221st General Assembly (2014)
UPDATE: The proposal to create a new Peace & Global Witness Offering has been approved by the 221st General Assembly.
Hi, friends!
We have some important General Assembly-related news to share with you today! Yesterday afternoon the Mission Coordination Committee approved the Special Offerings Advisory Task Force proposal for a NEW Special Offering. If approved in the Assembly, here’s what you can expect:
Starting this fall, the annual Peacemaking Offering will begin transitioning into the Peace & Global Witness Offering. So, what does this mean exactly? Here are some highlights straight from the recommendations made by the Special Offerings Advisory Task Force:
Inspired by conversations with leadership and staff in both the Peacemaking Program and World Mission ministry area, we believe an offering focused on collaborative efforts of peacemaking and global witness, especially in reconciliation in cultures of violence, more accurately reflects the needs of the denomination—and the world—at this time.
Restructuring the offering as the Peace and Global Witness Offering will allow greater collaboration at the cross-section of justice and evangelism and empower congregations and mid councils to use their portions of the offering in ways consistent with the current trends for mission engagement at those levels.
Finally, we believe current peacemaking efforts will always be able to be funded within this new structure and recommend current efforts in peacemaking be funded at current levels (if offering receipts allow) for at least the next three years. As is true with all offerings, any specific designations and restrictions will be honored.
We’re looking forward to sharing more with you in the coming weeks!