The Importance of Management in Ministry PDF

 7KH%XVLQHVVRIWKH&KXUFK Why didn't they teach me this in seminary? When pastors are asked about their preparation, or lack of preparation, for church administration, this is perhaps the most common refrain. A close second might be a chorus focused on a general disdain for administration and...

 7KH%XVLQHVVRIWKH&KXUFK Why didn't they teach me this in seminary? When pastors are asked about their preparation, or lack of preparation, for church administration, this is perhaps the most common refrain. A close second might be a chorus focused on a general disdain for administration and the acknowledgement that most pastors spend most of their time performing administrative tasks. These tend to be the tasks that they enjoy the least and feel least equipped to handle successfully, and for which they feel most vulnerable and most responsible. A third recurring theme could well be the eventual, but nonetheless startling, revelation that rather than shepherding the flock, a vocation they envisioned for themselves, they are instead running a small business, a career they would not have intentionally chosen. This disturbing combination of discordant refrains, choruses, and themes can prove to be a constant source of frustration, disappointment, and disillusionment on the part of those leading congregations. Trained for preaching, teaching, and congregational care, many clergy, especially those newly ordained, are often surprised by the seemingly endless amount of managerial oversight required even in the smallest of congregations. The good news, however, is that even without innate talents or exhaustive study, the necessary administrative skills can be learned and a balance among what seem like competing ministerial challenges can be achieved. The aim of this chapter is to offer practical advice and to provide a basic overview of the management of ministry. In it we will explore the great divide between the expectations and realities of congregational leadership, the role of the pastor as administrative leader and manager, and then examine the four main areas that constitute the business of the Church: people (human resources); property (land, buildings, and more permanent resources); information technology (communication resources); and money (financial resources). The hope is for a clear, simple, and yet substantive discussion that helps to solidify the connection between good management principles and good pastoral leadership skills that support and encourage the mission of the Church. 5HOXFWDQW6WHZDUGV Why is it that pastors are generally so reticent about assuming the role of administrative leader? And why do lay leaders generally have such low expectations for the ability of clergy to manage the business of the Church? While it is true that seminaries are not noted for their preparation of students in this particular aspect of congregational leadership, this does not completely explain the problem or address the core issues. One major disconnect rests on the false dichotomy that is so deeply rooted in the psyche of congregations that it is often subconscious, yet at the same time can be seen explicitly in the canons, bylaws, and tenets that shape the polity of our various denominations. This is the basic notion that clergy are supposed to deal with spiritual matters and lay leaders are supposed to take care of temporal matters. This delineation between the sacred and the profane is deeply held in spite of the fact that such a clear distinction does not actually exist. Yet, the idea persists. This seems to be particularly true when it comes to dealing with money. In their book, Ministry and Money: A Practical Guide For Pastors, Janet and Philip Jamieson offer the “filthy lucre” rationale for the lingering belief that money is too seemly, too secular, and too profane to be the concern of pastors. Citing the King James Version (KJV) of 1 Timothy 3:8, “Likewise must the deacons be grave, not double-tongued, not given to too much wine, not greedy of filthy lucre,” they point to the biblical roots of the issue. Modern translations speak of “not pursuing dishonest gain” (New International Version, NIV) or being “not greedy for money” (New Revised Standard Version, NRSV) and rightly differentiate that the issue is the proper use of money and not the money itself. Thus it is not the money that is condemned, but rather greed and dishonesty in ministry. They conclude, however, that the damage has been done and for many the problem remains that money is seen as unclean, not worthy of seminary study, and we are left with a “tragic inconsistency.”1 This is compounded by the fact that the culture at large has not moved far beyond the KJV understanding of money. Even as churches begin to focus more on money, clergy have little training or experience to aid in this work (unless it comes from a previous vocation, but even then it often lacks any theological basis or understanding). Rather sadly, far too many clergy and far too many people in our pews “depend more upon the adages of Benjamin Franklin for their thinking about money than they do the scriptures.”2 Aside from this, there are other, more practical reasons that clergy often find themselves unprepared to be administrative leaders. For instance, pastoral ministry continues to be a profession for generalists. Clergy must be able to exercise a working knowledge and possess a basic understanding of many aspects of ministry. In defense of mainline seminaries, there is much to teach, much formation required, and not nearly enough time. For most students, attending seminary represents their first disciplined involvement with Scripture, the history of the church, and engagement with the foundational theology and doctrines of the faith. Given this reality, there is often simply too little space and too little time left in the curriculum dedicated to the issues of church administration.3 In addition, reflective of the old false dichotomy, clergy may have picked up the message in seminary, either implicitly or explicitly, that parish administration is not their job. Some arrive in congregations with the expectation the laity run the business of the congregation. The laity, may, in turn, have a different understanding. In this scenario resentments can build quickly. The reality is that even if the details of administration are not the job of the clergy, they are the responsibility of the clergy, and as the “executive director” of this “not- for-profit organization,” clergy play a major role. So rather than see this task as an unwelcome burden, it might be better viewed as an opportunity for ministry. Again, the good news is that these administrative skills can be acquired, and the even better news is that pastors do not have to be experts in order to lead effectively.4 To be clear, the goal is not to have clergy take over the entire administrative ministry of the parish and displace lay involvement. Instead, the objective is for pastors to claim their appropriate and essential role as managers of ministry who exercise particular authority to coordinate the business of mission. :K\LVLW,PSRUWDQW" At the macro-level, administration is important because of the shear scope and magnitude of the Church. Even in these lean times, it is important to remember that the Church owns literally millions of acres of real estate, buildings too numerous to count, employs millions of people and holds billions of dollars in assets. The Church is the original multinational corporation and has at least one local branch operation in practically every corner of the earth. It would make sense that a corporation with this kind of reach would make sure to send skilled managers, with ample training and support, into the mission field.5 At the micro-level, in spite of the fact that local congregations vary in size, ethnicity, and culture, pastors still have a stewardship responsibility for the resources of a church. It is also true that in spite of these differences, basic administrative principles apply to virtually any congregation and good financial management practices are useful no matter the amount. Regardless of size and make up, almost every congregation will have a program to manage, a church to maintain, and most have some personnel. In brief, the better a congregation can manage its assets, the better God's mission is served. There is a direct line between good and effective management and God's mission.6 %XVLQHVVYVWKH&KXUFK 6NHSWLFVRI0DQDJHPHQWDQG%XVLQHVV7DON There are some significant theological movements in the Church  that are skeptical about management and business talk. Led by John Milbank and the “Radical Orthodoxy” movement, they insist that the language of the social sciences, which underpins the language of management and business, derives from an anti- Christian foundation. For Milbank, the language of modernity is built on an “ontology of violence” (i.e. it assumes that people are units to be manipulated through control), while the Church witnesses to an alternative foundation which is built on an “ontology of peace.” Others have argued that leadership talk is deeply misguided. The concept of a leader is a modern idea, which is shaped by individualist assumptions and isolated heroism. Justin Lewis- Anthony has argued that the concept of leadership is both a myth and “probably a heresy.” Instead Christians should use the language of discipleship. Many bristle at the idea of comparing the Church with a corporation or small business. The government clearly understands the Church as a business, and to that end requires churches to incorporate as not-for- profit organizations. Some within the Church do not share this same understanding. We view the comparison as descriptive and helpful and not pejorative or profane and take the position that although churches and businesses are different in many ways; they also share much in common.8 We also embrace the idea that good management is good management regardless of the enterprise. Some shortsightedly claim the exceptionalism of the Church allows for less than stellar administrative practices. At the very least we hold that churches must reconcile their bank statements, maintain internal controls, record contributions, utilize standard management principles, and have an annual independent audit.9 Also, there are some elements of business that work well in the Church, as with any other human organization. Elements such as making sure that roles and relationships are clearly defined and documented, making sure that there are clear management rules and guidelines, making sure that there is a specific mission and that goals are strategically organized, thoughtfully implemented, reviewed, and evaluated.10 There are also some unique influences in church management that differentiate it and separate it from the business world. First, the proclamation of the Gospel and the formation of Christian community are unchanging in terms of the mission and purpose of the Church. In addition, congregations are organized for service in the world with unique values that are identified with the Church. Second, unlike businesses, churches are perpetual institutions. That is, they may not last forever, but must act as if they will. Lastly, churches are local membership organizations with pastors and lay leaders being held directly accountable to members. In contrast, corporate shareholders have little experience or knowledge of the inner workings of a particular business. This is all the more reason for churches to be as transparent as possible and for church leaders to be as congruent in word and actions as humanly possible. This is true in terms of one's personal and professional life.11 Since intentional strategic thinking and planning are critical to the success of any human organization, before leaving this discussion we will review the basic elements of planning. The whole management process, in any enterprise, begins with planning. A mission statement provides the general direction and serves as a guide for specifics. Particular goals articulate desired outcomes that support and expand the mission, while action plans delineate particular objectives. A basic action plan follows a similar form: 1. Identification of the mission statement item for which the action plan is being written (the question is always, how does this action support the mission?). 