Growing in love for the Lord and one another
The Church of the Brethren continues the work of Jesus. Our love for the Lord guides us to show love for one another and in our neighborhoods. As we live in community, we care for the spiritual and physical needs of others.
We invite you to partner with us. Every gift is essential to the work of the Church of the Brethren. It is through the dedication of faithful people of passion like you that we work within neighborhoods across the US and around the world, growing in love for Jesus Christ and for one another. We are grateful for your partnership, your generous giving, and your prayers for those who serve and are served. Together, we expand Christ’s mission near and far by training disciples, developing and calling leaders, and transforming communities.
The information that follows, reveals how financial gifts entrusted to the Church of the Brethren are used for its faith-building and life-changing missions and ministries. The following details reflects a broad overview of 2021 ministry expenses and impacts, and current endeavors.
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Continuing the work of Jesus…
Strives to equip the people of God, new and renewed, to embody and articulate their faith through relationships, resources, and events. (Note: this expense total includes all program staff salaries.)
$ 588,645
> Intercultural Ministries — Offering valuable resources and events for Brethren to both listen and share in meaningful conversations with the larger, diverse body of Christ.
$ 24,440
> New and Renew (Church planting and revitalization) — Creating a space for church leaders to grow in their knowledge of church planting and congregational renewal. Gatherings allow for pastors and leaders of new church plants and established churches to worship, learn, and fellowship together.
$ 13,933
Recognizing the gifts of older adults, encouraging a positive vision of aging within the church, and providing a support network for ministry with older adults. National Older Adult Conference occurs every other year to allow the opportunity for community, laughter, and learning.
$ 48,790
> Organizational Leadership, Spiritual Formation, & Congregational Care — Curating resources for leaders and laity. Coaching, workshops, and retreats are a few examples of how staff interact with constituents. These programs may include strategic planning, leadership training, spiritual gifts, deacon training, conflict resolution, and congregational ethics.
$ 13,035
> Youth and Young Adult Ministries — Providing opportunities for the next generation to nurture their faith, provide leadership development, and embody the peace of Christ through relationships in their neighborhoods and in the world.
$ 25,277
2021 Ministry Impacts – Moved events online so that people could still gather and fellowship: National Young Adult Conference, New and Renew, National Older Adult Conference to name a few. Trainings, consulting, and online series engaged various levels of leadership and laity to continue learning and building communities.
Office of the General Secretary
Cultivates community, continues the work of Jesus, and spreads God’s love.
$ 2,111,782
> Communications — Sharing the story of the Church across a variety of platforms. All communications strive to present and honor the breadth of the church and are intentional about sharing unique perspectives from different racial, ethnic, generational, gender, geographical, spiritual, and theological backgrounds.
$ 720,914
> Mission Advancement — Educating and interpreting the missions and ministries of the Church of the Brethren. Nurturing relationships with individuals and congregations, encouraging partnerships in giving and other engagement opportunities. Raising support for all Church of the Brethren ministries.
$ 449,866
> Office of Ministry — Equipping district leaders and set-apart ministries for the challenges of ministry and encouraging a culture of calling.
$ 390,847
> Administration and Human Resources — Coordinating the ministries of the Church of the Brethren based on guidelines from Annual Conference and oversight from the Mission and Ministry Board. This work is done for the glory of God and our neighbor’s good.
$ 430,735
2021 Ministry Impacts – 45 multivocational pastors participated in small groups and 36 engaged in one-on-one relationship for the “Part-time Pastor; Full-time Church” program. Office of Peacebuilding and Policy continues to be a voice with non-profit leaders and government officials.
LIVING TOGETHER
Seeks to strengthen faith and relationships with partners around the world and develop a structure to encourage interdependent relationships and partnership in mission.
$1,199,564
> Global Partners — Supporting the development of a Global Church of the Brethren is critical for future relationships and understanding of global Brethren values. New mission partnerships of assistance and/or affiliation with the Church of the Brethren continue to be explored. The impact of global missions is perhaps greatest in those countries which have Church of the Brethren denominational partnerships; Brazil, Democratic Republic of Congo, Dominican Republic, Haiti (including Haiti Medical Project*), India, Nigeria (including Nigeria Church Rebuilding*), Rwanda, Spain, Uganda, and Venezuela. Relationships through projects and growing churches are also important in South Sudan and Burundi.
$1,003,624
> Global Food Initiative* — Cultivating our call as followers of Christ to lift the burden of the oppressed. By working with partners in the US and around the world, education and provision of resources help establish food security. Contributions also support advocacy endeavors to address hunger issues.
$195,940
2021 Ministry Impacts – Global Food Initiative grants supported agricultural work in nine countries (including the US). Haiti is enveloped in violence, yet the work of the church continues by our Haitian brothers and sisters. Country Advisory Teams (CATs) continue to deepen the relationship and communication between the Global Mission office and the partnerships and sister denominations globally. Global Mission grants totaled $724,554 and aided emerging churches in ten countries.
SERVING ONE ANOTHER
Service Ministries
Organizes opportunities for Christ-like service and equips volunteers for relationship-based community engagement.
> Brethren Volunteer and Faith Outreach Expeditions — Preparing people of all ages to be the hands and feet of Jesus for short-term and long-term service placements. Participants have the opportunity to serve in a variety of ministry and non-profit settings, as well as, live and worship in community.
$342,728
> Material Resources — Partnering with organizations to receive, sort, pack, and ship relief supplies, material aid, and medial supplies.
$712,928
> Brethren Disaster Ministries* — Walking with communities in the long recovery process. Revealing God’s love through caring for the vulnerable impacted by emergency, violence, or disasters both nationally and globally. The programs within Brethren Disaster Ministries are possible because of donations to the Emergency Disaster Fund.
$1,451,818
Children’s Disaster Services* — $222,692 — Training and commissioning volunteers to establish safe and comforting spaces for children in a time of crisis.
Global Response* — $780,907 — Providing humanitarian relief to the most vulnerable disaster responders around the world by supporting coordinated disaster relief efforts with sister churches, global mission sites, and like-minded organizations in specific locations.
The Rebuilding Program — $448,219 — Creating community as volunteers enter neighborhoods to rebuild homes and bring healing to survivors.
2021 Ministry Impacts – Emergency Disaster Fund (EDF) grants assisted work in 16 countries, including the United States and several regional areas. Brethren Volunteer Service (BVS) returned to in-person orientation for 2021 unites. There are 11 active volunteers for BVS working in four countries.
STEWARDING GOD’S BLESSINGS
Organizational Resources
$1,919,261
Provides sustainability for the organization and is crucial to the good stewardship of our resources. Keeps the organization on a path toward a sustainable future.
> Brethren Historical Library and Archives — Curating records and documenting the ministry of the church as its official repository. It is the organizational “memory” for the Church of the Brethren and serves as an important historical source for the Brethren movement as a whole.
$103,880
> Buildings and Grounds — Maintaining facilities for our location-based staffed and ministry areas. They aim to provide sustainable work settings for our staff while providing a safe environment for our ministry areas (Material Resources and Brethren Historical Library and Archives) which require a facility.
$809,493
> Finance Team — Caring for the essential financial systems and processes that help the church achieve its mission. Along with Mission Advancement, the Finance Team (treasurer, assistant treasurer, and accounting) provides gift-management support for all individual donors and congregations contributing to the Church of the Brethren missions and ministries.
$537,851
> Information Technology — Providing the systems and accessibility all our staff require to stay connected with each other and communicate to the larger church.
$468,037
2021 Ministry Impacts – Day-to-day operations of staff and missions would be diminished without the work of the organizational resources personnel. BHLA held multiple virtual tours engaging individuals in new ways on social media.
Funding of our Missions and Ministries
All the work that you have read above is financed by many funds. Some of those include Core Ministries, Self-funding Ministries, and Special Purpose Funds. Some ministry expenses are offset by registrations, subscriptions, other income, or restricted contributions. All of these funds support programs and services that empower us to grow as courageous disciples, live together, serve one another, extend generosity and witness, and steward God’s blessings.
Self-funding Ministries are considered self-sustaining as they are supported by income other than donations and include Brethren Press, Material Resources, and Annual Conference. Special Purpose funds provide funding for the work of Brethren Disaster Ministries, Children’s Disaster Services, Global Food Initiative, and domestic and global church planting initiatives.
There are also programs that would not be available if we did not receive restricted contributions* from generous donors. These programs include the Haiti Medical Project, the Ministry Assistance Fund, and Nigeria Church Rebuilding.
THANK YOU for prayerfully considering how you can partner in the missions and ministries of the Church of the Brethren.
To support these faith-based and life-changing endeavors, visit www.brethren.org/give or send a check to Church of the Brethren, 1451 Dundee Ave. Elgin IL 60120. If you have any questions about making a gift (big or small), please contact the Office of Mission Advancement at MA@brethren.org or 1-800-323-8039 ext. 370.
The Church of the Brethren is a nonprofit religious and educational organization recognized by federal and state governments. All photos were taken by denominational staff and volunteers, unless otherwise noted.
© 2022