General Conference of Elders

Photos

A strong tone of optimism ran through todayâs full day of meetings of the General Conference of Elders of the United Church of God, an International Association.

 Reports from seven of the international areas initiated the proceedings, followed by operational reports from Ministerial Services and Media Operations. The afternoon session devoted time to balloting, and addresses by the chairman, president, and treasurer. A question and answer session with the Council of Elders concluded a full schedule of plenary sessions, with optional breakout sessions on PowerPoint presentations and cable access TV productions in the evening.

International Reports

Leon Walker began the international updates. Today, over 1,900 brethren attend services throughout the Spanish-speaking region. Circulation of the Spanish language Good News is slated to increase to 15,000 in the next year, helped by ads in six regional editions of Readerâs Digest. Personal contact with current church members, however, remains the primary method of "first contact" for new members in this area of the world. With applause, elders and wives warmly welcomed the return of Eduardo Hernandez, who has rejoined the United Church of God after a brief departure to another fellowship last year.

Henrikas Klovas (newly ordained the preceding day) and Victor Kubik reported on work in Eastern Europe. Nineteen now attend in Estonia, six in Lithuania. Translation of numerous articles and Bible study course lessons continues into Lithuanian, Russian, and Estonian, with some of the material being placed in public libraries. Several hymns have been translated for use by brethren in these regions. Mr. Klovas expressed gratitude for the financial help offered through the home office for efforts to preach the gospel of the Kingdom, thanking U.S. members for their support.

Jeff Caudle addressed the General Conference on the work in New Zealand, where he and his family have been serving since December 1999. Approximately 50 brethren attend in three groups, the largest being in Auckland (30). Current circulation of the Good News stands at 2,200, including waiting room subscriptions. Subscribers in Tonga and Fiji are also served from New Zealand. Mr. Haâangana, long-time elder serving in Tonga, continues in poor health and needs the prayers of the brethren. Mr. Caudle concluded his session by issuing an open invitation to the Feast of Tabernacles at Taupo, New Zealand; and asked elders and wives to remember the sometimes-difficult financial circumstances caused by frequent changes in government policy.

Doug Horchak updated the General Conference on the work in numerous regions of West Africa, focusing especially on recent contact with the Remnant Church of God in Ghana. He provided some background material on the Sabbath-keeping history of these brethren and their history of contact with the United Church of God. As noted in previous reports of Council of Elders meetings, ministers and members of the Remnant Church of God wish to become part of the United Church of God. "If we are brethren, we should be one" was the sentiment expressed to Mr. Horchak, Jim Franks, and Joel Meeker on their December, 1999 visit.

Alfred Riehle provided details of the work in Germany, addressing elders and wives in his greatly expanded command of the English language. Current Good News circulation is being maintained at 3,000; careful subscription renewal programs insure new readers are constantly being added. Booklet inventory is to increase from eight to eleven this year; continued work on Bible study course translation is greatly helped by the addition of part-time editorial help. New, small congregations in Berlin and Holland highlight regional growth. Germany currently operates without home office subsidy by extensively using volunteer member help.

Australiaâs Bill Eddington provided information on the work "down under." The 628 church members in Australia are in some cases widely scattered, and are served by four salaried and nine non-salaried elders. Extensive work on the youth program is a main goal for action in the coming year, as is a projected increase in Good News circulation from 2,000 to between 4,000 and 5,000. Redesign of the Australian web site in 1999 proved very helpful, and provides more response work for regional office employees Reg Wright and Ruth Root. Australia continues to serve outlying areas such as Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, Vietnam, and Malaysia.

Andre van Belkum wrapped up the international reports with news from South Africa. One hundred forty eight baptized members comprise the churches in this area; high attendance runs at about 220. Good News circulation is climbing past 2,000, headed for a goal of 4,000 by February 2001. Literature mailings are increasing; income is running above budget, with expenses below budget. Requests for visits from Malawi added to the encouraging tone of Mr. van Belkumâs address. Three young South Africans will attend summer camp in the United States this year (Camp Woodmen), continuing a highly successful program from 1999.

Operations Reports

Ministerial Services manager Richard Pinelli provided updated information for the General Conference. A total of 401 ordained elders (333 U.S., 68 international) serve 371 congregations around the globe (230 U.S., 131 international). Attendance trends have been moving slowly but steadily upward since the Feast of Tabernacles last fall; approximately 16,200 brethren attended UCG spring Holy Day services around the world this year.

