ELCA NEWS SERVICE November 20, 2003 ELCA Council Discusses Ways to Reverse Mission Support Trend 03-213-FI CHARLOTTE, N.C. (ELCA) -- Lutherans are putting more money in the collection plates, but smaller percentages of that money are reaching the synods and churchwide organization of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). The ELCA Church Council discussed ways of reversing that trend. The Church Council is the ELCA's board of directors and serves as the legislative authority of the church between churchwide assemblies. The council met here Nov. 13-16 at the invitation of the ELCA North Carolina Synod and joined in a celebration of the synod's 200th anniversary Nov. 15 at Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, N.C. Churchwide assemblies are held every other year; the next is Aug. 8-14, 2005, in Orlando, Fla. Five million Lutherans form the ELCA's 10,721 congregations. In 2002, ELCA members gave their congregations $1,680,187,672 in regular or unrestricted offerings -- up more than 1 percent or $17,246,523 from 2001. Regular giving by members grew 3.5 percent from 2000 to 2001 and 6 percent from 1999 to 2000. ELCA congregations are organized into 65 synods. Congregations share a portion of their offerings with the synods. A percentage of each synod's budget provides "mission support" for the work of the ELCA churchwide organization, which includes global mission work, preparing lay and ordained ministers and starting new congregations. The Rev. Mark R. Moller-Gunderson, executive director and coordinator for mission support, ELCA Division for Congregational Ministries, told the council that congregations forward between $130 million and $140 million to the synods yearly. When the ELCA was formed in 1988 from the merger of three Lutheran churches, synods were expected to send 55 percent of their receipts to support the churchwide organization. In the past 15 years, that percentage has varied among synods -- 50 have lowered the percentage, while a few have increased it. The average percentage of mission support is now about 51.32 percent. "What can this council do about this?" Moller-Gunderson asked. "We can't physically be with synods when they make decisions" about how much money they will share with the churchwide organization, he said. However, several council members suggested that they could attend meetings where the synods draw up and approve their budgets. Linda J. Brown, Moorhead, Minn., said "communication" and "relationships" are at the foundation of the way the ELCA supports its ministries. Grieg L. Anderson, Portland, Ore., suggested that it would take teamwork to change the "culture" within the ELCA that has reduced the percentage of mission support. Moller-Gunderson led a discussion among council members that explored the "critical points of contact" between council members and key leaders of the synods. "Don't underestimate the role everyone in this room plays," he said. In addition to the presiding bishop, vice president, secretary and treasurer of the ELCA, the council is made up of 33 voting members, who are elected by the churchwide assembly. Several council members offered to attend their own synod council meetings and synod assemblies, plus those of a neighboring synod, to provide "personal contact" between the church council and the synods. They stressed that the purpose of such contacts would be to listen and "build relationships" and not to "ask for money." Other suggestions were to ask the council's executive committee to draft a letter or resolution to synod bishops, asking that a council representative be added to the agenda of each synod assembly. Janet Thompson, Eagan, Minn., said "major gifts" -- large, one-time donations -- are an important component of the ELCA's mission support plan. She challenged each council member to identify three major-gift prospects for the ELCA Foundation. "For the first time I can remember, we had some good discussion of mission support and how we, as the elected board of directors of this church, play a part in being 'mission interpreters' . interpreting what it is that this expression of the church does in terms of ministry," Carlos Pena, vice president of the ELCA, Galveston, Texas, said after the meeting. "Many people in congregations do a vital ministry within their community, and they need to see that there is mission going on throughout the world on their behalf through the ELCA," Pena said. "We had some good discussion around that, and hopefully we can continue that discussion as the council meets in the future." For information contact: John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or [log in to unmask] http://www.elca.org/news