Alliance on Poverty and Wealth

I. Goal
The Alliance on Poverty and Wealth will change the culture of the churchwide organization so all churchwide units and staff take tangible steps and work together to address issues of poverty and wealth.

II. Values
The alliance embraces the operational value of accompaniment, understood as the practices of mutuality and interdependence.[1] The alliance will accompany units and staff of the churchwide organization in their implementation of the Plan for Mission’s commitment to “confront the scandalous realities of…class barriers that often manifest themselves in exclusion, poverty, hunger, and violence.” It will do so by providing a table for mutual consultation and sharing advice by unit representatives about the strategic importance of the churchwide organization’s commitment related to poverty and wealth. In its work, the alliance will value relationship-building, consistent and clear communications, and it will honor learnings about shared decision-making from the churchwide organization’s effort titled Ministry among Persons in Poverty (MAPP). [2]

III. Nature and Function of the Alliance
The alliance takes its mandate from the ELCA’s Plan for Mission’s four commitments for implementation. Working to express and deepen the commitment of the church to address issues of poverty and wealth, its function is to offer counsel and assistance to churchwide units. It is to work at changing where necessary the culture of the churchwide offices and its staff with regard to issues of poverty and wealth. As requested, the alliance will report to the Cabinet of Executives. [3]

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[1] “Global Mission in the 21st Century,” p. 5; http://www.elca.org/~/media/Files/Who%20We%20Are/Global%20Mission/GlobalMission21.pdf

[2] 2003 Churchwide Assembly, Pre-Assembly Report, section V, pp. 29-33.

[3] Drawn mainly from the Program Planning and Coordination Team’s minutes of the July 2006 meeting.