2. Citing the desired goal or outcome and estimating the financial impact. 3. Assigning responsibility for implementation. 4. Dividing a large task into smaller ones (each with specific actions and measurable objectives). 5. Setting a completion date and periodically following up to evaluate and report on progress.12 0DQDJHPHQW/HVVRQVIURPWKH%LEOH Churches need not always look to the business world for effective management techniques and principles. Business can also learn from the tradition of the Church. Scripture is filled with resources that are not only consistent with the values and purposes of the Church, but also foster common sense and easily adaptable models for administration. For instance, from the Hebrew Bible, we highlight Exodus 18:5–27. This story takes place after the Israelites are liberated from slavery in Egypt and are now wandering in the wilderness of Sinai. Moses, the divinely chosen, yet much beleaguered leader of the Hebrew people, receives a visit from his father-in-law, Jethro, the Priest of Midian. Jethro witnesses his son-in-law toil from sun up to sun down dealing with the myriad issues of leading and offers Moses some advice. Although 3000 years old, these ideas are entirely applicable to pastoral leaders today: 1. You cannot do everything all by yourself, so let others help you. 2. Choose capable leaders and give them the responsibility and authority to lead. 3. Teach, train, and support leaders using standard policies and procedures so that actions and decisions are applied consistently. 4. Structure the organization so that each leader is responsible for a smaller segment of the whole and then establish a chain of authority. 5. Push responsibility and decision making to the lowest possible and practical organizational level where there is competence to deal with the matter. 6. Deal personally with only the most difficult cases (not dealt with in #5) or those critical cases that directly impact the survival of the organization. Lastly, it is important to ask for help when it is needed, and then be open to accepting good advice when it is offered.13 It is important to note in this example that Moses never relinquishes his responsibility or his leadership of the Hebrew people, yet not even he could manage all the details on his own. In the Gospels of the New Testament, Jesus consistently and persistently calls his followers to be good stewards and good managers. Over and over again he demonstrates and models an explicit and unapologetic theology of administration and management. One constantly recurring theme is that servants are encouraged to act aggressively in terms of using the gifts with which they are entrusted and are chided when they acted timidly or passively. This is true for stewards who were given talents to invest, for the overseers of large agricultural businesses, and even for the shepherd who makes the risky decision to leave his large flock in search of a single lost sheep. In one story Jesus seems irritated with the disciples for not thinking ahead and bringing enough food for the multitudes to eat. He takes matters into his own hands and transforms the meager available resources into a feast for all.14 It is important to note in this example that faithful management is not without risk, requires action, and is open to the transformation of ordinary resources for extraordinary and divine purposes. 7KH5ROHRIWKH3DVWRU As previously mentioned, we readily acknowledge that the work of the Church requires the participation of all of its members, we readily acknowledge that most of the day-to-day details rest in the hands of the laity, and yet we also emphasize the fact that even though many tasks are rightly and appropriately delegated to lay persons, the ultimate responsibility for congregational administration rests with the clergy. To that end, we focus this section on the unique role of the pastor. While many clergy feel ill-prepared for these administrative and financial responsibilities, this need not be the case always. In terms of professional development and continuing education it might be helpful to think how best to allocate time and resources. For instance, every clergy person is great at something. It would make sense that most personal development time be spent in this area of expertise. It is also true that, generally speaking, every clergy person is competent in two or three other aspects of parish ministry. It would then make sense to invest in ongoing development in these areas as well. Finally, it is certainly true that there are areas of ministry where clergy have little or no interest or expertise, and yet must still exhibit competence in responsibility and oversight. In this case it makes sense to draw on every knowledgeable, skilled, and experienced person and resource available inside and outside a church to make certain that the congregation succeeds in this area as well.15 Another helpful way to think about the role of the pastor in administration is to use the image of pastor as the manager of church systems. The task of the systems manager is first of all to see that the congregation is a single system that is composed of many smaller, yet interconnected systems, each interacting to shape the whole. The basic idea is that the pastor is not necessarily involved in the minute details of each system, but rather works to help the systems function effectively and efficiently. The pastor can work to lubricate the system, grease the gears, in order to keep things running smoothly, while at the same time working to maximize the possibilities of each part, making the most of limited resources, and keep the vision and direction clearly stated, in front of the people, while encouraging and enlisting continued support.16 The very best systems managers learn as they manage and perhaps gain more from mistakes and failures than from successes and victories. Perhaps to most, effective managing pastors are those driven by a clear purpose, those who have a broad and deep knowledge of the congregational systems, and those who are willing to bring about change patiently without creating destruction. They also possess a genuine care and concern for the people they are called to serve, are willing and able to let the right person lead at the right time, and are also humble enough, when the situation requires it, to be a faithful follower.17 Finally, another important characteristic of an effectual pastoral administrator is the ability to discern the difference between management and leadership. Management and leadership are closely related and yet are not synonymous. They sometimes coexist within the same person, but not always. Differentiating between the two is important, particularly when deciding whether a particular situation calls for leadership or management, or some combination of both. Leadership, in this sense, refers to holding up a vision of the future and then marshaling the resources and people to make that vision a reality. Leadership has to do with mobilizing and motivating followers. Management, on the other hand, is the implementation of the vision and works to transform and make it real. Managers get the job done, attend to the details, and deal with the day-to-day issues that either make or break an organization. Managers follow through on the details that others might find boring or distracting. Both leadership and management are essential, and yet both, in the extreme can be disastrous. A strong leader can ignore or disrupt orderly planning and undermine proper management, while a strong manager can discourage necessary risk taking and lack enthusiasm for leadership.18 Even though the contrast seems sharp and irreconcilable, both are important to the vitality and longevity of an organization. Capable pastors are not only able to discern the difference between the two in specific situations, but are also flexible enough to act accordingly. 7KH%XVLQHVVRIWKH&KXUFK Four main areas constitute the business of the Church. Each area represents a major subset of administrative responsibility, each requires a different knowledge base, each requires a unique set of skills, and each is present in every church regardless of shape, size, or configuration. Every congregation has to find a way to manage people, property, communication, and money. While each area could easily fill separate chapters if not an entire book, we will deal with each of them as concisely, and yet as comprehensively, as possible in the sections below. 3HRSOH+XPDQ5HVRXUFHV First, it must be said at the outset that people are the Church's greatest resource. Nothing else matters in the life of the Church without the involvement of committed and dedicated people. Leadership and management are required for individual people to be transformed into a vibrant community of faith. To fulfill the mission of the Church, the people of the congregation need to be organized and staffed to move in a clear and positive direction with clear and positive results.19 Churches, however, face a somewhat unique and significant managerial challenge in that they are supported by a mix of paid staff and dedicated volunteers.20 Given that the Church is first and foremost about people, one might expect that churches would have a special appreciation and deeper understanding of the importance of the management and care of people. Unfortunately, the track record with regard to the treatment of those in the Church's employ is sometimes less than stellar, at times unjust, and represents an area of our common life where church leaders might learn something from the business community in terms of personnel policies and practices. Most human resource professionals agree that good personnel management involves three things: (i) the ability to bring people together to work efficiently and effectively for a common purpose; (ii) the ability to help and encourage people to maximize their strengths and minimize their weaknesses; and (iii) the ability to foster the ongoing growth and development of the skills needed to succeed. Most businesses are not only aware of employment laws, but also obey them. The best among them have comprehensive personnel policies and follow them faithfully. “The failure of the church to employ some of the best practices used in the business community's personnel management has cost the church dearly.”21 Deeply flawed personnel management is at the heart of the sexual misconduct controversies that have plagued the Roman Catholic Church. In addition to causing irreparable harm, many local dioceses have filed for bankruptcy. Well-managed personnel systems do not allow misconduct to jeopardize the integrity and fiscal solvency of the entire institution.22 The key points in church personnel management include being clear about who is managing whom, making sure that ministry descriptions are clear and align with the stated goals and objectives of the congregation, and also making sure that good personnel policies are in place. No system is perfect, and each person brings a unique set of challenges and opportunities, yet most human behavior is remarkably and consistently similar, and standard policies are invaluable.23 Extending the right call, making the best hire, can transform a church staff. Getting it wrong can be a nightmare for everyone involved. Do take the time and energy to thoroughly and carefully invite new members to the pastoral team. A good general guide is called the “The three Cs of Hiring”: character (making sure that candidates genuinely embody values that are consistent with work in a church); competency (making sure that candidates have the skill, experience, and abilities to perform the tasks required of them); and chemistry (making sure that candidates can get along with, relate to, and feel comfortable with the rest of the pastoral team).24 One challenge in the hiring process is the ability to talk with people who really know and are willing to speak honestly about potential candidates. Most candidates will list only those references that will speak positively about them. The goal is to break out beyond the reference list and find someone who will offer a more complete picture of a candidate, and even then do not trust your own opinion exclusively. Make certain to include other trusted colleagues in the process and in the decision.25 When it is necessary to fire an employee, unless they have