Introduction
Budgets are fundamental for churches since they help leaders know how the money is spent and the total collected from various ministries. As a moral requirement, presenting a budget to the congregation makes the leadership accountable. First Covenant Church of Oakland (FCC) is one of the biggest churches in the U.S. The church’s budget formulation is done by the Elected Budget Committee and approved by the church’s Board. The 2021-2022 proposed budget shows its major areas of focus for the fiscal year.
Budget Formulation
FCC is a corporate body with a definite management structure. Therefore, financial decisions are made at different levels of church management. FCC 2021-2022 budget formulation involved three stages before approval. The leaders of each ministry involved respective members to come up with a desired budget. After that, the FCC’s Elected Budget Committee met to review the proposed budget. The committee collated the budget from various ministries. Finally, the FFC Church Board met to review and approve the budget.
Major Budget Categories of Expenses
Administrative Costs
Church administration helps in routine decision-making and representation in various Christian events. FCC administration includes pastors, the church Board, ministry heads, and other personnel who ensure that the church runs smoothly. The proposed 2021-2022 budget allocated a total of $1,138,589 for pastoral, ministry, and other administrative salaries and benefits. Moreover, the budget allocated $305,800 for general administrative expenses. Therefore, the total amount set aside for the administration was $1,444,389.
Ministry Expenses
Ministries include offices that are set aside in a church to offer vocational services. FCC has several ministries, each providing specific and specialized services that contribute to the church’s growth. Kids, middle school, high school, care, men’s, and women’s ministries are some of FCC’s specialized groups and fellowships. In the 2021-2022 budget, a total of $204,738 was allocated for ministerial activities. The money allocated would help in conducting ministerial events and recruiting members, among other activities.
Facility Maintenance
FCC has various facilities that need routine maintenance, which may require hiring external service providers. The facilities include church buildings, music equipment, classes for the kids, and a middle school ministry. Electricians, cleaners, and painters, among other service providers, are needed for maintenance. In the 2021-2022 budget, the FCC allocated a total of $383,650 for facilities maintenance. Therefore, the church would effectively receive services from external contractors.
Mission Expenses
Missionary activities help churches connect with the outside world, including dysfunctional members of society. FCC has adopted outreach and missionary activities to preach the word of God by helping other members of society. The church has missionary activities in areas such as Northwestern Congo. A budget of $295,795 was allocated to the mission expenses. Missionary is associated with transportation and donations collections, among other expenses.
Contribution Sources and Fluctuations
FCC gets its contributions from various external and internal sources. The external income sources include gifts from well-wishers. The internal income includes congregation giving through tithes and offerings. For the year 2021-2022, the total amount of expenses was $2,328,572. This means the average weekly offerings and gifts required was $ 44,780. From the budget, annual congregational gifts and giving were estimated at $1,560,000, with a weekly average of $30,000. Therefore, the church had to collect an estimated weekly offering of $14,780 from its population of about 500 members. The total contributions are subject to change based on the congregational capacity to meet target amounts. Moreover, a change in the number of church members would significantly fluctuate the budget.
Conclusion
The budget formulation is crucial for churches and other organizations since it promotes transparency. Through the budget, church leadership can estimate the amount needed to be contributed by the congregation for smooth church operations. FCC is one of the churches in Oakland, U.S. that prepared a 2021-2022 budget. The budget listed the various expenses and income for the church during the 2021-2022 financial year. Therefore, the budget was significant for effective FCC operations.
Bibliography
First Covenant Church, Oakland. “Missions.” Web.
First Covenant Church of Oakland. “Proposed Budget 2021-2022,” 2021. Web.
H. Welch, Robert. Church Administration: Creating Efficiency for Effective Ministry. Nashville: TN: B&H Academic, 2011.