Church Life

Cutting Deeper

Decline in giving to PC(USA) headquarters forces more layoffs.

Former Motorola lawyer Linda Bryant Valentine, the incoming executive director of the Presbyterian Church (USA)’s General Assembly Council, faces new challenges as tough as those she met in the volatile mobile-phone industry.

Beyond a downsized staff at the Louisville, Kentucky, headquarters, the lifelong Presbyterian must also grapple with long-term questions over the denomination’s viability.

Valentine, scheduled to take office July 1, will guide the headquarters through reductions approved by the council in late April. The cuts include 74 jobs at headquarters and 55 overseas missionary positions.

Her predecessor, John Detterick, says the cuts—the fourth round since 1993—reflect a shift away from established, centralized programs toward conducting missions through churches and presbyteries.

The former executive director says there has been a 12 percent decline in funds flowing to the national office during the past decade, and he attributes it to members’ desire for a larger say in missions spending.

“I think the fact that Presbyterians continue to care deeply about missions and are becoming more personally involved … is very positive for the denomination,” says Detterick, who retired after eight years on the job.

Gifts to local churches have increased an inflation-adjusted 5 percent since 1996. Yet last year the headquarters’ total receipts declined more than 6 percent, or $7.5 million.

The decrease spurred the General Assembly Council to approve $9.15 million in budget cuts for 2007-08. Accounting for the addition of several new positions—most related to staff restructuring—the headquarters workforce will lose 67 jobs by October 1, dropping to 465.

Officials will eliminate 40 missionaries through attrition, while hoping to retain funding for 15. If unable to salvage those jobs, the missionary force will decline to 220.

Critics have their own reasons for the denomination’s tough sledding. Jim Berkley, director of Presbyterian Action for Faith and Freedom, a committee of the Institute on Religion and Democracy, says recent denominational decisions, such as divesting from companies that do business with Israel and supporting civil unions for homosexuals (both approved by the 2004 General Assembly), have offended many members.

“People feel good about the missions entity, but not about the other aspects of denominational life,” says Berkley, who has been a pastor in several Presbyterian churches.

Presbyterians aren’t alone in facing financial hardship, according to David Roozen, director of the Hartford Institute for Religion Research. He attributes the squeeze suffered by many mainline denominations to local churches keeping more money to deal with increased salary and operational costs, along with more local missions projects.

Roozen acknowledges such conflicts as gay marriage have also played a role. But the Hartford Seminary professor cautions against sounding the death knell for mainline denominations.

“They’re going to be around a long time,” Roozen says. “Look how long General Motors and Ford have [survived].”

Copyright © 2006 Christianity Today. Click for reprint information.

Related Elsewhere:

Articles elsewhere include:

Former exec takes reins of Presbyterian Church | Valentine, whose family’s Presbyterian roots trace back at least to the Revolutionary War, assumes the position at a tumultuous time for the organization.The church recently announced layoffs and budget cuts, as well as a reorganization of its mission program. (Daily Herald, Chicago suburbs, June 11, 2006)

Presbyterian Church HQ Announces Job Cuts | The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) said Monday that 75 employees at its headquarters will lose their jobs as $9.15 million in budget cuts have forced the denomination to reorganize its mission program. (Associated Press, May. 2, 2006)

GAC adopts sweeping restructure of GA offices | $9.15 million budget cut costs 75 jobs, including top management (Presbyterian News Service, May 1, 2006)

CT reported on PC(USA) cuts in 2002.

Also in this issue

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Hope in the Heart of Darkness

Do It for the Children

The Lure of Theocracy

Second-half Calling

Q+A: Michael Cromartie

Free Speech Fiasco

More than Logic

Pro-life Feminists

Grand Illusions

Latter-day Complaints

Friday Night Fish Fry

Beyond Azusa Street

Lost Missions

What's Right About Patriotism

Hide Your Bible

Crowded Out

Belgrade Curve

Health Care, Everyone?

From Rape to Rebuilding

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Passages

Wire Story

Sky's the Limit

Excerpt

'Jesus Mean and Wild: The Unexpected Love of an Untamable God'

The Faith of Our Founders

Social Justice Surprise

Experiencing Life at the Margins

Born Again and Again

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Go Figure

Gospel Work in Time of War

Glimpses of God in Africa

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Quotation Marks

Summer

Editorial

Beyond Yellow Ribbons

Editorial

Sex Isn't a Spectator Sport

Reforming Wayward Reformers

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