committed a crime, it is essential that a well-documented trail of poor performance be in place. It is incumbent upon the employer to prove that bad behavior and poor performance has been addressed over time with ample opportunity for change. This would include documentation of specific conversations aimed at remedying deficiencies before an actual dismissal.26 Along these same lines, it is critical to be aware that personnel files are no longer considered to be confidential. The only items that should be included in an employee's file are those that either the employee has provided, or has seen, or has been made aware of, and given a copy.27 It is also equally important to remember that in spite of the fact that the Church is exempt from many secular personnel laws this does not mean we are exempt from God's laws and the values that undergird our community life. The golden rule applies even when dealing with the most difficult of situations and the most obstreperous people. In terms of compensation, churches offer an unusual place of employment. While there are immense benefits in performing a job that is, at least ideally, aligned with the will of God, this is no excuse for underpaying those who give themselves to this work. Most denominations and local judicatories provide annual compensation guidelines that are based on actual salaries and often adjusted in terms of geographical regions and varying costs of living. These resources are helpful in calling and retaining good staff members. Given all the time and energy it takes to recruit, orient, and integrate new staff members, it makes sense to compensate staff members in a manner that encourages them to forge a deep commitment, grow in their vocation, and stay in place. The retention of competent staff is one of the main reasons that congregations are stable and grow.28 Lastly, in this section, we offer a word about the management of volunteers. The Church's heavy reliance upon volunteers presents an even greater challenge than the overseeing of paid staff. Although practices and policies vary among mainline denominations, it is generally accepted that volunteers cannot be fired (at least not easily) and yet they are absolutely essential in successfully fulfilling the work of the Church. One thing, however, is clear whatever the denomination: when a problem occurs in the congregational system having to do with personnel, paid or unpaid, it is ultimately the responsibility of the pastor. One way to avoid these difficulties, especially with volunteers, is to follow a few basic principles: (i) make sure everyone has a clearly defined ministry description with clearly defined expectations; (ii) make sure that everyone knows where to go with questions or concerns; (iii) make sure that everyone is adequately trained and oriented to their work; (iv) make sure that there is a defined time period in the agreement of engagement, and not an indefinite open-ended arrangement (this allows for re-evaluation); and (v) try to avoid having everyone report directly to the pastor.29 People are the Church's primary asset and are key to carrying out the Church's mission. Able pastors find a way to delegate authority without abdicating responsibility. Additionally, to borrow from Peter Drucker on this topic, he says that “management is about human beings. Its task is to make people capable of joint performance to make their strengths effective and their weaknesses irrelevant.”30 This seems not only like sound professional advice, but also like Gospel truth. 3URSHUW\/DQGEXLOGLQJVDQGPRUHSHUPDQHQW UHVRXUFHV It is one thing for the Church to own land, buildings, and other more permanent assets (like clergy housing and cemeteries), and it is quite another for churches to take care of them. When operating budgets are squeezed, among the first places tapped to save money is the line item for facilities maintenance. When this happens consistently, years of deferred maintenance only compounds both the problem and the expense. Then, instead of ongoing maintenance, church leaders are left to deal with one inevitable facilities crisis after another. One lesson that congregations consistently fail to learn, and do so at their own peril, is that the skills and experience needed to manage and maintain property adequately are usually not found within the church community. While it is more expensive to find qualified “arms-length” assistance, in the long term it will most likely save a church money. Yet congregations choose again and again to either ignore the problem, proceed without proper guidance, put themselves at the mercy of a well-intentioned person who agrees to work for free, or worse yet, get overcharged by someone who has a personal connection to the pastor or congregational leadership. Eventually, after years of constant headaches and unsatisfactory results, church leaders will often conclude that it is better to sell the property, and dispose of the asset simply to be freed from the burden of responsibility.31 This is usually done in spite of the fact that these assets were created and given to the community as an ongoing resource for ministry. The long-term care and maintenance of property must be realistically and strategically planned for, including the need for renovation, and the eventual need to address major structural and mechanical systems. Financial support must also be part of the plan. To aid in this endeavor, comprehensive maintenance schedules must be established and updated, with the responsibility for maintenance clear, as well as adequate insurance to protect a church's investment along with a realistic assessment of risk.32 A well-selected and well-led facilities committee can accomplish this strategic planning and oversee the maintenance process. The essential tasks of the committee are to: (i) put together a comprehensive list of maintenance issues along with anticipated replacement expenditures; (ii) do the detailed and somewhat tedious work of evaluating insurance policies and reviewing utility options; (iii) collect, organize, and maintain all service contracts, owner's manuals, warranty verifications, as well as all the maintenance records in one location; and (iv) collect and archive all architectural drawings, blueprints, and schematics.33 With intentional care, insightful leadership, and an engaged congregation, these assets of land, buildings, and other properties can be fully utilized in the present ministry of the Church and also preserved for the generations to come. 7HFKQRORJ\'LOHPPD We live in an age where expectations for performance and interactive engagement with performance are massive. At home, people have surround sound, high definition, and can tweet, post, and engage in real time with all experiences. These expectations are now part of the Church. The technology dilemma is acute. On the one hand, our congregations expect a good technologically aware experience, which is expensive to provide. On the other hand, technological progress is so rapid almost anything current will be obsolete in 5 years' time. Faced with this dilemma, many congregations opt to avoid all technology (on the grounds the experience should be counter-cultural) or live with more limited technological experiences. The problem with both of these responses is that for some people, this makes the Church look very “out of touch.” ,QIRUPDWLRQWHFKQRORJ\&RPPXQLFDWLRQUHVRXUFHV This is a relatively new category when considering the scope of the business of the Church, yet in some ways it is the oldest. The primary role of the Church is to communicate the Good News and it has always been so. Over the generations the form and shape of proclamation has changed even as the core content has remained constant. Just as Martin Luther, in the sixteenth century, made it his aim to get Scripture into the hands of God's people in a form they could readily access and understand, so it is in our own day as we utilize the wealth of new information technology for the same purpose. The use of email, web sites, blogs, Twitter, and other forms of social media have opened ways to spread the Gospel in ways never before imagined. For congregations, the challenge is to acquire and maintain the necessary equipment, to keep web sites and other media up to date, to make sure that data are backed up, and to engage reliable technical support. One of the biggest challenges, however, is simply staying on top of the ever- changing technology. There is a problem with buying technology too early (with the bugs not worked out) or buying too late (wasting time and money on obsolete equipment and programs). Church leaders must find the most knowledgeable, the most skilled, and the most experienced people available to lead these efforts and pay close attention to this important area of the Church's common life. Many congregations make the grave error of spending a great deal of money on a new web site and then spend little time and energy to keep it up to date. The two most crucial factors in determining the power and effectiveness of a web site are whether or not information is timely and whether or not information is easy to locate. Of course, all of this takes money. Like deferring maintenance, congregations ignore this portion of a church's business at their own detriment. In the twenty-first century Church, paying attention to information technology is “as important as keeping on the lights.”34 0RQH\)LQDQFHUHVRXUFHV In the next chapter, we will look at stewardship in detail. Suffice to say here: the essence of Church business is that it is God's business, and money is the common denominator for all of us. Money is not good or bad in and of itself, yet what the Church does with people's money is important. The goal and purpose is to support God's mission in the Church and in the world. That is why clearly communicated, transparent reports of a church's financial health are so important as a statement of how the congregation is living out its mission. Equally important is the accounting for, and recording of, the money that is received by a church. “Almost nothing can undermine the mission the church faster than questions about the credibility of its financial system.”35 Any church financial management system should be mission oriented, full of integrity, informative, systematized, and tailored to the specific needs of the congregation.36 The overall purpose is to “provide a system to accurately capture and record financial transactions to meaningfully measure progress toward financial goals and to clearly report the results in a way that is transparent, honest, and helpful in making decisions.”37 Again, as stated before, it is the role of the pastor, not to be involved in the day-to-day details, but to have a working knowledge of the overall financial management system. The basic hope is threefold: the pastor must be able to answer questions with some knowledge and authority; the pastor must be able to ask the right financial questions, of the right people, at the right time; and lastly, the pastor must be able to discern when there is trouble and when additional assistance is required. In the most basic review of church accounting, there are essentially five types of accounts: (i) assets – all the things that a church currently owns; (ii) liabilities – all that a church owes in terms of present obligations; (iii) net assets – the difference between assets and liabilities (at the end of the year a church's financial position is reflected in what a church owns (assets) minus what the Church owes (liabilities) with the difference in the two being the net assets of a church; this is commonly called the “accounting equation”); (iv) revenues – for a church this is mostly income from pledges and offerings; and (v) expenses – outflows or the using of assets in support of mission. It is useful to be reminded at this point that, unlike a business, the measure of success for the Church is not the accumulation of wealth but the accomplishment of mission.38 In addition to these five types of accounting, accountants also produce three basic financial reports that are essential to the financial overseeing of the congregation. The first is the income statement. This document displays the revenue and the expense for a congregation during a specific period of time (month, quarter, year). After totaling all the revenue and expenses, and then subtracting the expense from the revenue, the “bottom line” is produced as either a budget surplus or deficit. The second report is the balance sheet. This document shows the assets and liabilities of the congregation at a specific point in time. The liabilities are subtracted from the assets resulting in the net financial worth of the congregation (in terms of tangible assets that can be expressed in dollars on a financial statement). Lastly, the third document is called the cash flow report. This report offers a snapshot of the congregation's current cash position (the amount of cash on hand). Given that a church's expenses are usually consistent and regular, and a church's income is rather inconsistent and irregular, this report is of particular importance. The goal is, of course, to manage and match the timing of the inflow and outflow of cash. All three of these reports are tools that can help monitor the financial health of the congregation and monitor how effectively resources are being used to support a church's mission.39 It is important to keep all of this in perspective and to remember that a “church cannot hurt from too much money but can die from a lack of mission.”40 &RQFOXVLRQ Whether taught in seminary, modeled by a mentor, or learned on the job, every pastor leading a congregation requires a basic proficiency in managing the ministry and running the business of the Church. While in truth, it takes all of God's people to fulfill the mission of the Church, it also takes a pastoral leader. Again, to restate the theme of this chapter, able pastors find a way to share leadership and delegate authority without abdicating responsibility. 