I was raised Southern Baptist, where an annual 'Business Meeting' was held once a year or so to print up a budget to be voted on by formal church members who felt like showing up on a Wednesday night. Deacons (and budget committee members when there was such a committee assigned), decided what to present to the body for a vote, and those who showed up rubber stamped it with very little discussion, if any. Deacons lived in the city and were committed members of the church. (Deacons also did hiring, and would 'present' a new head pastor to be voted on after everyone got to hear them preach once, but the vote was just a formality. Everyone trusted that the deacons were hiring the right guy). Total budgeted salaries might be listed, and things like budgets for various ministries, expected maintenance, etc. If a formal MEMBER wanted to know something in more detail, like the pastor or other staff member's salary, they could probably get it, and would probably be frowned upon as nosey. Some churches even print the YTD giving in the weekly church bulletin where it can be seen if the church is over or under budget as the year progresses.
Then I came across the Calvary Chapel way of doing things. There aren't any nominated and elected deacons. There are 'board' members made up of the pastor's friends, not voted on by anyone. Formal church membership is non-existent. In the case of a founding pastor, both in and out of the Calvary Chapel franchise (denomination, or whatever it is, I'm not sure), they aren't accountable to deacons or members who could vote to fire them. ("You can't fire me....this church wouldn't exist if it weren't for me!")
I'm seeing more than one Calvary Chapel where the son of the founding pastor is hired as an assistant, likely to take over once the founder retires, never nominated or voted on by anyone but the board (the pastor's few hand-picked friends). How convenient.
I'm not sure what authorization is needed, if any, for a church to start up and call themselves 'Calvary Chapel' but I suspect nothing. I don't think the words 'Calvary' or 'Chapel' are copyrighted or trademarked in any way. Even if they were, some are changing their names to just 'Calvary Church' which of course anyone could use, just like 'Church of the Redeemer,' 'Church of the Cross,' 'Hope Church,' 'Christ Church,' etc.
Many people blindly give to churches of all types, not knowing to what extent money is really needed, and that's what I have a problem with. What are the church's assets and liabilities? Budget? Receipts? Is there $20 in the church coffers, or $20 million? When I saw the endowment for the morman church, I almost fell out of my chair. They wouldn't need my money even if I wanted to give it to them. I can only hope that they don't still make appeals for money when they've managed to accumulate enough to do anything they want but haven't chosen to spend it. Hopefully, most people are wisely selective in their donations to any church or 501(c3) 'worthy cause.' Too many give just because there's an appeal for money made from the pulpit, for whatever need, specific or otherwise. If a pastor were confronted about the lack of transparency, they would likely get defensive and say, "this is how we do it, if you have a problem with it, don't give." How can they get away with that? Because they can! There will be plenty of people willing to totally trust one man, (or a small board of overseeing men who don't even live in the same town or attend the church), to stay on top of things.
I'm aware of the IRS form 990 for non-profits, but the ones I've seen online are years old if you're lucky enough to find one, and they are very limited in the information they provide.
Everyone who has any assets should have a will, even if it's just a house, car, or some personal possessions, if you want to make sure your wishes are carried out. Wouldn't you want to give to benefit, either now or in the hereafter, to things where your money can be used in ways where there is really a need, without paying absurd administration costs? I don't know how anyone can determine who that would be if the non-profit is a secret black box, and I suspect a lot of non-profits are set up with friends and family as the 'board' who decided how much their friend or family member's salary and benefits package will consist of. I even know of non-profits who constantly put out appeals in the community for volunteers...the less they have to pay people to work, the more the board can pay the CEO and other staff of the non-profit. Not sure how much the board members get paid, but either way, the people running the organization have a nice little enterprise going on. Sometimes I can't believe what the IRS lets non-profits get away with. Imagine the nations largest Christian radio station, a non-profit, giving salaries of over $200K to many of their management staff. Would they be paying all those people all that money if it weren't a 'non-profit?' I doubt it. Too many non-profits appear to pad the pockets of a good-ole-boy (or gal) network instead of shareholders.
Given the concerns listed above, how would YOU go about deciding whom to give to, either while alive or through a will? Would you even attend a church where finances are held in secret and close to the vest? Would you give anyway, at least paying what you GUESSED was your share of utilities, regardless of how much the church did or didn't need money to keep the lights on? Could you see yourself attending but not giving, or would you only attend one with greater transparency? I keep hearing churches talk about how much COVID has hurt them with attendance down as much as 50%, but never any appeals for money needed to 'keep the lights on' or 'prevent the doors from being closed.' So where is their stash? How are they making it?