Recent recommendations of the Task Force on Ministerial Workload and Remuneration are under implementation, accelerated by the untimely death of church pastor Ozzie Engelbart. Ministerial job performance review forms part of the program as well; plans for peer review, self assessment, and management review are already in various stages of development and use. After initial concerns by some in the ministry with an unfamiliar process, Mr. Pinelli reported that understanding is growing of the intended positive impact ö improvement in the service to Godâs people.

The ministerial candidate program is moving forward on three levels ö leadership in the local church, leadership for future ordination as elders, and ministerial candidate identification and selection (salaried elders). The aging of the ministry (nine of the current 98 salaried elders in the United States are already past the age of 67) is a reminder of the urgent need in this area.

Peter Eddington, Media Operations manager, wrapped up the morning session. He echoed earlier comments about the growth trends in the church. Early groundwork now gives us a sound base of literature to offer. Small but encouraging and noticeable trends are evident toward further financial involvement from first time donors and new "co-workers" ö those beginning to donate on a more regular basis. As of the end of April, 3.5 new donors are added, on average, each working day.

With a comprehensive media strategy now in place, many areas now are moving forward concurrently, including radio production, print advertising, church logo finalization (special thanks to Nicole Graham in this area), Internet development, video production, continued development of the literature base, and expansion of the Good News circulation.

Formal Business Meeting

The formal business portion of the annual meeting took place in the afternoon. Elders first approved the minutes of last yearâs meeting. They next balloted on four operational issues, six proposed amendments to the church bylaws, and selection of four Council members.

All operational issues passed ö approval of the Strategic Plan, Operations Plan, Budget for fiscal 2000-2001, and a method for enacting amendments to the Fundamental Beliefs. Five of the six proposed amendments passed, the only exception being a proposal calling for a 25% quorum of GCE participation in balloting for business to be considered official.

The elders selected to three-year terms on the Council of Elders were first-time international representative Mario Seiglie and incumbents Gary Antion, Robert Dick, and Richard Thompson (although Mr. Antion will now be considered a U.S. representative, not an international representative).

The business portion continued with addresses by the chairman, president, and treasurer.

Chairman Robert Dick expressed appreciation for work done by various staff members that helped the General Conference run smoothly. Citing the old proverb "may you live in interesting times," he commented that it has been nice more recently to live in less interesting times! The replacement of interesting times with productive times has been an encouragement to many. Yet much has been learned in the trying of our faith ö crucial lessons in patience and endurance. Though the precious metals of the character of Godâs people has at times itself been at risk in the purifying process, growth in that character has been evident. The pleasant opportunity to come to the General Conference to conduct needed church business is important. But Mr. Dick concluded his remarks by pointing to the messages delivered on the Sabbath by Roy Holladay and Dennis Luker as the most vital components of the knowledge of the calling of God. The church, when growing in love and humility, becomes a place where God can bring those new individuals He chooses to call.

President Les McCullough focused on the growth of the churchâs efforts to preach the gospel. He pointed out that Paul went to Jerusalem (Galatians 2 records the event) to report to the apostles how God was using him to preach the gospel. Some may wonder why there seems so much stress on the "physical" things such as how many booklets have been printed or Good News subscription levels. Mr. McCullough agreed that there are many intangible areas of growth in the work of the church, but said these "physical things" are tangible ways to illustrate that growth. He called attention to the increase in the proposed budget for this fiscal year, the success of the Ambassador Bible Center, the Bible study course development, new booklets printed, increase in baptisms, youth programs, and growth in donor involvement. Arenât these all evidence of Godâs blessing? Surely all understand that the ultimate reward and thanks lie with God. Our job, he stressed, is to sow an abundance of seed as God gives us opportunity. The president ended his address by calling on the ministry of the church to join together in expanding our efforts to carry the gospel ö sowing the seed. God will then help us serve and care for those He calls.