1RWHV 1. Janet T. Jamieson and Philip D. Jamieson, Ministry and Money: A Practical Guide for Pastors (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox, 2009), 5. 2. Ibid. 3. Ibid. 4. Gerald W. Keucher, Remember the Future: Financial Leadership and Asset Management for Congregations, (New York: Church Publishing, 2006), 29. 5. John W. Wimberly, Jr, The Business of the Church: The Uncomfortable Truth that Faithful Ministry Requires Effective Management (Herndon, VA: Alban Institute, 2010), 3. 6. Otto F. Crumroy, Jr., Stan Kukawka, and Frank M. Whitman, Church Administration and Finance Manual: Resources for Leading the Local Church (Harrisburg, PA: Morehouse, 1998), 4. 7. You Are the Messiah and I Should Know: Why Leadership is a Myth (and probably a Heresy), (London: Bloomsbury Academic, 2013). 8. Wimberly, Business of the Church, 3. 9. Keucher, Remember the Future, 19. 10. Crumroy, Kukawka, and Whitman, Church Administration, 11. 11. Keucher, Remember the Future, 19. 12. Crumroy, Kukawka, and Whitman, Church Administration, 11. 13. Ibid., 10. 14. Ibid., 2. 15. Bruce L. Peterson, Edward A. Thomas, and Bob Whitesel, Foundations of Church Administration: Professional Tools for Church Leadership (Kansas City, KN: Beacon Hill, 2010), 8. 16. Wimberly, Business of the Church, 143. 17. Peterson, Thomas, and Whitesel, Foundations of Church Administration, 83. 18. Wimberly, Business of the Church, 21. 19. Crumroy, Kukawka, and Whitman, Church Administration, 2–3. 20. Ibid., 130. 21. Wimberly, Business of the Church, 39. 22. Ibid., 39. 23. Ibid., 42. 24. Peterson, Thomas, and Whitesel, Foundations of Church Administration, 122. 25. Wimberly, Business of the Church, 60. 26. Ibid., 60. 27. Crumroy, Kukawka, and Whitman, Church Administration, 131. 28. Wimberly, Business of the Church, 66. 29. Ibid., 32. 30. Ibid. 3. 31. Keucher, Remember the Future, 28. 32. Crumroy, Kukawka, and Whitman, Church Administration, 3. 33. Wimberly, Business of the Church, 98. 34. Ibid., 191. 35. Crumroy, Kukawka, and Whitman, Church Administration, 2. 36. Ibid., 2. 37. Jamieson, Ministry and Money, 53. 38. Ibid., 55–56. 39. Wimberly, Business of the Church, 105. 40. Crumroy, Kukawka, and Whitman, Church Administration, 59. $QQRWDWHG%LEOLRJUDSK\ Bacher, Robert N. and Cooper-White, Michael L., Church Administration: Programs, Process, Purpose (Minneapolis, MN: Fortress, 2009). Written by two Lutheran pastors, this overview begins with a historical and biblical perspective on church administration and includes such topics as managing others, working with governing boards, and the importance of communication. Berkley, James D., Leadership Handbook of Management and Administration (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 1997). This text includes over 200 articles by experienced pastors in the field of church management covering a wide range of topics (organizational, financial, and legal). Chaffee, Paul, Accountable Leadership: Resources for Worshipping Communities (San Francisco, CA: Churchcare Publishing, 1993). Although now two decades old, this useful text explores issues of administration through the perspective of the accountability and character of church leaders, both lay and ordained. Crumroy, Jr, Otto F., Kukawka, Stan, and Whitman, Frank M., Church Administration and Finance Manual: Resources for Leading the Local Church (Harrisburg, PA: Morehouse, 1998). This comprehensive and authoritative guide to church administration for mainline pastors and congregations is an exceptional resource. Written and edited by a team that taught together at the Claremont School of Theology, this work also includes an appendix filled with useful resources. Engstrom, Ted W., Your Gift of Administration: How to Discover and Use It (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1983). Though dated, this book approaches the topic of administration through the lens of gifts discernment. This carefully organized discussion looks to Scripture for its authority and examines the character traits of a leader gifted in administration. Hotchkiss, Dan, Governance and Ministry: Rethinking Board Leadership (Herndon, VA: Alban Institute, 2009). Sorting through the myriad ways of organizing, governing, and managing Church life, the author, a senior consultant with the Alban Institute, offers practical, flexible, and sound leadership advice. Jamieson, Janet T. and Jamieson, Philip D., Ministry and Money: A Practical Guide for Pastors (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox, 2009). In addition to using scripture, history, and theology to explore the complex relationship between faith and money, this book is also a primer for the financial management of congregations. Jarema, William J., A Survival Guide for Church Ministers (New York: Paulist Press, 2011). This work takes a step back and examines leadership in the Church overall with specific chapters that focus on administration. Keucher, Gerald W., Remember the Future: Financial Leadership and Asset Management for Congregations (New York: Church Publishing, 2006). This very practical, well written, and carefully organized book contains an honest and hopeful view of the economic issues facing many churches of the mainline. Rather than simply managing decline, the author offers useful advice for imagining and securing a better future. Peterson, Bruce L., Thomas, Edward A., and Whitesel, Bob, Foundations of Church Administration: Professional Tools for Church Leadership (Kansas City, KN: Beacon Hill, 2010). Offering a helpful approach to styles of leadership, strategic planning, budgeting, and building and maintaining a staff, this book is a helpful administrative manual. Shawchuck, Norman and Heuser, Roger, Managing the Congregation: Building Effective Systems to Serve People (Nashville, TN: Abingdon, 1996). Third in a three-volume set on church leadership, this book focuses on the relationships, structures, and processes that characterize congregational life. Tyson, John H., Administration in the Small Membership Church (Nashville, TN: Abingdon, 1996). A small yet extremely helpful administrative manual, this work, focusing on small membership congregations, condenses administration and leadership into concise and efficient sections. Wills, James C., Handling the People's Trust: A Financial Guide for Churches (Dubuque, IA: Kendall/Hunt, 1996). This Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and church treasurer blends his experience in this helpful and entirely practical resource for pastors and congregations. Easily half of the book consists of a thorough appendix of useful resources. Wimberly, Jr, John W., The Business of the Church: The Uncomfortable Truth that Faithful Ministry Requires Effective Management (Herndon, VA: Alban Institute, 2010). Written by a highly skilled, experienced, and learned pastor, this text analyzes church systems, reminds readers that God is in the midst of administrative details, and offers a plethora of practical and effective strategies for managing the business side of church affairs.  6WHZDUGVKLS 5HFODLPLQJ6WHZDUGVKLS A new pastor was called to a large suburban congregation. On an October Sunday morning, early in his tenure, he stood in the pulpit and opened his sermon with this preamble: “I have been told that this is the Sunday for the annual stewardship sermon. I don't like preaching about this, and I know that you don't like hearing about it. But the leaders of the congregation felt that it had to be done; so if you will be patient with me, I will finish as soon as I can.”1 This single anecdote speaks volumes about the current state of stewardship in the mainline. The issues are essentially fourfold. First, the Church often sends mixed and confusing messages about the nature of stewardship. Second, there is a general lack of biblical and theological grounding to conversations that connect faith and money. Third, when these connections are made, the focus is usually on a church's need to receive funding rather than the giver's need to give. And fourth, more often than not, the pastor is uncomfortable, reticent, or even openly opposed to taking a leadership role. The general reluctance of congregations to talk openly and plainly about money, coupled with the ever increasing competition for charitable dollars, the ever shrinking percentage of those dollars going to support religious institutions, as well as declining membership and rising expenses, make for a seemingly irreversible crisis. This chapter seeks to reclaim stewardship as a biblical and theological concept that is directly connected to discipleship and is therefore central to the life of the congregation, central to the role of the pastoral leader, and central to our hope for the future of the mainline. Key to this understanding is the idea that congregations, as a whole, model faithful stewardship. Proportional giving, on the part of the community is one way to exercise and model such faithfulness. Congregational giving beyond the walls of the parish in order to address human need and support the larger mission of the Church can have a positive and lasting effect on the giving of individual members. $+LVWRU\RI6WHZDUGVKLS Before delving in, and as a way of setting this discussion into a historical context, it is helpful to look at how the Church has funded its mission over the centuries and how we have arrived at our current understandings of stewardship and practices of giving. This broad overview acknowledges the basic truth that the Church does need resources to carry out its work and throughout the ages has found various ways to secure those resources. For most of its long history, beginning with the conversion of Constantine in 313 CE, the Church was supported by taxes, land rents, and benefices (income received in exchange for services rendered or as a retainer for future services). This practice continued throughout the Middle Ages. It is important to note that so-called “free-will offerings,” most often equated with alms for the poor, were just that. They were marginal in scope, were received for the specific purpose of offering relief to the poor and needy, and were not used as contributions to support the basic cost of running the institution. It was not until the French Revolution and the subsequent Napoleonic Era that things began to change. Throughout much of Europe Church lands and properties began to be confiscated and, rather than being paid by the Church, clergy began to draw stipends directly from the government.2 The American colonies, which were being established during this same time period, began by using the European system. However, increasing discontent with the idea of state-sponsored religion eventually led to the formal disestablishment of any Church. By 1791, with the adoption of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, which explicitly prohibited the making of any law that either established or impeded the free exercise of religion, most congregations had already separated themselves from state support. This reality forced the creation of a new form of financial support for local congregations, a system known as pew rentals. Under this system, congregants who possessed the available means would choose the best pews to “rent” for their own use and in some circumstances would also secure additional, and less desirable, pews for use by those who did not possess adequate means. To supplement these funds churches would also hold special collections, host fairs and offer other forms of subscription. This method of Church financing became the normative practice in America through the time of the Civil War, but came under increasing scrutiny by opponents who saw it as an elitist system that discriminated against the poor. Eventually a “free church” movement took root and gradually pew rents were abandoned altogether for a system of annual pledges to support the mission of the Church. Thus, the current systems of congregational support were largely an invention of the twentieth century.3 Given this history, it is likely that the funding of ministry will continue to evolve to meet the needs of a changing Church. 