Good news, bad news

Winnipeg, Man.

Conference convention in July. The major proposals were presented to the Council of Boards (a joint meeting of all of the Boards) on the evening of Jan. 30.

In keeping with the consensus of MB delegates at the Canadian Church Planting Congress last October (see MBH, Jan. 9), the Board of Evangelism presented proposals which will increase the Canadian MB Conference focus on church planting and evangelism.

In the first of two initiatives, the Board has planned a "key cities" initiative in which it will assist provincial conferences to undertake intensive church planting campaigns in certain key cities. A first project is planned for Calgary, where 10 churches would be planted in five years. More details will be announced in the Canadian Conference Board reports issue of the Herald April 17. The proposal still needs to be approved by the Alberta MB Conference and Canadian MB Conference conventions.

The new church plants would be in addition to the two churches the Board hopes to plant in the Atlantic provinces in the next two years.

The Board of Evangelism also wants to hire an assistant executive director, who will help existing MB churches work on evangelism projects while current executive director Ewald Unruh focusses on church planting.

The financial problems were highlighted by Board of Management chair Randy Schellenberg. The Conference had a small accumulated deficit of about $33,000 at the end of the 1994-96 biennium. In order not to increase the deficit further in the current biennium (1996-98), the Executive Board decreed last August that the Boards should cut their spending by 8% in 1997-98. It is not yet clear whether that will be enough to avoid a further deficit. While donations from the churches are increasing slowly, the increase has not been enough to cover inflation or the increase in vision for ministry. The Board of Management is recommending for the 1998-2000 biennium that the Boards plan budgets that are 2% higher than the reduced 1997-98 spending targets but 6% lower than the original 1996-98 budget.

The financial outlook, while sobering, did not seem to greatly discourage the board members. There seemed to be a consensus that while some cuts may be necessary, the new programs were so important that the Boards would find a way to make them go ahead. Funding for the Board of Evangelism's associate director is included in the Board's budget proposals. For the key city initiative, the Conference will challenge churches to contribute an additional $5 per member in levy. Some churches have already indicated they are willing to do so. The per-member norm the Conference asks the churches to contribute will not be set until the financial situation is clearer in July.

The Board of Management also announced that it has worked out an agreement, approved by the Executive Board, to transfer the land and buildings of the former MB Bible College to the Manitoba MB Conference for use by Concord College. The transfer will take place in accordance with conditions proposed by the Manitoba Conference Board of Directors. The Canadian Conference will drop three conditions: that the land and buildings cannot be sold until June 1, 2000 without Canadian Conference approval; that if the College closes before June 1, 2002, the assets would revert to the Canadian Conference; and that the College's line of credit be repaid before the transfer takes place. In return, the Manitoba Conference accepts full responsibility for Concord's line of credit with the Canadian Conference, which was officially limited to $400,000 but which the Manitoba Conference now recognizes could increase to $600,000 by summer. In addition, the Manitoba Conference will guarantee that the Canadian Conference can continue to rent its current offices in the buildings until the end of 1999. The agreement will be presented for ratification at the Canadian Conference convention in July.

In a final item, the Board of Management and the Executive Board have decided not to offer an alternative pension fund for church employees which would be invested mainly in stocks--which would have a potential for higher earnings but also a potential for losses. It was decided that the current fund invested in bonds, stocks and cash was more secure.

The Board of Communications announced a plan to hire a webmaster, initially on a quarter-time basis, to expand and consolidate the worldwide web presence for all of the Canadian Conference Boards. The webmaster would report to a designated Board of Communications board member to ensure that other Conference agencies would have equal priority with Board of Communications agencies.

Board chair Doug Heidebrecht also announced a very serious situation at the MB Herald. As a result of a change in regulations within the Canadian government's Canadian Heritage Department, the cost of mailing one copy of the Herald could increase from 8 cents to perhaps 40 cents. That decision could cost the Herald well over $100,000 in extra expenses every year, result in a total revamping of the Herald's delivery system or cause drastic cutbacks in the Herald's publishing schedule. The new rates are scheduled to go into effect April 1 unless the decision can be overturned on appeal or the Herald has developed a new subscription system by then. It is not yet known whether the decision will also affect rates for mailing the Mennonitische Rundschau, the Board's German-language publication. Heidebrecht reported nine principles the Board has agreed on to guide its response to the crisis (see sidebar):

SIDEBAR

Philosophical Principles re the Distribution of the Mennonite Brethren Herald

1. We should approach this matter with prayer. If God works in all things for the good of those who love Him, and who have been called according to His purpose, then we should try to discern what God is doing in this situation.

2. The MB Herald is the principle means of communication among English-speaking MBs in Canada.

3. In order to fulfill our mandate, the Herald (or other publication) needs to go to the home of every member.

4. A US-based magazine will not meet the needs of Canadian MBs.

5. It is still useful to have an every-member mailing list and for the Herald to be addressed to individuals even if sent in bulk to the churches. (Otherwise, the Heralds may sit in a pile in a corner at the back of the church.)

6. We should appeal/protest the decision by Canadian Heritage. We should also ask for more time to implement the changes until at least Aug. 30, so the Canadian Conference convention can address the issue.

7. We should keep the additional burden on our churches as low as possible.

8. Because of additional costs for weight, and in order to provide good service to our constituency (including advertisers, providers of inserts and agencies who want their news reported), it would be best if the Herald was more frequent than monthly.

9. We want to distribute the Herald (and Mennonitische Rundschau) in the most cost effective way possible.

The Board of Christian Education Ministries announced a new name for its triennial youth convention: NYC (which stands for National Youth Convention). NYC '99 will take place Dec. 30, 1998-Jan. 2, 1999 in Banff, Alta. on the theme "Make Contact".

The Board has decided to raise a larger percent of its budget outside conference dues (from 5% of its budget to 10% of its budget), and is considering a request to establish a bursary program for students at Canadian MB schools.

The Board of Faith and Life announced that it will present three pastoral exhortations at this summer's convention: on keeping word and deed together, on the importance of expositional preaching and on keeping a balance in worship music.

In its only official action, the Council of Boards ratified the reappointment of Reuben Pauls as executive minister, following an evaluation.

The Board of Communications announced that, following an evaluation last summer, it had reappointed Jim Coggins and Susan Brandt as editor and managing editor of the MB Herald for a four-year term, commencing Jan. 1, 1997. The Board has been working on filling the vacancy in the editorship of the Mennonitische Rundschau but was not yet ready to announce an appointment.

An evaluation of Ewald Unruh, executive director for the Board of Evangelism, will take place this spring.

Five new board members were welcomed, having been appointed to fill vacancies caused by resignations: John Fishbein of Ontario on the Board of Evangelism; Eric Wingender of Quebec and Abe Klassen of Saskatchewan on the Board of Faith and Life; and MaryLou Burkard of Ontario and Jennifer Wieler of British Columbia on the Board of Communications.

The proposals were presented to the Council of Boards for information, and will be voted on at the Canadian Conference convention July 9-11 at Willingdon Church in Burnaby, B.C. The Executive Board announced that Terry Walling, head of the organization that developed the Conference's "ReFocusing Churches" strategy, and Canadian evangelist Terry Winter will be the guest speakers. Jim Holm of MB Biblical Seminary will speak at a pastor's afternoon before the opening session.

The evening ended with Conference moderator Ike Bergen calling the Canadian Conference staff forward while the board members gathered around them and prayed for them and the work of the Conference. JC

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