Budget Crunch

[Trey of Diamonds]

In the Coffee House thread I saw some posts about churches with budget problems. My small church here in Houston is also faced with some budget problems so I thought maybe we could have a thread about the problem in general. How many folks out there are having to tighten their belts at church? Anyone have some fund raising ideas that might help? Lets pool our intellect and share ideas.

 

[Storm]

First Church is going through a rough patch, too. Our shortfall for this year is $185,000. We haven't paid our dues for the year, the Young Adults Co-ordinator isn't being replaced, and there's even talk of closing down for the month of July to avoid firing someone.

I'm no good at financial stuff, but if anyone has suggestions, I'd be happy to pass them along.

 

[J Bryson]

Well, here's the thing, as far as I see it: If you're looking at smaller shortfalls, all sorts of things are possible, such as book sales, renting the space when not in use, and all sorts of things that you can get from the local PTA (which has been dealing with these issues for forever).

However, if you're looking at a huge deficit, then there is only one solution: To quote Whoopi Goldberg in Sister Act, you have to "Get the butts in the seats". This doesn't mean evangelizing exactly, but it does mean opening the church doors, going into the neighborhood, and gently letting the people in the area know what the church has to offer them. You're going to find many parents who would like to send their child or children to Sunday school for the structure of it, but are skeptical regarding dogma. You'll find others who will be inspired by the chance for activism, by the openness, by the genuine compassion that can be found within most congregations.

Many people would be happy to donate their time and their money in order to be involved in such a setting, even during bleak economic times. Unfortunately, through our understandable distaste for evangelizing, we may have closed the door to even letting people know that we exist as a viable alternative to the more dogmatic creeds.

 

[lilithu]

Many people would be happy to donate their time and their money in order to be involved in such a setting, even during bleak economic times. Unfortunately, through our understandable distaste for evangelizing, we may have closed the door to even letting people know that we exist as a viable alternative to the more dogmatic creeds.

Amen. Preach it, brotha!

All Souls is looking at a shortfall of just under $70k. (I think; I'm really bad at remembering numbers.) I think we're still contributing to the UUA but will not be able to pay our "fair share" this year. Our shortfall would have been much worse except that Obama's inauguration gave us a big boost as UUs from all over the country came to DC and we raised a good amount with our "Inauguration Ball." But obviously that's not something that most congregations can do, nor can we do it more than once. (Well, hopefully one more time in four years.)

I don't have any ideas, other than to fill out my pledge card, which I haven't done yet for this year.

 

[Trey of Diamonds]

One of the fundraising events that works for us is a comic book convention. We do a one day event with local creators and publishers as the guests. We charge a $35 vendor table fee and $5 admission charge. Add that to the concessions and it comes to a nice amount. I run the event and know all the details so if anyone is interested in doing something similar for their church just PM me for the details.

It's also a great way to get the younger crowd to come through the church doors and look around. We always have a UU table that has pamphlets for folks to see. The pamphlet that covers the Transylvanian history is always a big hit with this crowd.

 

[J Bryson]

That is an excellent idea.

 

[Karl R]

To quote Whoopi Goldberg in Sister Act, you have to "Get the butts in the seats".

Or you need people to get off their butts and give.

This really nails one of my pet peeves. As UUs, we like to feel smugly superior to all the religious conservatives and fundamentalists in the world. But as I've studied the world's religions, I've found two universal themes: compassion and generosity.

Compassion can't be measured, but generosity certainly can. And in terms of generosity, UUs fall near (or at) the bottom. On average we give less than 1% of our income to our churches. So much for our superiority.

Giving is a spiritual discipline (like meditation, but easier). The minister at my church made a point in one of his sermons of explaining to people that giving benefited them. This happened to be the same Sunday that people were being asked to increase their pledges.

But his sermon was wildly successful. An additional $54,000 was raised.

 

[Trey of Diamonds]

Or you need people to get off their butts and give.

I agree but this year I can understand either not having enough to give or being afraid of not having enough to give. Peoples first priority is keeping food on the table and a roof over their head and I can't fault them for that. One of the problems our fund raising has is it tends to focus on getting money from the congregation rather than the community. We're looking for more ways to bring in OP money. (Other Peoples )

 

[applewuud]

Yes, you have to focus on the mission first, the spreadsheet doesn't come first.

Having said that, we have to make up a $35,000 shortfall, or cut our minister to 1/4 time or do without a minister for a year. They've done it before, about 20 years ago. To me, that's not a good option.

People are now in a "negative bubble"; our financial expectations are becoming reality in a relentless media onslaught of "what's melting down". Let's remember: the vast majority of people AREN'T losing their homes, most people still have jobs, the real assets of the economy are still assets. It's the system of exchange that has hit the reset button. Churches have an important role to play in resetting those values for the benefit of all.

 

[lilithu]

Or you need people to get off their butts and give.

