Churches obliged to do more with less

The recession has been a mixed blessing for churches.

There are more opportunities to reach out to people in need, but donations are flat or declining, church leaders say.

Church collections have dipped "to a degree," said Justin Vaughn, assistant pastor of Faith Baptist Church, an Independent Baptist congregation in Prince George County. "We're trying to look at various things in the budget where we can cut," such as electricity.

West End Assembly of God in Henrico County also has reviewed its budget and reduced expenses, said John Hershman, senior pastor.

"Right now, we're feeling a tightness that's being communicated from our people," he said. "We have not had a major drop-off or shortfall of support but . . . we as leaders need to be proactive and demonstrate, through our management of funds, good stewardship."

While churches scrutinize their spending, they also are responding to increased needs resulting from the economic downturn, such as food, clothing and help paying bills.

Agape International Ministries in Henrico gave away bread and other food to 400 people a few months ago. Another giveaway last Saturday drew about 500 people to the church at 8001 Staples Mill Road.

Wakefield United Methodist Church in Sussex County decided to cover the cost of attending its preschool for some church members who are in financial trouble and cannot afford to pay.

Although that tightens the budget, "I'm very proud of what the church has done with this," said G.C. Blanton III, the church's pastor.

Faith Baptist in Prince George provided food baskets to 12 families at Thanksgiving.

"We've even taken up special offerings on a given Sunday just to help out families with hard times," Vaughn said. "We seem to be doing that more frequently recently."

Providence Forge Presbyterian Church in New Kent County has redirected money this year to assist people who have asked for help paying their electric or fuel bills, said the Rev. Steve Hodges, pastor.

"For the elderly, some of the need is as basic as underwear," said the Rev. Cameron Cloud of Hatcher Baptist Church in Cumberland County. To address that, the church recently held an "Undie Sunday" to collect the necessary items for distribution.

In addition, many churches have formed support groups or plan to do so to help members who have lost their economic footing.

At the West End Assembly of God, several groups were created last month to help people who have lost their jobs, are facing foreclosure, own small businesses or are in serious debt.

Helping members reduce debt was on the minds of church leaders at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church in Henrico before the economic climate soured. Next month, a 13-week course on reducing debt gets under way. Although the course was planned months ago, "The current environment makes it more needed," said deacon Bob Griffin.

Fear and uncertainty about what the new year will bring accounts for some smaller collections, said Dan Celia, host of the radio show "Financial Issues" and executive director of The Regency Foundation, a Philadelphia-based financial-planning service with a Christian emphasis.

"Folks who still have their jobs . . . have pulled back from their giving. They're in a panic mode, and they are hoarding their money because they think they're next," Celia said. "We need to pick up the slack; maybe we can't give more, but we've got to continue to give."

The majority of churches depend on December, when year-end giving increases and attendance rises, Celia said. But because people aren't giving as much as they have in the past, many churches will remain in a deficit after this month, he said.

A survey by The Barna Group, a research and leadership development organization based in Ventura, Calif., found that during the past three months, one out of every five households has decreased its giving to churches or other religious centers. George Barna, whose organization conducted the survey, said the average church will see its revenue dip about 4 percent to 6 percent during the fourth quarter of 2008.

To brace for the uncertainty of 2009, some church leaders have reacted by postponing new construction and increasing special offerings, among other things.

In Charlottesville, the Thomas Jefferson Memorial Church Unitarian Universalist has delayed raising money for its capital fund because of the economy.

Hatcher Baptist is adding some special offerings during the holidays to offset the possibility of decreased collections next year.

For many churchgoers, giving is harder as home values and retirement pensions decline and unemployment rises.

But Larry Chapin, senior pastor at Chester Presbyterian Church in Chesterfield County, said that while giving during uncertain economic times poses a strain, "giving is not supposed to be easy, so there may be a value in that, for all of us."

In the midst of the meltdown, faith is a major anchor, church leaders said.

Hodges of Providence Forge Presbyterian said he's hearing "a tone of caution . . . in the voices of those who are making the financial decisions of this church. But there is also always somebody who speaks up and says, 'Yes, but we're a church, and we do things on faith.'"

The Rev. Donald Tittle, pastor of Grundy Baptist Church in Buchanan County, said many of his nearly 100 parishioners are retired. Their investments shrank with Wall Street's tumble. Still, he said, the situation has not turned dire and his church has not had to slash its budget.

He said he preached recently that "I'm encouraged that whatever we're facing, God is still on his throne, and heaven is not in a panic, even though we don't know what's going to happen."
Contact Robin Farmer at (804) 649-6312 or .

Staff writers Peter Bacqué, Rex Bowman, Bill Geroux, Wesley P. Hester, Melodie N. Martin, Jamie C. Ruff and Carlos Santos contributed to this report.