I suspect that some churches are getting rich off their radio ministries if the pastor is popular enough. How does listener inspired giving affect the bottom line? Your guess is as good as mine. It's part of their black box.
I once asked a pastor friend, "What keeps a pastor's salary from consisting of whatever he can get OUT OF, whoever he can get INTO, a building?" His answer...."nothing. In fact there's a guy here in town who does exactly that."
Then I came across the Calvary Chapel way of doing things. There aren't any nominated and elected deacons. There are 'board' members made up of the pastor's friends, not voted on by anyone. Formal church membership is non-existent. In the case of a founding pastor, both in and out of the Calvary Chapel franchise (denomination, or whatever it is, I'm not sure), they aren't accountable to deacons or members who could vote to fire them. ("You can't fire me....this church wouldn't exist if it weren't for me!")
I'm seeing more than one Calvary Chapel where the son of the founding pastor is hired as an assistant, likely to take over once the founder retires, never nominated or voted on by anyone but the board (the pastor's few hand-picked friends). How convenient.
I'm not sure what authorization is needed, if any, for a church to start up and call themselves 'Calvary Chapel' but I suspect nothing. I don't think the words 'Calvary' or 'Chapel' are copyrighted or trademarked in any way. Even if they were, some are changing their names to just 'Calvary Church' which of course anyone could use, just like 'Church of the Redeemer,' 'Church of the Cross,' 'Hope Church,' 'Christ Church,' etc.
Many people blindly give to churches of all types, not knowing to what extent money is really needed, and that's what I have a problem with. What are the church's assets and liabilities? Budget? Receipts? Is there $20 in the church coffers, or $20 million? When I saw the endowment for the morman church, I almost fell out of my chair. They wouldn't need my money even if I wanted to give it to them. I can only hope that they don't still make appeals for money when they've managed to accumulate enough to do anything they want but haven't chosen to spend it. Hopefully, most people are wisely selective in their donations to any church or 501(c3) 'worthy cause.' Too many give just because there's an appeal for money made from the pulpit, for whatever need, specific or otherwise. If a pastor were confronted about the lack of transparency, they would likely get defensive and say, "this is how we do it, if you have a problem with it, don't give." How can they get away with that? Because they can! There will be plenty of people willing to totally trust one man, (or a small board of overseeing men who don't even live in the same town or attend the church), to stay on top of things.
I'm aware of the IRS form 990 for non-profits, but the ones I've seen online are years old if you're lucky enough to find one, and they are very limited in the information they provide.
Everyone who has any assets should have a will, even if it's just a house, car, or some personal possessions, if you want to make sure your wishes are carried out. Wouldn't you want to give to benefit, either now or in the hereafter, to things where your money can be used in ways where there is really a need, without paying absurd administration costs? I don't know how anyone can determine who that would be if the non-profit is a secret black box, and I suspect a lot of non-profits are set up with friends and family as the 'board' who decided how much their friend or family member's salary and benefits package will consist of. I even know of non-profits who constantly put out appeals in the community for volunteers...the less they have to pay people to work, the more the board can pay the CEO and other staff of the non-profit. Not sure how much the board members get paid, but either way, the people running the organization have a nice little enterprise going on. Sometimes I can't believe what the IRS lets non-profits get away with. Imagine the nations largest Christian radio station, a non-profit, giving salaries of over $200K to many of their management staff. Would they be paying all those people all that money if it weren't a 'non-profit?' I doubt it. Too many non-profits appear to pad the pockets of a good-ole-boy (or gal) network instead of shareholders.
Given the concerns listed above, how would YOU go about deciding whom to give to, either while alive or through a will? Would you even attend a church where finances are held in secret and close to the vest? Would you give anyway, at least paying what you GUESSED was your share of utilities, regardless of how much the church did or didn't need money to keep the lights on? Could you see yourself attending but not giving, or would you only attend one with greater transparency? I keep hearing churches talk about how much COVID has hurt them with attendance down as much as 50%, but never any appeals for money needed to 'keep the lights on' or 'prevent the doors from being closed.' So where is their stash? How are they making it?
I suspect that some churches are getting rich off their radio ministries if the pastor is popular enough. How does listener inspired giving affect the bottom line? Your guess is as good as mine. It's part of their black box.
I once asked a pastor friend, "What keeps a pastor's salary from consisting of whatever he can get OUT OF, whoever he can get INTO, a building?" His answer...."nothing. In fact there's a guy here in town who does exactly that."
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