1HJDWLYH$WWLWXGHV The concept of stewardship is distinct and separate from the task of supporting the institutional life of the Church, yet the two are inextricably linked. The relationship between stewardship and fundraising is perplexing and a constant source of bewilderment in mainline congregations. Most churchgoers understand stewardship as simply a euphemism for the annual pledge drive. In most congregations the term has become synonymous with secular fundraising, only covered by a thin ecclesiastical veneer. New Testament scholar Douglas John Hall agrees with this assessment and adds, “stewardship has a very distasteful connotation for the majority of church folk, including clergy. It brings to mind the horror of home visitations, building projects, financial campaigns, and the seemingly incessant harping of churches for more money.”4 So in addition to confused and inconsistent messages, the Church is plagued by negative attitudes about giving. Unfortunately, the only consistent message that seems to be communicated is that the Church needs funds in order to operate and it is up to congregants to provide those necessary funds. While this statement may well be true, it is not an accurate reflection of biblical stewardship. 7HUPLQRORJ\ Perhaps the place to begin is with the definition of terms. The word steward comes from two Old English words, “sty-warden.” Just as it seems, the word steward refers to one with the authority to watch over and care for pigs. The sty-warden does not own the pigs, but oversees their welfare for the benefit of the owner and for the benefit of others who depend on the owner for their well-being.5 A steward, therefore, is someone who watches over something, and that something belongs to someone else. There is no transfer of ownership. This points directly to a fundamental biblical truth, and the core of any theology of stewardship, that all of creation, 100% of it, belongs to God. There is no transfer of ownership. Embracing this understanding acknowledges that we do not hold title to any of the good things of this world but rather are stewards and are responsible for their proper use. We are caretakers of the creation and even then, only for a limited time. Stewardship involves how we choose to spend that time, how we utilize our God-given skills and talents, and how we deal with all that we have been given to watch over during our lifetime. Stewardship is a way of life that accepts a “total accountability and responsibility before God from whom every aspect of our lives comes as a gift.”6 Note that the biblical emphasis is on the abundant generosity of God and subsequently, the response of all who receive those gifts, and not about the financial support of the Church. Stewardship, at its core, is about our relationship with God. In biblical terms, money and possessions pose a huge threat to this relationship. At issue is where one places one's ultimate trust and security and the reality that it is impossible to serve both God and wealth. Put another way, often “the one thing standing between God and a person's heart is their wallet.”7 Scripture is filled with stories of the crippling effects of gifts that are hoarded and not shared, and this behavior is consistently viewed as a turning away from God. In contrast, there are countless stories that witness to the idea that one's ability to give is directly related to one's ability to love and serve God. In brief, the portrait of a biblical giver is one who gives with intention, who gives regularly, and one who gives generously of the “first fruits” that they have been given. In addition, a biblical giver gives in proportion to the blessings they have received, gives cheerfully, and with thanksgiving.8 It is Jesus who put it perhaps most succinctly when he observed, “where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Luke 12:34). Indeed there is a close connection between loving and giving. Faithful stewardship is giving to God and is one of the most tangible expressions of discipleship. Too often congregations approach annual giving as an act of membership. From this perspective giving is treated much like dues that are levied in other organizations with everyone expected to give their fair share in order to be in good standing with the group. From this perspective funds are used to support the institution, and offered so that others can “do” ministry in a mission field that is often far away. In this scenario the goal is to get and keep members with expectations kept relatively low. From the perspective of discipleship, giving is not an annual event or the result of a campaign, but is rather a way of life. For disciples, giving is an outward expression of a growing relationship with God and a deepening connection to the community. Ministry is viewed as a partnership and the mission field is right outside the door of the Church. The goal is for faith to permeate all of life and for new disciples to be welcomed, formed, and sent forth to carry out the work of mission. This is a high expectation scenario with the emphasis on the disciple's need to give rather than the Church's need to receive.9 “Stewardship is an act of discipleship, not a duty of membership. Faithful giving is part of faithful living.”10 6WHZDUGVKLSDV:RUVKLS Faithful stewardship is also an act of worship. The liturgical act of offering our gifts to God is an outward expression of love. The steward-disciple “receives God's gifts gratefully, tends those gifts responsibly, shares them lovingly, and returns them with increase to the Lord.”11 The offerings of the community are representative tokens of all that we have received, a portion of which we return with thanksgiving. It is important to recognize that although they are token, proportional gifts, they represent the whole of our being. What we offer to God in worship is all of ourselves: heart, soul, mind, and body. Peter Gomes, the famed American preacher, theologian, and professor at Harvard Divinity School, witnessed to this truth when he wrote: [W]hite people who visit black churches are often surprised and not a little shocked at the number of offerings given, and with the fine art of encouraging people to generosity. It takes some time to realize that the giving of money is not a necessary condition to the material needs of the people of God, but rather it is the central drama in the act of worship.12 We believe that one of the greatest challenges facing the Church in the twenty-first century is effectively reclaiming stewardship as reflective of a faithful relationship with God, an expression of discipleship, and as an act of worship. Indeed the best plan for enhanced stewardship is the “constant immersion in our vocation to a Christian way of life.”13 2YHUFRPLQJ6LOHQFH To accomplish this, the “conspiracy of silence” around money needs to be broken. It seems that one of the unwritten rules for securing resources for the work of the Church is to do so without ever mentioning money, yet making the connection between faith and money is essential for the health of individual givers and for the life of congregations.14 One example of breaking the taboo of silence comes from Martin Luther King, Sr., when he assumed the leadership of Ebenezer Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama, in the 1930s, he ended the long-held tradition of secrecy surrounding what people gave to the church. He opened the pledge records of the church for everyone to see. Anonymous gifts would be accepted but not recorded. “The practice of anonymous giving,” he thundered from the pulpit, “leads to the practice of anonymous non-giving.”15 This may be an extreme example and a practice not likely to be duplicated by mainline congregations, yet the point is well taken. It is generally accepted that the higher the level of secrecy and silence about money in congregations, the lower the level of giving.16 Giving in most mainline congregations is not a matter of public knowledge and there is much controversy about whether or not the pastor should even have access to this information. This topic will be taken up later in this chapter when we discuss the critical role of the pastoral leader in this area of congregational life. Prior to that we will explore what motivates giving as well as what is not working, and more importantly, what is working, in the Church's efforts to be successful in the work of stewardship. 7LWKH Many Christians talk about the obligation to “tithe to the work of the Lord.” In Genesis 14, Abraham gives a tithe back to the Lord. And elsewhere, in the Old Testament, it is mentioned. In actual fact, the ethic of Jesus is much more radical (he seems to want 100% of everything we have). But the language of a tithe remains in many Christian traditions a helpful expectation and standard for giving. The mantra “you should give away 10%, save 10%, and the rest you can live on” has become a piece of advice that gets passed down generations. Most people give away much less than 10%; and members of the mainline are much less likely to tithe than the evangelicals and the historic African American denominations. Naturally any leader of a congregation must always “practice what they preach.” And perhaps we would do well to recover the language of the tithe, both for our own giving, and for the purpose of inviting members of the congregation to do likewise. 