This really nails one of my pet peeves. As UUs, we like to feel smugly superior to all the religious conservatives and fundamentalists in the world. But as I've studied the world's religions, I've found two universal themes: compassion and generosity.

Compassion can't be measured, but generosity certainly can. And in terms of generosity, UUs fall near (or at) the bottom. On average we give less than 1% of our income to our churches. So much for our superiority.

Giving is a spiritual discipline (like meditation, but easier). The minister at my church made a point in one of his sermons of explaining to people that giving benefited them. This happened to be the same Sunday that people were being asked to increase their pledges.

But his sermon was wildly successful. An additional $54,000 was raised.

I think I remember you. Anyway, hi!

Yes, UUs are bad in the tithing department. I think much of it has to do with our (reactionary) distrust of religious institutions (even our own), and a naive belief that spirituality is not dependent on money and thus the church shouldn't need it (the latter is naive, not the first part). I would like to know whether a lot of our money goes to causes such as NOW and the ACLU and Move On instead of to our congregations. Or are we just stingy overall compared to more conservative people?

 

[Watchmen]

This past Sunday the Stake President of my area (a Stake president is the rough equivalent to a Catholic Bishop) said the area is in the red in two areas:

1. The Missionary Fund: This is the fund members may contribute to in order to help the missionaries from our area who have traveled to other parts of the U.S. or world. Missionaries are expected to pay their own way, but that's not always possible. When it's not, the members of the congregation contribute to this budget line to help those out.

2. The Fast Offerings Fund: The first Sunday of every month is called "fast Sunday" in the LDS Church - not because time goes by fast - but because we abstain from eating for two meals (24 hour period) then donate the money we would have spent on food to the fast offerings fund. This fund is then used to help those in need in the area - those who are facing financial crisis. Members are asked to give generously. For example, when determining how much to donate, don't try to justify a small amount by saying you would have eaten bologna and cereal for those two meals. Again, we're asked to give generously.

The Stake President asked us to discuss these issues as a family and pray about it. My family has already decided to contribute a larger than normal amount to these two budget lines this Sunday.

 

[Karl R]

lilithu,
You have a very good memory. I was active during the first half of 2006.

I think much of it has to do with our [...] naive belief that spirituality is not dependent on money and thus the church shouldn't need it (the latter is naive, not the first part)

Let me reword your statement slightly:
I think our spirituality is dependent upon our generosity. To argue that it isn't would be equivalent to saying that our spirituality isn't dependent upon our compassion or our honesty. If our spirituality isn't dependent upon these qualities, then what is it dependent on?

I would like to know whether a lot of our money goes to causes such as NOW and the ACLU and Move On instead of to our congregations. Or are we just stingy overall compared to more conservative people?

I researched this topic (giving to churches) when I was leading a discussion group. One article stated that people who gave more to their churches also gave more to groups outside their churches (in general) and that those who gave more of their money also gave more of their time (in general).

I think it's human nature to be stingy. We all like to make excuses for why we're not more generous (whether it's our bills, the downturn in the economy, or that we aren't happy about where the money is going). Conservative denominations have various tools they use to cut through the BS (ranging from guilt trips to denying membership to people who don't give a large enough percentage of their income). UUs have the same natural inclination towards stinginess, but we're reluctant to point out that flaw (or even acknowledge that it is one).

 

[lilithu]

UUs have the same natural inclination towards stinginess, but we're reluctant to point out that flaw (or even acknowledge that it is one).

We have flaws??!

Sorry, couldn't resist. Given that the Lenten season just began, once again reminding me of one of my recurring pet peeves about UsUs - that we're so busy affirming our worth that we don't allow enough room (imo) to express our feelings of inadequacy and need for atonement.

But I digress....

I don't remember you identifying as a UU back in 2006 Karl. (I do remember having good conversations with you.) Did you "convert"?

 

[Karl R]

Tangent Alert:

I don't remember you identifying as a UU back in 2006 Karl. (I do remember having good conversations with you.) Did you "convert"?

I'm happy to hear that I was so memorable. (You're one of about a dozen names that I still remember after this long of a break.)

When I first joined RF (Feb 2006), I had been attending a UU church for a month or so. At that time I was describing my religion as "liberal christian". In May 2006 I became a member of that church, and it was around that time that I changed it to "christian / uu". I figured that the "liberal" part was implicity obvious if I was identifying myself as a "uu".

And I was only actively posting until July 2006, so you might not have noticed the change during that short period of time.

 

[J Bryson]

I really like Christian-flavored UU for various cultural reasons, and because I'm glad to see some folks following a religion that is (to quote) "A religion of Jesus rather than about Jesus".

 

[Reverend Rick]

If it is appropriate, might I suggest that many folks are missing out on the blessing of giving. I believe many people would be amazed if they just would give it a try. :yes: