Successful Partnerships between Faith Communities and Faith Based Nonprofits Keeping Services Faithful

Workshop Goals To help faith community leaders understand their relationship to faith based nonprofits sponsored by their faith community To help faith community leaders or committees responsible for finding board representatives to faith based organizations discern how to find appropriate people for these roles

Workshop Goals 2 To help faith community board members or other contacts with faith based organizations to understand their role To help faith based organization leaders clarify strategies to strengthen relations to their founding faith community

Project question 1 How do faith communities understand their practical theology regarding work in the world, and how does that practical theology play out in stewardship of organizations? What practical guidance would best serve faith communities and what groups or individuals (clergy, lay committee members, organization board and key staff, etc.) should receive advice and training on stewardship and related issues?

Project question 2 How does stewardship differ among the various branches of Christianity (mainline Protestants, Evangelicals, Peace Churches, Catholics, African American churches) and Jews? How should guidance to those faith communities be tailored for each religion and denomination? What lessons apply to all faith communities?.

Project question 3 What strategies can a faith community use to address concerns regarding the faith base in organizations under its care or affiliated with that religion? How does stewardship differ depending on the level of formal control that the founding faith has over the organization? How does a faith community remain steward of an organization when it is legally independent of its founding religious body?

Working Definitions of Practical Theology and Stewardship Stewardship: the faith community’s efforts to maintain its practical theology of justice and charity in the activities of the nonprofits affiliated with that religion or denomination. Practical Theology: The formal and informal mechanisms a community uses to enact its theological teachings through its religious culture and structures.

Comparisons across systems: Definition 1 Institutionalized: In an Institutionalized system, non-profit activities are managed through centralized community-wide structures that play a key role in fundraising, planning, volunteer recruitment, and provide training materials on the founding faith tradition. They often centralize ownership of property and back-office activities as well.

Comparisons across systems: Definition 2 Congregational: In a congregational system, individual worship communities are the major resource for non-profits and often organizations were founded by one or more congregations. Community-wide organizations that come out of congregational systems are usually sponsored by an interfaith or congregational coalition who often serve as a first line of support and guidance.

Comparisons across systems: Definition 3 Network: Systems transcend congregations, drawing together people with a similar faith based vision to carry forward the work based on either social networks of the founders or institutional/virtual networks of people with a similar vision. Everyone involved share the faith approach of the organizations founders, using this faith as a prime motivator in their work.

Characteristics of Institutional Systems Centralized fundraising, volunteer recruitment, training and sometimes back office and facilities management. Strong tradition of planning at a centralized level for the community or its institutions as a whole. Centralized bodies occasionally encourage or force mergers or collaborations among organizations in the community for the greater good of the systems as a whole. Ability to share resources across the system Develops strong networks of religiously based national umbrella organizations for that religion. Tendency for organizations outside of the umbrella to develop ties with other organizations either through interfaith entities or independent groups of organizations from the same faith.

Strengths and Weaknesses: Institutionalized Systems Strengths: –Economies from centralized fundraising, volunteer, and other management functions –Well developed practical theology and materials to train lay leaders, evaluate faith base in organizations –Community wide support structures which encourage resource sharing and general community support Weaknesses : –Lack of clarity regarding relationship of faith based organizations outside of centralized structures to other organizations created by that faith

Characteristics of Congregational systems Organizations maintain ties to one or more congregations through board appointments, appeals for resources, volunteers and in-kind supports. Most congregational organizations saw volunteering as an important component of organizational activity, and created volunteer opportunities. Established congregational organizations usually maintained ties to their founding faith by requiring that a percentage of board members be from the founding faith or founding congregations. Ministries often formalize as independent programs of their founding congregation(s) with independent advisory committees and separate accounting systems, or spin off into independent 501c3 organizations with limited ties to congregations, or form as interfaith entities

Characteristics of Congregational systems 2 In some cases, community members were drawn to the congregation through work in the organization. Congregational system organizations from Mainline Protestant and Quaker organizations often embedded faith in general values, with many stating they valued theological diversity within a general spiritual or Christian context, and on principle they did not proselytize. Congregational system denominations created fewer umbrella organizations and the organizations tended to belong to fewer umbrella groups.

Strengths and Weaknesses: Congregational Systems Strengths: –The norm for faith based organizations, with significant technical assistance available for organization governance –Clear understanding of what board appointments, fiscal transparency “should” look like Weaknesses: –General lack of understanding among faith communities about what stewardship role means –Few, if any, training materials for lay people or clergy about the practical theology of providing guidance and support for non-profits –Organizations with few congregations as supporters or supporting congregations with limited resources have limited support networks in bad economic times

Characteristics of Network Systems Organizations rely on a combination of staff and volunteers, but nearly all share the founding faith or have some personal connection with the ministry and their involvement is motivated by that faith. Resources come through networks of like minded believers, and often organizations highlight their faith or trust in God as a source for resources. Since these organizations are supported through personal networks, they are more likely to end when the pastor or founder moves on. In older, established organizations, ministries can change as the leader’s calling or gospel vision changes. One main subset of this group is formed by evangelistic organizations, for which sharing their faith is a key element of the ministry.

Strengths and Weaknesses: Network Systems Strengths: –Strong networks of people with common beliefs that provide all forms of support for the organization –Clear vision of practical theology that is shared by the organization and its support networks Weaknesses: –Organizations are fragile if leadership moves on or practical theology changes from that of its supporting network –Lack of fiscal transparency and standard governance structures could lead to abuse and cause problems if the organizations seek government funding

Recommendations - 1 Board members need to understand and participate in the faith activities; ability to articulate the faith values is helpful. The number of faith-oriented members of a board is not as important as their ability to articulate that faith.

Recommendations - 2 Ask the Board what skills it needs in new board members. Try to find members who can supply these skills, as well as being able to articulate the faith motivation for the service.

Recommendations - 3 Boards should provide training to members on how to serve on the board; new appointees need not already have that experience.

Recommendations - 4 Tell Board appointees what you want them to do. What values from the faith should be reflected in the Board’s actions? Be prepared to inform new appointees how your faith is reflected in the decision- making of the Board.

Recommendations - 5 Identify the place within the faith group which will receive and respond to reports on the nonprofit. Ideally, both Executive Director and Board President should be present for reports at least annually.

Recommendations - 6 Nurture informal relationships between Board members and members of the faith group, including yourself. Articulate faith in these relationships. If possible, Board members should nurture relationships with clients of the nonprofits services and share this experience with faith group members.

Recommendations – 7 Consider some by-laws requirements that keep the faith perspective active in the nonprofit. This could be approval of the mission, requirement of an annual report, or use of a particular business process. This requirement can preserve a faith perspective in nonprofits not affiliated with a local faith group.

Recommendations - 8 Encourage the development and maintenance of umbrella organizations from the faith perspective. Such organizations can provide training and background services on the faith within the context of the service mission.

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