5HDVRQVIRU*LYLQJ In examining motivations and attitudes toward giving in mainline traditions it becomes clear that “giving tends to be a matter of choice rather than duty.”17 Understanding this dynamic, and understanding basic attitudes about money are critical to successfully addressing and communicating a theology of stewardship. Generally speaking, it is safe to say that human beings are intrinsically selfish. If we have money we would much rather spend it on ourselves than give it away. For Americans (and perhaps many others) the list of consumer needs continues to expand as the cost of meeting those needs continues to rise. The net result of this insatiable appetite for consumer goods is that Americans have more possessions than ever before, yet at the same time feel poorer than ever before.18 Helping people to intentionally choose a different approach to life is a difficult yet life- giving, if not life-saving, task. It was Billy Graham, the well-known tele-evangelist, who once aptly noted, “if a person gets his attitude about money right, it will straighten out almost every other area of his life.”19 Getting our attitudes right about money and where we place ultimate value is, of course, at the root of stewardship, and at the heart of discipleship. It has to be recognized, however, when discussing motivation, that most voluntary giving, when we are completely honest, is not really gift giving at all, but rather a transaction. Money is usually given in order to buy something. This is true even in churches. For many, what is purchased, by giving to the Church, is essentially payment for services rendered. This kind of giving, akin to dues paying and contributing one's fair share, is a motivation that seeks to estimate the direct personal value in order to try to determine an exact amount to be given.20 Many congregations unwittingly affirm this kind of pay- as-you-go mentality by assigning fees to particular services (usually weddings and sometimes even funerals). For some, what is purchased by giving to the Church is perhaps the strengthening of social ties and connections to important people that might warrant a certain kind of reciprocity. Further still, what is purchased by giving to the Church might also be good feelings and self-affirmation, the hope of continued blessings for self and family that might even warrant a certain reciprocity with God. (There was once a single frame cartoon of a well- dressed businessman on his knees, eyes closed, earnestly praying in Church. As he prays he quietly utters “O.K. God, here's the deal.”) This kind of motivation, while incredibly powerful, and unfortunately incredibly widespread, is also incredibly problematic. We enter dangerous territory when God's blessings are directly equated with monetary gifts as some kind of reward.21 The third-century theologian Tertullian said it simply and clearly: “nothing that is God's is obtainable by money.”22 These observations may seem harsh and somewhat cynical, yet serve as a reminder that not all who inhabit church pews are inspired or persuaded to give for the same reasons, and those reasons sometimes have little to do with a strong and active faith.23 They are reflective, however, of a certain reality, but not the only reality, and serve as a starting point for what might inspire deeper discipleship and motivations that spring from love and thankfulness. When motivated by love, giving is a natural extension of the self. If you love what you are giving to, you are in essence giving to yourself. The object of your love and generosity becomes part of you and you become part of it.24 When motivated by pure thankfulness, one gives freely and joyously, without the expectation of future return. How we move individuals and congregations to embrace this kind of deeper commitment is explored in the next section. ,QHIIHFWLYH6WHZDUGVKLS Acknowledging that there are no magic formulas, no gimmicks, and no short cuts, one way to begin this part of the conversation is to focus on stewardship practices, that while quite common and generally accepted, are actually counterproductive and ineffective. So before highlighting potentially helpful practices that congregations might consider starting, we begin with those we strongly suggest they consider stopping. In his insightful and hopeful book, Remember the Future: Financial Leadership and Asset Management for Congregations, Gerald W. Keucher contends that many mainline congregations are suffering from what he calls a “crisis of confidence” that manifests itself in a survival mentality whereby congregational leaders are more focused on managing decline than visioning for a better future.25 When approaching the task of stewardship from this largely institutional perspective, leaders are likely to try one of four strategies, and in more desperate situations might try a blend of all four, when asking people for money. One strategy is to scare people into giving. Keucher calls this the “sky is falling” approach. The basic idea is that if people are fearful of certain consequences if adequate funds are not raised, they might be more generous. This approach does not work at several levels. People cannot stay on high alert for long periods of time, and certainly not for crisis after crisis, and, even more importantly, people are not inspired to give to efforts that are failing. Another strategy Keucher calls the “come help us pay our bills” approach. This is a needs-based approach that invites members to pay their dues, contribute their fair share, and leads to the criticism that all the Church cares about is money. A third strategy he calls the “team spirit” approach, which appeals to the notion that we are all part of this community and all need to do our part. This approach assumes that everyone feels a part of the team and also assumes that everyone believes that the game is worth supporting. This is not always an accurate assumption. Lastly, there is the “NPR/PBS” (National Public Radio/Public Broadcasting System) strategy, which refers to the periodic public radio fund raising appeals that emphasize the need for participation in order for the institution to continue its work. This approach uses the subtle, and sometimes not so subtle, language of guilt and obligation, especially if you are using the services of the institution and not supporting it financially.26 Any of these approaches may initially prove effective, but are largely unsustainable and ineffective in the long term. They also tend to reinforce the acceptability of a low level of giving, which only diminishes people's capacity to grow in faith. These approaches also tend to reinforce the idea that instead of stewards, givers are simply donors, and when this happens, there is erosion in the mission of the Church.27 In addition to these practices, we would also add a word of caution about the use of numbers and budgets as a catalyst for generosity. While critically important for use by congregational leadership, when communicating about stewardship it is good advice to remember that “numbers are boring to many, misunderstood by others, and uninspiring to just about everyone.”28 While financial information needs to be readily available as a means of accountability and as evidence of prudent management, be advised that this information does not ordinarily inspire a sense of mission and purpose. And as alluded to previously, publishing statistics that represent bad news for the congregation in the hope of spurring increased giving, most often has the opposite effect.29 A final word regarding ineffective stewardship practices needs to include a warning against separating the giving of “treasure” apart from the giving of time, and the giving of talent. The three are completely intertwined and are of coequal importance.30 If biblical stewardship involves the whole person and invites disciples into a new way of life, then giving must encompass the entirety of one's being and the returning of one's life to God. To do otherwise by segmenting our material resources from our unique gifts and skills and the time we choose to offer them in service to God is antithetical to the core message of stewardship and gives credence to the complaint that the Church is only interested in our money. In fact, experience and research confirms that “time and talent properly precede treasure in the exercise of stewardship.”31 (IIHFWLYH6WHZDUGVKLS Keeping all this in mind, we turn our attention now to practices that have proven effective. Relying heavily on the work of J. Clif Christopher and his excellent book, Not Your Parents' Offering Plate: A New Vision for Financial Stewardship, we learn that the best way for the Church to raise money is to simply do its job. By this he means focusing on the work of making disciples and developing what he calls a “high expectation” church culture, which, among many other things, includes clear expectations about proportional giving. With a strong bent toward mission, he asserts that the product of our efforts is a changed life, and that is the basis of our witness. He rightly affirms that people do not usually give enthusiastically to institutions or programs yet are eager to give to efforts that really matter, truly make a difference, and result in lives being changed for the better. The redundant and crucial message, communicated in a multitude of ways, is to show people how their gifts are being used to change lives, how their faithful discipleship is making a difference. Consistent with this theme he also advises the use of a narrative, mission budget, which tells of the story of changed lives, rather than an uninspiring numerical line-item budget. Consistent with the biblical understanding of stewardship, he sets the expectation that every disciple will make their “first and largest” charitable gift in support of the mission of the Church, and as disciples, will fully engage, with all their being in the work of changing lives for the sake of the Gospel.32 Like others, he also recognizes that not everyone in the pews ascribes to these expectations and must continually be invited into deeper commitment. That being said they remain part of the community and will be motivated to give for a variety of different reasons, therefore any invitation must be multi-faceted and even generational. Older generations tend to be more loyal to institutions and are more likely to respond to traditional biblical approaches to stewardship. Baby boomers tend to be less trusting of institutions and leaders and often require that a case be made, as well as demanding direct accountability. Younger generations are even less confident in large institutions and are more interested in being connected to efforts that they can see, touch, feel, and experience directly. The challenge for congregations is to be able to not only show them the mission of the Church, but also explain its personal and corporate benefits.33 In brief, stewardship practices that work are those that are biblically based, are directly related to discipleship, are positive and inviting in approach, are focused on mission, and are timely and consistent with personal thanks to those who give. The only missing ingredient is the critical role of the pastoral leader. 7KH/HDGHU V5ROH As a pious young preacher, John Wesley reportedly earned £30 at his first position. Of this, he kept £28 and gave the other two away. Sometime after, when his salary had doubled, he still kept only £28 and gave the rest away. Eventually, he earned as much as £120 and was still living on £28 and giving away the remainder. His motto regarding faithful stewardship was “gain all you can, save all you can, give all you can.”34 With this kind of model, there is little wonder that clergy are daunted by the task of leading, teaching, and preaching about stewardship. The awkwardness is only compounded by clergy feeling that perhaps they are not the best role model, feeling a bit hypocritical and they are keenly aware, like everyone else in the congregation, that the money they are soliciting goes directly toward paying their salary.35 Add to this, according to Douglas John Hall, that many “ministers cringe at the mention of stewardship Sundays” because they feel that they must once again “lower themselves to the role of fund-raisers.”36 This observation points directly to the widely accepted yet false notion that fundraising is the antithesis of religious leadership. The implication is that the subject itself is disconnected from the task of leadership, and therefore separate from the weightier matters of the spiritual life. On the contrary, we take the position that the two are deeply connected and that no one person in a congregational setting is more responsible for fundraising than the pastoral leader. Many clergy believe that they are not adequately prepared for this important role, with the result being that in many congregations the “clergy and laity collude to create a thunderous silence about money.”37 Alban Institute founder Loren Meade argues that the issue is not a lack of training, but rather the enormous pressure placed upon clergy to avoid the subject altogether due to a general aversion to the topic and because of their own internal anxiety. This is in spite of the fact that money and the use of it is a profoundly spiritual matter that touches our culture and our people more deeply than almost any other. Meade urges clergy to embrace their dual responsibility of “making generous people out of church members and taking care of the financing of the institution itself.”38 To accomplish this requires open conversation and a recognition that it is incumbent upon clergy to know what people are giving to a church. Remember that asking for money is really evangelism, the main concern being a person's soul and not their money, and “there is nothing more revealing about what is happening in a person's heart than the decisions they are making with their pocketbook.”39 The idea is to preach and teach a theology of