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Council of Elders Report - December 4-5, 2023

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Created Dec 7 2023 - 12:37pm

United Church of God, an International Association
Council of Elders Quarterly Meeting Report
Milford, Ohio
Monday, December 4, 2023

Chairman Len Martin called the morning session to order at 9 a.m. Eastern, and the meeting was opened with prayer by Deputy Chairman, Aaron Dean. All twelve Council of Elders (Council) members were present.

Chairman Martin began with a few opening comments and then presented the last Council meeting minutes which were unanimously approved. He then reviewed the week’s proposed agenda, and it too was unanimously approved. Before turning the floor over to Rick Shabi for the President’s Report, Chairman Martin took a few minutes to review and remind the Council of its responsibilities by reading from the bylaws.

President’s Report: Rick Shabi

Mr. Shabi began his report by greeting those in attendance and quoting two scriptures, (Matthew:28:19-20; Ephesians:4:12-16). Mr. Shabi mentioned that these scriptures outline, and give guidance, in everything we do at the home office. He then shared some personal thoughts about carrying out our commission. Mr. Shabi spoke about the unique opportunity we have of setting an example from a home office, Council, and pastor’s perspective.

Mr. Shabi then spoke about the overall status of the Church before discussing some highlights and challenges we’ve faced over the last few months, as well as what will be taking place in the months ahead:

 

Mr. Shabi noted that 25% of those who visit our website (ucg.org) are non-English speaking, (French, Portuguese, Spanish, Russian, etc.).

 

 

Mr. Shabi emphasized the need to help keep the fire burning for our campers and members post-Feast and post-camp, to keep them focused and energized throughout the year. Mr. Shabi ended his report by reminding us that this is a big work that God is doing and that we are all privileged, and have a responsibility to God, to do our part in it. As a church, we do a lot, but we can do a lot more. We need to pray for God to leads us; we need to be more attuned to Him, work together to make it happen and always seek His guidance and direction. Jesus Christ knows the way He wants the work to be done; we yield to Him to lead us and commit to teaching the truth and providing that strong voice to the world that He expects.

Mr. Shabi then opened the floor for comments and questions.

Operation Manager Reports:

Ministerial and Member Services (MMS)—Steve Myers

Steve Myers began by quoting Psalm:37:5, “Commit your way to the Lord, trust also in Him, and He shall bring it to pass.” Mr. Myers commented that this is our goal and will help keep us focused on the directives that the GCE approved in the Strategic Plan. He then presented some recent statistics.

 

Mr. Myers then presented information on the progress of implementing the Operation Plan for the first half of the fiscal year:

Mr. Myers ended his presentation by stating, “We have begun to fulfill our strategic directives. We still have much to do and our goal is to strive toward accomplishing the Vision Statement with each one doing its share.” He then referenced Psalm 37 once again and added, “We know that we can accomplish nothing spiritually on our own. So, we certainly place our trust and our lives into His hands and know that He will bring it to pass.”

Mr. Myers ended his presentation by answering a few questions and comments.

Treasurer and Financial Services Report—Barry Korthuis

Mr. Korthuis began his presentation by mentioning that God continues to bless the United Church of God and then quoted Proverbs:27:23, “Be diligent to know the state of your flocks,
and attend to your herds.” He then presented a handout outlining our budget results through October 31 of this year. As he began reviewing the report, Mr. Korthuis stated, “The report is full of good news!” He ended his presentation by opening the floor for any questions or comments.

Media and Communications Services—Peter Eddington

Mr. Eddington began by passing out a Media and Communications Services Report. He stated that we have a lot going on and God has blessed those efforts. Mr. Eddington then presented the Church Media Growth and Statistics as of November 30, 2023:

 

Mr. Eddington then briefly spoke about a new initiative to advertise certain Beyond Today TV programs on YouTube through 30- to 45-second ads. This began with the program, “When Will Peace Come to the Middle East” a week ago. So far there have been 1.03 million impressions of this ad, resulting in 67,697 un-skipped views, 9,941 clicks through to our website to watch the full episode, and 58 requests for the study aid as a result.

Mr. Eddington then shared some statistics about the Broadcast Television and YouTube 30-second Commercials. He stated that a 10-week rerun of two of our Beyond Today television 30-second ads has just been completed. The following two series ads aired for five weeks each, promoting our five-part video series:

He also reminded the Council about the comprehensive advertising campaign that was launched on September 17 and ran through November 25. Each series is advertised on YouTube and Google and 18 broadcast TV stations in the following cities:

 

Mr. Eddington stated that we have had 36.8 million impressions of our 30-second YouTube ads and Google ads. This resulted in more than 2.33 million views of the ads and the related episodes of the three TV series. More than 4,230 “likes” were logged on YouTube.

He then presented the Roku App advertising results. We currently have 25,000 ads running per day and 175 videos being watched per day during the past 12 months. We are seeing the following results for the past 12 months:

Mr. Eddington then talked about the new Magnified YouTube channel. He mentioned that one of the benefits of having this separate channel is the ability for the media team to more accurately test performance on key metrics—like subscriber demographics, engagement, reach and average watch time. We’ve also been pushing the series more heavily with frequent 30-second clips on Instagram and YouTube Shorts. The plan is to release one new full episode per month, plus several “shorts” per week (32 total so far).

