VANCOUVER, B.C. (ELCA) -- Current operating fund income exceeded expenses by $3.3 million in fiscal year 2001 for the churchwide organization of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), said Christina Jackson-Skelton, ELCA treasurer, in a report to the ELCA Conference of Bishops.
Receipts to the ELCA churchwide organization totaled $86.5 million in current operating funds for the fiscal year which ended Jan. 31, 2002, while expenses totaled $83.2 million for the same period, said Jackson-Skelton. Both figures were up nearly 2 percent from one year ago.
Jackson-Skelton, who became treasurer Feb. 1 following her election by the ELCA Church Council, made her first report to the Conference of Bishops. The ELCA bishops met here March 7-12 at the invitation of the bishops of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada.
The ELCA Conference of Bishops is an advisory body to the church. Its members include the church's 65 synod bishops, ELCA presiding bishop and ELCA secretary.
Receipts exceeded the budget forecast by $1.5 million, while expenses were below budget by nearly $1.9 million, Jackson-Skelton said in her report. Income from synods in the form of mission support was $69.5 million, virtually unchanged from one year ago, she said.
A significant factor in the church's positive showing was $5.1 million in income from bequests and trusts.
"Overall, we felt very good about how we closed the year, and we had a strong December and January," Jackson-Skelton said.
ELCA members gave $10.8 million to ELCA Disaster Response funds, well over the $2 million contributed in the previous fiscal year. Nearly $7 million was designated for disaster response efforts of the church following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the United States, the ELCA treasurer reported.
Financial gifts to the ELCA World Hunger Appeal totaled $15.6 million, down from $15.9 million contributed one year ago. Gifts to "Stand With Africa" totaled nearly $329,000. Stand With Africa is a three-year campaign that focuses on HIV/AIDS, food security, and peace and reconciliation. It is coordinated by the ELCA World Hunger Program, Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod (LCMS) World Relief, and Lutheran World Relief, the overseas relief and development agency of the ELCA and LCMS.
For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or NEWS@ELCA.ORG
http://listserv.elca.org/archives/elcanews.html
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About the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America:
The ELCA is one of the largest Christian denominations in the United States, with 2.8 million members in more than 8,500 worshiping communities across the 50 states and in the Caribbean region. Known as the church of "God's work. Our hands.," the ELCA emphasizes the saving grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ, unity among Christians and service in the world. The ELCA's roots are in the writings of the German church reformer Martin Luther.
For information contact:
Candice Hill Buchbinder
Public Relations Manager
Candice.HillBuchbinder@ELCA.org