stewardship that serves as a summons to discipleship, in a manner that is invitational and non- confrontational, and helps folks to move in the direction of a deeper and richer faith.40 3ODQQHG*LYLQJ Earlier in this chapter we spoke of the evolving nature of giving to provide resources to meet the needs of a changing Church in a changing world. In addition to annual giving (funds to support the annual operating budget of the Church), and capital giving (funds to support buildings and substantial mission efforts), there is currently an increased emphasis on planned giving (funds to support a legacy of faith). Planned giving, while usually associated with wills and estates, is essentially a means to encourage consistent and faithful stewardship in all aspects of life, including the use of accumulated wealth before and after death. In terms of estate planning, planned giving allows people the opportunity to engage in financial planning in order to dispose of their wealth “in a manner consistent with the values and interests that they embraced in life, which will enable the church to meet the challenges of the future.”41 In more recent times the area of planned giving has expanded to include not just bequests, but also planned charitable and legacy giving in one's own lifetime. These gifts include charitable remainder trusts, stocks, annuities, and property that not only help to fund future ministry but can also provide financial benefits to those making the contribution.42 &RQFOXVLRQ All of this talk of money and of faith, the giver's need to give, the Church's need to fund its mission, the reclaiming of stewardship, and the strengthening of discipleship, is unambiguously tied to the generosity of God, who provides all of life as a gift. We know that it is not in our nature to give as we have been given, but we also know that the joyful life that we prize is closely connected to our ability to give generously and with thankful hearts.43 We know in our heart of hearts that it is in giving that we do, in fact, receive. In light of God's abundant generosity, weighing our affluence against the needs of the world, in the words of John Westerhoff, the question becomes not “what do I need to give?” but rather “What do I have a right to keep?”44 1RWHV 1. Michael Reeves and Jennifer Tyler, Faith and Money: Understanding Annual Giving in the Church (Nashville, TN: Discipleship Resources, 2003), 6. 2. Dean Hoge, Patrick McNamara, and Charles Zech, Plain Talk about Churches and Money (Herndon, VA: The Alban Institute, 1997), 18–19. 3. Ibid. 4. Michael Durall, Creating Congregations of Generous People (Herndon, VA: The Alban Institute, 1999), 23. 5. Charles R. Lane, Ask, Thank, Tell: Improving Stewardship Ministry in Your Congregation (Minneapolis, MN: Augsburg Fortress, 2006), 21. 6. Hoge, McNamara, and Zech, Plain Talk, 18. 7. J. Clif Christopher, Not Your Parents' Offering Plate: A New Vision for Financial Stewardship (Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press, 2008), 27. 8. Lane, Ask, Thank, Tell, 45. 9. Ibid., 12–14. 10. Ibid., 6. 11. C. Justin Clements, The Steward's Way: A Spirituality of Stewardship (Kansas City, KN: Sheed and Ward, 1997), vii. 12. Durall, Creating Congregations, 34. 13. Michael O'Hurley-Pitts, The Passionate Steward: Recovering  Christian Stewardship from Secular Fundraising (Toronto: St. Brigid Press, 2001), 109. 14. Reeves and Tyler, Faith and Money, 5. 15. Durall, Creating Congregations, 15. 16. Ibid., 15. 17. Ibid., 5. 18. Ibid., 5. 19. Mark Allan Powell, Giving to God: The Bible's Good News about Living a Generous Life (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans Pubishing Co., 2006), Introduction. 20. Hoge, McNamara, and Zech, Plain Talk, 47. 21. Ibid., 37–43. 22. Powell, Giving to God, Introduction. 23. Hoge, McNamara, and Zech, Plain Talk, 51. 24. Ibid., 44. 25. Gerald W. Keucher, Remember the Future: Financial Leadership and Asset Management for Congregations (New York: Church Publishing, 2006), 14–17. 26. Ibid., 153. 27. O'Hurley-Pitts, Passionate Steward, 23. 28. Durall, Creating Congregations, 43. 29. Christopher, Not Your Parents' Offering Plate, 29. 30. Patrick H. McNamara, More than Money: Portraits of Transformative Stewardship (Alban Institute, 1999), viii. 31. O'Hurley-Pitts, Passionate Steward, 101. 32. Christopher, Not Your Parents' Offering Plate, 105–110. 33. Christopher, Not Your Parents' Offering Plate, 38. 34. Powell, Giving to God, 168. 35. Ibid., 67. 36. Ibid., 47. 37. Hoge, McNamara, and Zech, Plain Talk, vi. 38. Ibid., vi. 39. Christopher, Not Your Parents' Offering Plate, 27. 40. David Mosser and Brian Bauknight, First Fruits: 14 Sermons on Stewardship (Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press, 2003), 10–12. 41. O'Hurley-Pitts, Passionate Steward, 147. 42. Ibid., 152. 43. Powell, Giving to God, 39. 44. Ibid., 168. $QQRWDWHG%LEOLRJUDSK\ Christopher, J. Clif, Not Your Parents' Offering Plate: A New Vision for Financial Stewardship (Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press, 2008). With the percentage of giving to religious institutions on the decline, the author presents a compelling case for a more sophisticated and arguably more theological approach to congregational giving. This book argues that the best way for the Church to fund its mission is to do its job: witness to changed lives, focus on people and not programs, show how funds are utilized for the sake of the gospel. Clements, C. Justin, The Steward's Way: A Spirituality of Stewardship (Kansas City, KN: Sheed and Ward, 1997). This easily accessible collection of essays covers a wide variety of stewardship issues and is organized into categories related by topic. It is designed as a creative, challenging, and inspirational resource for those leading stewardship ministries in congregations. Durall, Michael, Creating Congregations of Generous People (Herndon, VA: The Alban Institute, 1999). With an aim toward creating a congregational climate for generous giving, this book hopes to help leaders understand the motivations of why parishioners give (and don't give) and offers advice for the development of successful and consistent stewardship programming. Hoge, Dean, McNamara, Patrick, and Zech, Charles, Plain Talk about Churches and Money (Herndon, VA: The Alban Institute, 1997). True to its title, this joint effort (Hoge and McNamara are sociologists and Zech is an economist) provides basic, straightforward, and useful information to clergy and lay leaders about raising money in congregations. Its comparative and comprehensive approach reviews the effectiveness of various strategies, explores the deep ambiguity about money held by many clergy, and seeks to encourage creative and faithful practices for funding ministry. Holliman, Glenn N. Holliman, and Barbara L., With Generous Hearts: How to Gather Resources for Your Church, Church School, Church Agency, Chaplaincy, or Diocese (Harrisburg, PA: Morehouse Publishing, 2005). This decidedly “how-to” book covers the landscape of annual, capital, and planned giving for congregations, but also includes information specific to church schools, agencies, judicatories, and chaplaincies. This volume offers sound advice, is biblically and theologically grounded, and comprehensive in scope. Keucher, Gerald W., Remember the Future: Financial Leadership and Asset Management for Congregations (New York: Church Publishing, 2006). This very practical, well written, and carefully organized book contains an honest and hopeful view of the economic issues facing many churches of the mainline (aging buildings, tight budgets, membership decline, lack of confidence). Rather than simply managing decline, the author, with many years of active experience, not only offers reason to hope, but also offers some useful advice for imagining and securing a better future. Lane, Charles R., Ask, Thank, Tell: Improving Stewardship Ministry in Your Congregation (Minneapolis, MN: Augsburg Fortress, 2006). With many years of experience at a variety of levels in the Lutheran Church, the author provides a solid foundation and practical guide for leading congregational stewardship. Focusing on the biblical witness, the mission of the congregation, and the role of the pastor as a stewardship leader, this books hopes to help break the taboo of silence that inhibits congregations from talking plainly about money. McNamara, Patrick H., More than Money: Portraits of Transformative Stewardship (Herndon, VA: The Alban Institute, 1999). Written from his perspective as a sociologist, this book outlines the author's research and interaction with 11 “stewardship” congregations. These congregations, representing a broad range of mostly mainline denominations, each exhibit unique and effective stewardship practices. While not a “how-to” for effective stewardship, some common traits do emerge. Mosser, David and Bauknight, Brian, First Fruits: 14 Sermons on Stewardship (Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press, 2003). This collection of stewardship sermons, by some of the most noted preachers of the day, is designed to offer encouragement and creative ideas to help pastors articulate a practical theology of giving. The intentional focus and recurring theme is that stewardship is one of the tangible practices of faithful discipleship. O'Hurley-Pitts, Michael, The Passionate Steward: Recovering Christian Stewardship from Secular Fundraising (Toronto: St. Brigid Press, 2001). Calling into question many commonly held assumptions about Church fundraising, the author seeks to reclaim Christian stewardship as being rooted in a commitment to Christ and the mission of the Church. Not a training manual, this work seeks to connect the theology and faithful practice of Christian stewardship apart from secular fundraising. Powell, Mark Allan, Giving to God: The Bible's Good News about Living a Generous Life (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2006). Grounded in Scripture, this guide sees faithful stewardship not as a veiled term for fundraising, but as a way of life for Christians. The author focuses in the biblical roots of stewardship as an act of worship, an expression of faith, and as a discipline for spiritual growth. Reeves, Michael and Tyler, Jennifer, Faith and Money: Understanding Annual Giving in the Church (Nashville, TN; Discipleship Resources, 2003). This excellent resource identifies the many challenges to effective stewardship in congregations, offers biblical, theological, and practical advice about how to connect faith and money. Each chapter concludes with a bibliography of additional resources, and there is an extensive listing of biblical references in the back of the book arranged by a stewardship-related topic.  &KULVWLDQ$SRORJHWLFV Any person of faith working in the mainline in the west needs to be able to “defend” the faith. This is the territory known as apologetics. We need to be able to “defend” the faith because, increasingly, the culture we are working in is less and less sympathetic. We need to give some account of why theism (the belief in a personal God) is true. Some strands of the mainline will be less sympathetic to apologetics. It was Karl Barth, the great Swiss theologian, who complained that apologetics is often linked to natural theology (i.e. it is an attempt to defend faith without making Christ central). Given the only vehicle that God has provided to give us knowledge of God is Christ, the project of natural theology (and with it, apologetics) is doomed to failure. The focus instead needs to be on preaching the Gospel and inviting the response of faith. Our Barthians critic might join the skeptical philosophers (e.g. John Hick) who do not think there are any arguments that are decisive reasons for faith; there are no arguments that should, on the basis of logic, persuade a person of the reality of God. From this perspective, the task of “constructing arguments” that persuade non-Christians is misguided. Yet in recent years, there has been a widespread and positive resurgence in apologetics. This can be mainly attributed to the so- called new atheists. Led by Richard Dawkins, the group includes the late Christopher Hitchens (1949–2011) and Sam Harris among its number. Their aggressive critique has forced the Church to respond. And across the mainline, there have been some good and strong responses. $WKHLVP Much of modern Christian apologetics has to do with the response  to atheism. The “new atheists,” Richard Dawkins, Christopher Hitchens, and Sam Harris (and some might add the American TV host Bill Maher), tend to attack all Christians as one singular voice. Atheism stands on a self-described non-belief – that there is no God, and that there is no proof that a divine being ordered the universe. As a result, atheists are in constant conflict with the religious world that attests to the existence of God in whatever interpretation that may reveal. 