Mr. Eddington then presented the latest Social Media Metrics for our Beyond Today and United Church of God feeds on both Facebook and Instagram. He then opened the floor for any comments and questions.

Committee Chairman Reports:

Doctrine Committee (DC)—Mario Seiglie
Mr. Seiglie began by reporting that the DC met on November 14 to discuss and work on the following projects:

Members on the DC: Scott Ashley, Jorge de Campos, Darris McNeely, Mario Seiglie (chair) and Rex Sexton.

Education Committee (EC)—Brian Shaw
Mr. Shaw reported that the EC has been working on the following projects:

Before ending his report, Mr. Shaw noted that the EC has received a lot of comments and feedback from the GCE concerning the Holy Convocation paper. He stated that the information received has been helpful in the preparation for this meeting.

Members on the EC: Jorge de Campos, Aaron Dean, Brian Shaw (chair), and Paul Wasilkoff.

Ethics Committee—Rex Sexton
Mr. Sexton reported that the Ethics Committee currently has two items remanded to it to address. He then provided the following updates as to those developments since our August meeting.

 

The elder has submitted a doctrinal review request on the subject of the sermon in question. That review is currently in process by the Doctrinal Review Committee.

 

The Member Appeal Committee completed their work on August 18th. Steve Myers, Director of MMS, and the Regional Pastor accompanied two members of the committee during the second week of August to work with the MAC.

On September 18th the Ethics committee, along with Mr. Shabi, Mr. Meyers, and the Chairman of the MAC, Randy Schreiber, met via Teams and reviewed the MAC decision material. The committee agreed that the two documents that provide direction to the MAC process, The Scopes and Responsibilities of the MAC and the Procedure for the MAC, need some revisions to provide a smoother and better-understood process in the future. Input and suggestions were solicited from the MAC and Ethics committee members.

The Ethics committee met on December 1st via Zoom, compiled the suggestions from the committee and made the agreed upon edits. Later this week the Ethics committee will present the recommended changes and updates to the entire Council of Elders.

Members on the Ethics Committee: Aaron Dean, Dan Dowd, Mario Seiglie, Rex Sexton (chair) and Paul Wasilkoff.

Media Committee (MC)—Victor Kubik
Mr. Kubik began by reporting that the MC held one meeting to discuss the topics that will be presented during these December meetings. He then read the scope of the MC and made a few personal comments about these duties. Before ending his report, Mr. Kubik stated that one item to be brought forward later this week would be a request to send delegates to the National Religious Broadcasters Conference in February in Nashville, TN.
Members on the MC: Scott Ashley, Jorge de Campos, Victor Kubik (chair), Tim Pebworth, and Paul Wasilkoff.

Roles and Rules Committee (RRC)—Dan Dowd
Mr. Dowd reported the following updates on the work of the Roles and Rules Committee since the August 2023 Council of Elders meeting.

Members on the RRC: Scott Ashley, Dan Dowd (chair), Tim Pebworth

Strategic Planning and Finance Committee (SPFC)—Darris McNeely
Mr. McNeely reports that SPFC has conducted three meetings since the August COE meetings. He mentioned that they also spent time reviewing the progress and adherence to the Strategic Plan. He then quickly spoke about the SPFC’s current projects:

Members of the SPFC: Aaron Dean, Darris McNeely (chair), Victor Kubik, Tim Pebworth, and Brian Shaw

Executive Committee—Len Martin
Mr. Martin reported that the Executive Committee met in September. He then covered the minutes of that meeting as stated in our bylaws. He explained that the meeting was called to discuss the purchase of a building for the congregation in Oklahoma, pastored by Ed Dowd. It was unanimously decided that Ed Dowd would pursue the process.

He then opened the floor for questions and/or comments on the proposed resolution. He then asked the Council to approve the actions of the EC from the September meetings. It was unanimously agreed upon.
Members of the Executive Committee: Scott Ashley, Aaron Dean, Dan Dowd, Len Martin (chair) and Darris McNeely.

Chairman Martin turned the floor over to Steve Myers to cover the next scheduled item on the agenda, international attendance tracking. Mr. Myers began by explaining how this would improve how we serve our brethren around the world as well as identify and accurately document our congregations around the world.

Mr. Myers explained that MMS needs the Council’s approval to reach out to the areas that have their own National Councils to request this information. He mentioned that although we have the means, we still need permission to move forward with this project. Chairmen Martin, along with other Council members were concerned with how this request may be received by our international brethren. The floor was then opened for comments and questions on this subject.

After a thorough discussion to clarify what would be requested and how it would be requested, it was decided to break for lunch and continue this discussion sometime after lunch. Mr. Myers agreed to prepare a proposed resolution to present when the meeting resumed.

At 12:00 p.m. the Council broke for lunch.