Treasurer Tom Kirkpatrick continued the tone of appreciation to God for what He is allowing the church to accomplish. The financial position of the church is much stronger than it was two years ago or last year. Controlled costs are enabling expansion in planned areas, and income is growing slowly but steadily, returning now to levels experienced three years ago. Mr. Kirkpatrick outlined his approach as "not believing in large cash reserves, but not believing in no reserves either!" Currently, the church has an operating reserve of 10.9 weeksâ expenses. The United Church of Godâs financial statements were audited and received an unqualified opinion by the audit firm of PriceWaterhouseCoopers for its first four years of financial operation ending March 31, 1999. The local Cincinnati firm of Clark, Schaefer, Hackett, and Company has been contracted to audit the books this year, and the treasurer hopes their opinion on the state of church finances will be available by September (the current fiscal period ends June 30, 2000). Mr. Kirkpatrick also stressed the importance of working to please God, and ended his message by announcing salary ranges for all church employees as required by policy.

Question and Answer

The full Council of Elders ended the day by answering questions posed by members of the General Conference. After early consultation, they were joined on stage by Richard Pinelli, manager of Ministerial Services, since many questions dealt more with administrative than Council matters.

In matching policy for Council meetings, Mr. Dick explained that questions involving personalities could not be dealt with publicly. A number of subjects were then covered:

Q: Is there any plan to expand the current church hymnal?

A: There are no firm plans to do so at this time. Groundwork for future hymnal expansion has taken place, with permission granted by the copyright holders for including more songs in any future editions.

Q: Is there any policy for dealing with member failure to comply with church decisions on marriage status cases? Is expulsion from church ever considered?

A: The nature of many issues requires that the administration bring policy proposals to the Council for its approval, since it will be the Administration, not the Council that will be faced with carrying them out. The Council has not yet had this issue brought to it for deliberation.

Q: Is the Council planning to seek a reduction in the frequency of General Conference of Elders meetings, since this would reduce costs to the Church?

A: Reduction in frequency of meetings, to perhaps once every two or three years (instead of annually) doesnât automatically reduce costs. In 1999 and 2000, the elders have themselves borne the cost of transportation, housing, and meals. If the frequency were reduced, many benefits would be lost, and the inclination might well be to fund more from the church budget, thereby increasing, not decreasing costs.

Q: What is considered a conflict of interest for an elder of the UCG interacting with another church organization?
A: This is a very broad term. The Council is finalizing material on an outside speaker policy. But individual circumstances can vary so widely, especially in many international areas, that a case-by-case approach is the only workable solution. This has been the Administrationâs approach in areas of concern to this point.

Q: How will difficulties in the regional pastor system of administration be handled?

A: In responses to a recent Administration questionnaire, a large majority of salaried elders made it clear they favor the current system and feel it serves their needs well. Some suggestions for change came in, but they were by no means all suggesting the same changes. The input is appreciated, reviewed, and used when feasible.

Q: What is happening with the ministerial job review process?

A: The areas of peer review, personal assessment, and management review are all either in place or well under development, with the expectation that they will be in place later this year. This is not a system intended to deal with problem situations ö those things are handled individually. This approach is intended to help each minister be a better servant.

Q: Section 3.2.2.2 of the Bylaws states that pastors are assisted by elders, deacons, etc. How can we improve in this area of spiritual consensus? Some pastors are not as gifted in it as others.

A: The featured speaker for May 8 is to be Dr. Howard Baker, addressing the General Conference on the subject of "servant leadership." It is an attempt to deal with this very idea. There are ways this area can be improved, such as regular meetings with the ordained personnel. It is important to make sure we are seeking Godâs direction, too, of course, not just human agreement. In many important ways, the church is more united now that it has been in years. Perhaps it is hard to see that at times, since there will always be room for improvement. Certainly one such area is how to further involve the members in the growth of the church. But there are times we misunderstand the term "spiritual consensus" too. It does not involve physical areas, but spiritual ones; it would be a mistake to apply it to decisions about church socials or which hall to meet in, for example.

Q: Has there been any discussion about interaction with any other church organizations?

A: Yes, previously we took the opportunity to meet with representatives of two other church organizations. However, since any more recent discussions would have involved individuals on an informal basis, it would not be appropriate to identify either the people or organization at this time. We have reported during this session of the General Conference of Elders on our ongoing meetings with the elders of the Remnant Church of God in Ghana, so all United elders are informed of formal meetings with this body.

Following announcement of ballot results by Secretary Gerald Seelig (reported earlier), the meeting ended at approximately 5:45 p.m.

Photos

Doug Johnson