wfn.org | National Council continues search for stability and expanded vision

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2000-162

National Council continues search for stability and expanded vision
http://www.ecusa.anglican.org/ens

by James Solheim

     (ENS) At its October 2-3 meeting, the Executive Board of the National 
Council of Churches addressed the issue of financial stability while exploring an 
expanded "ecumenical vision" that would bring a much broader representation of 
Christians into a closer relationship.

     "None of us is here simply to 'fine tune' the NCC," said the Rev. Bob Edgar, 
the new general secretary. "We are here to be part of the ecumenical commitment, 
called by Christ to be one and to invest in those areas where we have a common 
purpose."

     Proposals for a 10-year "Mobilization to Overcome Poverty" emerged as one of 
the top priorities. The board looked at plans that will be presented to the 
annual General Assembly in mid-November in Atlanta.

     The commitment to fight poverty is certainly not a new one, said the Rev. 
David Perry, the Episcopal Church's deputy for ecumenical affairs. Rather it is 
one that "must be squarely faced by all our churches." Yet he said that the new 
emphasis on mobilization is "a rallying call, based on our hopes to be more 
effective in the future."

     The council is also planning a "fully collaborative meeting" some time next 
year that would bring together Roman Catholic, evangelical, Pentecostal, mainline 
Protestant, Orthodox and historic black church representatives.

Financing the future

     Success of the initiatives will depend on funding--and money has been a 
major problem for the NCC in recent years. Financial reserves were depleted in an 
effort to balance program budgets and to cover extraordinary expenses related to 
restructuring the council. 

     "The financial hemorrhaging that was occurring has been stopped," Edgar told 
the board. "Over the past 11 months, with your help, we've done an incredible job 
of bringing order to the NCC's finances." It looks as though current operating 
expenditures are in line with income for the first time in years, according to 
Dr. Barbara Ellen Black, the NCC general manager.

     In tightening its belt, the NCC has cut staff, reshaped program in light of 
available resources, and implemented stringent financial controls and 
accountabilities but more difficult decisions lie in the immediate future. Black 
said that the projected income and expenses for the first six months of 2001 are 
$1.7 million out of balance. That will mean an additional cut of almost 40 
percent, including substantial reduction in staff.

     The NCC is committed to protecting and rebuilding its investments, currently 
about $3 million. "We aren't touching the principal," Edgar reported.

     "This is the most encouraging and hopeful financial report we've heard, and 
also the most painful," said the Rev. Clifton Kirkpatrick, stated clerk of the 
Presbyterian Church (USA). "Very difficult and painful decisions have had to be 
made."

Stirrings of new life?

     Like most of the 35 members of the NCC, the Episcopal Church made a 
contribution of $300,000 to help stabilize the council's financial situation. 
That one-time grant is over and above the church's regular support of about 
$150,000 a year.

     Perry is convinced that those in financial leadership at the council "have 
responded faithfully to what member churches are asking for." Yet he said that 
the broader question is, "What do we want the NCC to do and are we willing to pay 
for it?" After all, he added, "The NCC is us--not some separate, autonomous body, 
but us together."

     He is excited by the "stirrings of new life" in the council, especially 
efforts to underscore ownership by member churches. "And we are looking for ways 
for current members to enter new relationships, based on our search for a common 
life and mission," he said. "Maybe it will even turn out to be a rediscovery of 
the fundamental calling that brought the council into existence in the first 
place."

--James Solheim is director of the Episcopal Church's Office of News and 
Information. This article is based on NCC news releases.