At 1:00 p.m. Chairman Martin called the Council to order. After a few comments and updates concerning tomorrow’s schedule, he then turned the floor over to Kerry Roe to present the results of the yearly audit. Mr. Roe then passed out two documents for the Council to use along with his presentation. Mr. Roe then opened the floor to any comments or questions.

Steve Myers then continued the discussion concerning the international attendance tracking request. Mr. Myers then presented a proposed resolution. After further discussion, a few edits were made to the document. Chairmen Martin then moved to use proposed resolution as edited. The resolution unanimously passed.

At 2:00 p.m. the Council went into planned executive session.

At 5:00 p.m. the Council broke for dinner
Chairman Martin called the Council to order at 6:00 p.m. and went into planned executive session.

At 7:00 p.m. the Council came out of executive session and adjourned for the day.

 

Tuesday, December 5, 2023

Chairman Len Martin called the morning session to order at 9:10 a.m. Eastern and the meeting was opened with prayer by Victor Kubik. All twelve Council of Elders (Council) members were present.

Chairman Martin then turned the floor over to Brian Shaw to lead a discussion on the proposed Holy Convocation Study Paper.

Brian Shaw began the presentation by giving a short overview concerning the purpose and background of the study paper. Mr. Shaw mentioned that the paper being presented has been modified with the input and feedback that has been received from the GCE since the August Council meetings. He then presented and led a discussion of the updated proposed study paper. After many questions, comments, and suggestions were made, it was decided that the Education Committee take the input and incorporate the edits, then present an updated paper during the February meetings.

At 12:00 p.m. the Council broke for lunch.

Chairman Martin called the Council to order at 12:45 p.m. and introduced the next item on the agenda, Update on Facility Use Policy. He then turned the floor over to Darris McNeely.

Darris McNeely then presented the proposed policy on the use of United Church of God-owned facilities for United States local congregations. He quickly explained its purpose and why it needs to be implemented. Mr. McNeely then presented the proposed policy then opened the floor for any questions, comments, and or suggestions. The edited policy will be reviewed by Larry Darden then proofed and presented later this week to the Council for approval.

At 1:20 p.m. the Council went into executive session.

At 2:20 p.m. the executive session ended.

Darris McNeely then presented the next item on the agenda, an update on the Budgeting of Unrestricted Cash. Before the presentation, Mr. McNeely gave a quick background to what was being presented and then read the resolution from the August COE meetings that remanded this project to the Roles and Rules Committee. Mr. McNeely then presented the proposed amendment to Bylaw 10.6 which will be presented to the 2024 GCE meetings in May. He then opened the floor for any questions or comments. It was decided that a statement of justification would be written and the completed document would be presented later this week for balloting.

Victor Kubik presented the next item on the agenda, a request to send delegates to the National Religious Broadcasters Conference. Mr. Kubik explained what the National Religious Conference is and the purpose of the request. Mr. Kubik then opened the floor for discussion. It was determined that this request would be turned over to the Administration for a final decision.

Mario Seiglie introduced the next items on the agenda, current Doctrinal Committee (DC) projects:

Mr. Seiglie then turned the floor over to Jorge de Campos to present the updates to the Hebrew Calendar Study Paper. Mr. de Campos explained the purpose of the updates and presented a document outlining the three minor edits that were made to the original document. He then opened the floor for any questions or comments. Chairman Martin moved to accept the study paper as edited. The motion unanimously passed. Mr. de Campos then turned the floor back to Mario Seiglie.

Mr. Seiglie then introduced the next item, Jephthah’s vow. He then explained the subject of the paper and after a thorough review, it was found to be in error. The DC resolved that the paper did not qualify to move forward in the review process and was rejected. He then opened the floor for any questions or comments.

Mr. Seiglie then discussed the final item, the result of the paper on Remez. The DC then noted that they have not had ample time to discuss the Administration’s letter on this subject of Remez. The floor was then opened up for discussion. It was then determined that the DC and Administration will now meet and be prepared to present a finished statement on the Church’s stance on the subject of Remez during the February meetings.

Chairman Martin then asked the Secretary, Frank Dunkle, to present a draft of the proposed amendment to Bylaw 8.6 (Compensation for Non-Employees of the United Church of God while serving on the COE). Mr. Dunkle then presented the letter of justification and Chairman Martin presented the proposed amendment. Chairman Martin further explained that the purpose of this presentation was as follows:

The floor was then opened to any comments or questions. The Chairman called for a ballot to decide whether or not to place the amendment on the GCE agenda, the motion passed with eleven in favor and one abstained. It was also decided that there would be no statement included from the Council.

At 4:23 p.m. the Council went into executive session

At 5:30 p.m. the executive session ended and the Council adjourned for the day.

-end-
Council Reporter
Ryan Hall

[These are not the official minutes from the Council meeting. Elders can find those at the Home Office with the Council Secretary. Video recordings are posted for the elders on the UCG Ministerial Resource Site.]
© 2023 United Church of God, an International Association

Source URL: http://coe.ucg.org/council-report/council-elders-report-december-4-5-2023-2023-12-07