    The Christmas Joy Offering program has been a Presbyterian tradition 
for more than sixty years. It is one of  four special offerings designated 
by the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) to provide 
congregations direct ways of supporting specific causes that help those who 
need assistance, according to Finn. 
 
    Receipts from the offering are split evenly between the Board of 
Pensions (BOP), which receives half the funds for assistance programs. The 
racial/ethnic schools and colleges of the PC(USA) receive the remaining 50 
percent. 
 
    The assistance programs of  BOP offer help to both retired and active 
church workers and their families in time of need. These programs 
supplement the individual's regular benefits when they are inadequate to 
meet extraordinary financial needs. 
 
    Income supplements are available to retired church workers and their 
spouses when their total income falls below a level established by the 
pension board. Supplements help raise their  income to a level where they 
can live independently. 
 
    Emergency assistance grants provide direct financial assistance 
primarily for medical and nursing care needs to eligible BOP plan members. 
 
    Shared grants are provided for eligible church workers or surviving 
spouses in the event of an emergency or special financial need. Grant 
support is shared by the BOP and either the employing church, organization, 
or presbytery. 
 
    Last year, through Christmas Joy Offering funds, BOP assisted nearly 
600 church workers, mostly retired. Most of them are healthy, active and 
live independently. Some live with or are cared for by their children. 
Others live in retirement or nursing homes. 
 
    "The assistance programs of the Board of Pensions are a very tangible 
and a practical way of showing our Lord's ministry," said the Rev. John 
McAnlis, director of BOP's assistance and retirement housing program. "It 
demonstrates how the church continues our Lord's ministry in caring for 
those who are sick or hungry." 
 
    The Presbyterian Church has long supported minority education by 
founding and funding racial/ ethnic schools. Christmas Joy Offering funds 
are used for basic operating costs and allow the schools to provide a 
greater number of scholarships to deserving students. 
 
    "The bottom line in running a college is finances," said the Rev. Mary 
Newbern Williams, the associate for racial ethnic schools and colleges. "If 
you don't have that, the schools will not be successful. We want to help 
these schools operate at an optimal level." 
 
    She said the eight schools benefitting from the offering receive 
$210,000 to $330,000 yearly. 
 
    A 15-minute video highlighting the church's racial/ethnic schools and 
colleges has been released by Interlink Media of Haddonfield, N.J.  The 
video is free to congregations and may also be ordered by calling the 
distribution service. 
 
    It's designed to be used during worship, at church dinners and in 
session meetings and adult education classes. 
 
    Finn said pledge booklets promoting the program, complete with order 
forms, the event's history and various activities for the kids, were mailed 
last August to Christian educators and 16,000 to 17,000 were shipped in 
October to congregations, churches, synods and presbyteries. Additional 
packets will be available to anyone who would like to request one. Guest 
speakers are also traveling the lecture circuit to bring to light the need 
for giving to the offering. 
 
Though this year's campaign officially ends in February, Finn said the gift 
of giving can last year round, as donations received after that will be 
earmarked for the 1999 offering. 
 
    The eight schools supported by the Christmas Joy Offering are: 
 
    Barber-Scotia College, Concord, North Carolina - Founded by the 
Presbyterian Church in 1867 as a seminary for black women, it later merged 
with a historically all men's black college in Alabama in 1930, adopting 
the name Barber-Scotia, which is now a four-year, fully accredited liberal 
arts college with a mission of total student development. 
 
    Cook College and Theological School, Tempe, Arizona - This ecumenical 
institution, founded in 1911 by Presbyterian missionary Charles Cook, 
educates and equips leaders in Native American communities through 
theological education. It offers an associate of arts degree and pastoral 
studies. 
 
    Knoxville College,  Knoxville, Tennessee - Founded in 1875 by 
Presbyterian missionaries. Knoxville College offers a wide range of study, 
including teacher education, health services, business, science, religion, 
and social services. 
 
    Mary Holmes College, West Point, Mississippi - Originally founded by 
the Presbyterian Church in 1892 to educate black women in the domestic 
arts, Mary Holmes now offers two-year degrees in accounting, chemical 
technology, business administration, and early childhood education. 
 
    Menaul School, Albuquerque, New Mexico - Founded in 1881 by the 
Presbyterian Church as a secondary school for Native Americans, Menaul now 
offers a college preparatory curriculum with additional courses in fine 
arts and religious studies. 
 
    Presbyterian Pan American School, Kingsville, Texas - The successor to 
the Texas Mexican Industrial Institute (1911) and the Presbyterian School 
for Mexican Girls (1924), Presbyterian Pan American School is a 
coeducational college and preparatory school offering students a learning 
environment in a Christian community. 
 
    Sheldon Jackson College, Sitka, Alaska - Alaska's oldest educational 
institution, Sheldon Jackson was founded by the Presbyterian Church in 
1878. This four-year college is made up of 20 to 30 percent Native 
Americans. 
 
    Stillman College, Tuscaloosa, Alabama - Founded by Dr. Charles A. 
Stillman in 1876 as an institution where students could "enter to learn and 
depart to serve," this four-year liberal arts college prepares students for 
careers in medicine, business, law, education, and Christian ministry. 
The annual holiday fund-raiser supports eight Presbyterian racial/ethnic 
schools and colleges and the assistance programs administered by the BOP 
for the special and emergency needs of church workers. 
 
    For more information about the Christmas Joy Offering call Finn at 
(502)569-5201 or visit the offering's web site at http://www.pcusa.org/cjo/ 

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