 |
| Daniel Vestal tells the Fellowship's Coordinating Council about his trip to Africa and a quilt that was presented to him by the organization Amani Ya Juu. Photo by Lance Wallace. |
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Cooperative Baptist Fellowship’s Coordinating Council ended two days of meetings with news that the Fellowship will conclude its fiscal year on June 30 with more revenue than expenditures for the first time in two years.
"If you’ll remember, the last two years when we came to this meeting, the finance committee reported that we would have to dip into reserves to meet our budget," said Philip Wise, pastor of First Baptist Church, Lubbock, Texas, and chair of the Fellowship’s finance committee. "The controls we’ve put in place have worked. We anticipate closing out the year in the black and meeting our goal for the Offering for Global Missions."
The finance committee recommended and the Council approved a not-to-exceed operating budget of $16,470,000 for fiscal year 2005-06, a 2.9 percent increase over the 2003-04 operating budget. The Assembly will vote on the proposed $16,008,000 budget for fiscal year 2004-05 during Friday’s business session.
Barbara Baldridge, co-coordinator of CBF Global Missions, reported to the Council that morale remains high among field personnel despite continuing uncertainties throughout the world.
"The morale stays very high," Baldridge said. "The level of difficulty varies greatly per area and even day-to-day. We keep a close tab on the situation around the world. Most of our field personnel say ‘I’m staying right here no matter what.’ Still, we keep in touch with them and keep their safety and best interest in mind."
The Council heard from Call to Renewal, an anti-poverty advocacy group based in Washington, D.C. The Fellowship’s national coordinator, Daniel Vestal, attended "Pentecost 2004" in May, a call to unity event at National Cathedral, which led to an invitation for a Call to Renewal representative to speak to the Coordinating Council.
"Poverty is the one issue with a biblical imperative that churches can agree on," Yonce Shelton, national coordinator and policy director of Call to Renewal, told the Council. "We’re trying to have a prophetic voice on public policy and poverty issues."
Vestal said the Fellowship has been involved in poverty issues on the "micro" level through Partners in Hope, the Fellowship’s rural poverty initiative. Call to Renewal gives the Fellowship an opportunity to be involved on the "macro" level.
"One of the challenges we have is how to make our voice heard in the public policy arena," Vestal said. "Our involvement with Call to Renewal is much like our partnership with Baptist Joint Committee on religious liberty issues. This is about trust. It is crucial for this Council to buy into this relationship. This represents a step for us."
The Council agenda also included the following items:
Elizabeth Thompson, outgoing chair of the Fellowship Council on Endorsement, reported that Troy Petty will take over as chair at the conclusion of the Assembly. The Council endorsed 35 new chaplains and pastoral counselors bringing the total to 414.
Partnership Study Committee is continuing its work. Committee chair Charles Cantrell of Mountain Home, Mo., reported discussions have now turned to the Fellowship’s partnerships with theology schools. He asked for input from the Council now when it can be considered in the committee’s work rather than after the fact, when the committee gives its final recommendations. "It’s harder than you think to even define partnership," Cantrell said. "We are about partnering, and we will continue to partner. That was the easy part ... We are trying to come up with principles of partnerships … categories of partnerships … guidelines for partners … we will continue to grapple with how to partner with theological schools. There is a feeling that we need to have a more formal, written relationship with our partners."
The Fellowship’s Global Missions advocate Pat Anderson announced three upcoming "Trips That Make a Difference," visits to CBF Global Missions field personnel Anderson leads to increase churches’ involvement in and giving to Global Missions. Anderson invited Council members to Beirut, Lebanon, for the European Baptist Federation’s meeting with indigenous Baptist groups from Europe and the Middle East. In October, Anderson will lead a trip to the West Coast to visit with