The Tennessean.com posted a story today about cutbacks at the Woman’s Missionary Union. It was reported that they won’t ask for additional donations for operating costs. Instead they are slashing personnel expense. The article mentions unpaid furlough for employees, a hiring freeze, no raises, and pension cuts. This is a strong contrast from the “bailout” mentality that is dominating our culture.
It was their rationale that caught my attention. Here’s the quote:
Julie Walters, communications specialist at the union’s headquarters in Birmingham, Ala., said the organization’s priority is raising money for missions, not funding its own existence.
As Southern Baptists, we can learn a good deal from that statement. God didn’t commission us to perpetuate our denomination. Our priority is Christ and making him known.
I kept reading and caught another great quote from Wendy Norvelle at the IMB. She said, “We’ve tracked this over the years, and it’s been our experience that Lottie Moon weathers recessions.”
Well said.
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Well said yourself, Tony.
Tony,
Julie Walters, communications specialist at the union’s headquarters in Birmingham, Ala., said the organization’s priority is raising money for missions, not funding its own existence.
WOW!!!
That is by far the most INSPIRING thing I have heard any Southern Baptist Leader say in a very long time.
Thanks for sharing this… I will be seeking new ways to support the WMU.
Grace Always,
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As a soon to be new member of the SBC I’m proud that there are women and men who are willing to get tough in these times. God bless those ladies. I know I’ll be giving to them in the future.
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As a fiscal (and religious) conservative who’s one class away from a Southern M.Div., I too, have viewed the bailouts–and the highly reckless federal budget deficits that preceded the bailouts for eight years–with considerable alarm. But could we maybe think about what we’re saying here? An “unpaid furlough” means you don’t get paid at all for weeks. That might work if you’re a single college student who’s living on loans or off your parents, but try doing it if you’re supporting or helping support a family. If your baby gets sick and needs medicine, and you’re on an “unpaid furlough,” that means your bank account has absolutely nothing in it to take your baby to the doctor with because your employer didn’t feel like paying you that week. And as far as “pension cuts,” folks in church work have already made the divinely inspired decision to work for a much lower paycheck than they would typically get doing some other line of work. In return for voluntarily curtailing much of their financial security, they do expect their bosses, on such matters as providing for their retirement (in line with what Proverbs has to say about that), not to lie to them and instead to keep their word even when times do get tough. If you’ve promised workers a certain pension contribution and then yank it, you have dealt treacherously–and with a fellow Christian, no less. The laborer IS worthy of his or her hire, right? Yes, times are tough, but rather than basking in a warm spiritual glow here, can we honestly take any pleasure in the fact that some real people with real bills in the real world are getting badly hurt in the name of the Lord? Something tells me this is not as good as the P.R. person, with all due respect to Ms. Walters, is trying to spin it–and as present or future ministers, we’d better be sensitive to the realities of how the new Great Depression is badly wounding many people in our flocks.
@John Mueller: Certainly you are correct, this is not a good story.
But I think we should applaud their focus on the mission before the organization. WMU is trying to put the Gospel first, which is a worthy goal.
How deep do these cuts go, especially pension cuts? Are there any exceptions among WMU personnel? I am not accusing; I am asking.
Has anyone thought of a sliding scale pay cut? Those making more would take a higher percentage cut. Is it possible for an organization to work as a team with mutual sacrifice and commitment to the task?
Again, I am not accusing. I am simply asking.
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@ Ted: Those are great questions, but the article did not elaborate.
I’m concerned there may be a false dichotomy here–that breaking faith on commitments to pay employees regularly and on time and to help provide for their golden years will somehow automatically translate into furthering the Gospel. It won’t further the Gospel if those employees have to resign those jobs in order to make ends meet; if so, there will be fewer people to do the work of the organization, and the Gospel outreach will in fact suffer. It also won’t further the Gospel if those workers have to take a second or third job in order to make ends meet and in doing so damage their health, marriages and overall families. Such a situation will in fact, be a discredit to the Gospel. Anyone with much church work experience knows that major financial sacrifices are already made at the outset. There’s a huge difference between an upper-class executive of a multinational corporation taking a pay cut and making a typical SBC employee do the same thing. Real world, real people, real harm. My home congregation, for the record, exceeded its Lottie Moon goal by 17% this past month, after our head pastor set the goal *higher* this year than it was last year. In my opinion that is how we as Christians should respond.