7KH&ULWLTXHIURPWKH1HZ$WKHLVWV Atheists do have a point. Christians can be their own worst enemy. There are Christians who deny the evidence for some form of natural selection as a key part of the emergence of life on planet Earth; such Christians are forced to postulate a massive conspiracy among biologists at virtually all major universities who are persuaded that the evidence overwhelmingly supports evolution. There are Christians who make little effort to explain what they mean by God, so they do not offer a coherent account of the basic concept of their faith. And there are too many Christians who use the word “faith” as a mechanism to evade questions. In addition, historically, we have no choice but to concede that the Church was so often a slow and even reluctant supporter of key social causes – for example, the key idea of toleration owes a great deal to secular Enlightenment theorists. And many Christians will concede that the problem of evil and suffering is a deep and strong obstruction to faith. However, the heart of the objection by atheists is that God is associated with a pre-scientific world view.1 In other words, science has made God very unlikely. Hitchens made the point like this: Religion comes from the period of human prehistory where nobody … had the smallest idea what was going on. It comes from the bawling and fearful infancy of our species, and is a babyish attempt to meet our inescapable demand for knowledge (as well as for comfort, reassurance and other infantile needs). Today, the least  educated of my children knows much more about the natural order than any of the founders of religion, and one would like to think – though the connection is not a fully demonstrable one – that this is why they seem so uninterested in sending fellow humans to hell.2 Pierre-Simon Laplace (1749–1827) and William Ockham (1287–1348) were the heroes for Hitchens. Laplace was the French physicist who had the temerity to explain to Napoleon that his view of the solar system had no need for the God hypothesis. And William Ockham was the one who insisted that the simplest explanation for data is normally the best. For Hitchens, put these two men together and you have the reason why faith is now out of fashion. The aspects of the world that were previously explained by God are now explained differently. An illustration might help. Once upon a time we were puzzled about why hurricanes and tornadoes occurred. Why is it sometimes sunny? And why does it sometimes rain? The pre-modern picture of the universe postulated a God who was a direct causal agent of the weather. But courtesy of Newtonian physics and modern science, this picture of the universe has been displaced by a meteorological explanation. And of course, everyone accepts the scientific explanation for weather. God has been displaced as an explanation. For a time, God was moved one stage back. God became the designer of the universe. However, with natural selection, God has been eliminated from this role as well. Hitchens is very critical of those who suggest that evolution is God's mechanism for creating the world. He writes that envisioning God as being behind evolution makes God a fumbling fool of their pretended god, and makes him out to be a tinkerer, an approximator, and a blunderer, who took eons of time to fashion a few serviceable figures and heaped up a junkyard of scrap and failure meanwhile.3 Given the evolutionary hypothesis makes such compelling sense of the data, it strongly suggests that God does not exist. It is such a long, drawn out process; it is also very cruel. Hitchens writes: We must also confront the fact that evolution is, as well as smarter than we are, infinitely more callous and cruel, and also capricious.  Investigation of the fossil record and the record of molecular biology shows us that approximately 98 percent of all species that have ever appeared on earth have lapsed into extinction.4 For Hitchens, God made some sense in a pre-scientific age and culture. But now, our understanding of the world has moved on. The God hypothesis has been made redundant. It is important for the leaders of congregations in the mainline to respond to this world view. This is the work of apologetics. 5LFKDUG'DZNLQVRQWKH*RGRIWKH2OG7HVWDPHQW The God of the Old Testament is arguably the most unpleasant character in all fiction: jealous and proud of it; a petty, unjust, unforgiving control-freak; a vindictive, bloodthirsty ethnic cleanser; a misogynistic, homophobic, racist, infanticidal, genocidal, filicidal, pestilential, megalomaniacal, sadomasochistic, capriciously malevolent bully. Richard Dawkins is the world's best known atheist (although he tends to describe himself as an agnostic). His attack on the God of the Old Testament is well known. How would you respond? 2XU$SRORJHWLFV0HWKRG The temptation is to reduce the conversation between atheists and theists to a polemic, where the other is crudely and grotesquely caricatured. The Christian tradition at its best does not operate in that way. The remarkable thirteenth-century Dominican friar Thomas Aquinas is the father of apologetics (perhaps the greatest one who has ever lived) and has a deeply generous methodology. Having trained as an Augustinian Platonist, he then spent much of his life exploring the world of Aristotle. He read Muslim and Jewish thinkers with care and sought to synthesize the thought of Aristotle with his Augustinian training. The very structure of his Summa Theologica is a testimony to his generosity and care when presenting the arguments of his opponents. In this remarkable text, Aquinas always starts by presenting the strongest arguments he can find against the position that he holds. He then identifies the hinge argument for his position before going on to explain why this position is the correct one. And the position that he takes in the Summa was, for his day, controversial and pioneering. In 1270, the views of Aquinas were investigated and condemned by a papal inquiry, which was organized by the bishop of Paris.6 Why was Aquinas so willing to read widely and explore a tradition that wasn't his own so carefully? The answer is that Aquinas had a primary obligation to the truth. The quest for the truth is a moral absolute. If God is, then God must be the author of all truth. Aquinas saw this clearly. No text was forbidden; no viewpoint inappropriate to explore. And one follows the truth wherever it goes. A good leader of a congregation should operate with the same set of assumptions. When one enters into a conversation with a skeptic about the faith one should start by making appropriate connections. Atheists have some legitimate insights that Christians can and should accommodate. And the differences should be explored with respect and a deep desire to find the truth. Working with this methodology, let us look at three areas. The first is the ways in which science is increasingly supporting theism. The second is the whole arena of providence and suffering. And the third is religion and ethics. 6FLHQFHLVD)ULHQGRI)DLWK For Thomas Aquinas, the quest for explanations in the universe depends on belief in God. This is what lies behind one of his five ways to prove God. To simplify his argument considerably: to assume that the world is explicable is to assume that it is not just a big fluke. If it is a big fluke then a fluke, by definition, isn't an explanation. So if the universe as a whole is explicable, then one needs a creator. Part of the definition of God is that God is the ultimate explanation for the existence of everything. There is a sense then that God is a necessary assumption of science. However, in recent years, it is another classical argument that is making a comeback. For centuries the strongest argument for faith has been that the universe looks designed. With evolution, this argument looked shaky. For evolution the appearance of design is not due to a creator making sure that everything fits together, but that those things that didn't fit in did not survive. However, it is the work of cosmological physicists who are bringing the concept of design back into contention. This is worth describing in some detail. And it all has to do with the origins of the universe. The physicist Paul Davies sets out the data with some care. He writes, “The existence of life as we know it depends delicately on many seemingly fortuitous features of the laws of physics and the structure of the universe.”7 So, for example, carbon-based life depends on the production of carbon. The production of carbon in stars requires “a numerical ‘coincidence’ to produce a nuclear resonance at just the right energy.”8 If this numerical coincidence had not occurred, then life would not occurred. Along with the size of the universe and the production of carbon, there are a whole range of variables that needed to be just right for life to emerge. So to take another illustration, the forces of expansion and gravity also needed to be just right. Davies explains: The large scale structure and motion of the universe is equally remarkable. The accumulated gravity of the universe operates to restrain the expansion, causing it to decelerate with time. In the primeval phase the expansion was much faster than it is today. The universe is thus the product of a competition between the explosive vigor of the big bang, and the force of gravity which tries to pull the pieces back together again. In recent years, astrophysicists have come to realize just how delicately this competition has been balanced. Had the big bang been weaker, the cosmos would have soon fallen back on itself in a big crunch. On the other hand, had it been stronger, the cosmic material would have dispersed so rapidly that galaxies would not have formed. Either way, the observed structure of the universe seems to depend very sensitively on the precise matching of explosive vigor to gravitating power.9 It does look fixed. It looks intended. It looks as if there was a decision made that it was important to have life in this universe. And there are so many factors that need to be managed: the order of the universe needed vast quantities of negative entropy; the lack of black holes, which one would expect to dominate a chaotic universe; the uniform structure and behavior of the universe beyond the light horizon; and the fundamental constraints of nature (i.e. those basic entities that have the same numerical value throughout the universe and across all time). As Davies sums up: “There seems to be no obvious reason why the universe did not go berserk, expanding in a chaotic and uncoordinated way, producing enormous black holes. Channeling the explosive violence into such a regular and organized pattern of motion seems like a miracle.”10 The term Anthropic Principle has been coined to partly explain this remarkable order that makes life possible. Coined originally by the astrophysicist Brandon Carter in 1973, the Principle suggests that all the remarkable variables in the universe have precisely the right values for life to appear. The Anthropic Principle suggests strongly that we were always intended: it looks like we were expected. Since Brandon Carter, a remarkable literature has been generated. It was John Barrow and Frank Tipler who wrote the classic The Anthropic Cosmological Principle.11 Since then, Paul Davies, Martin Rees,12 and Stephen Hawking13 have made substantial contributions to the debate. Probably the finest analysis of the philosophy of the debate is Rodney D. Holder's God, the Multiverse, and Everything.14 It is fun looking at how Richard Dawkins handles all of these data. He is a good enough scientist to know that it is true. He concedes that this universe does look as if life was intended. Dawkins comments on Martin Rees and the way that the six fundamental constraints for life needed to be exactly right, writing: “The