“Anyway, I think if a church is operating in maximum accountability, there would never be an opposition group forming to make it more accountable.  If the records were public, there would be nothing to expose.”

Couldn’t agree more. And I have seen several situations where there were proclamations from the senior pastor that the books were open, but when direct requests were made, they were denied.

I also have no idea why wordpress inserted a ‘wink’ in my previous post.

I think some pastors here need a major reality check.

The reason why people are asking churches to see the financial records is because there IS corruption.

And the reason for that is that most men and women have inside of them a greed impulse that lies dormant like a ticking time-bomb in their 20’s and 30’s and then when they’re in their 40’s and 50’s and have access to enormous cash flows, that little time-bomb goes off, and money that isn’t theirs finds its way into their bank account.

And there’s all sorts of spiritual-looking ways that it can be done, through the diversion of donations..through ‘love-offering’ exchange deals with other church leaders, through using church services to promote your own books, through nepotism (employing family members to help cover-up the corruption) and through self-serving theology (’give cheerfully to the House of God and He will reward you with financial blessings’).

I’m a journalist and I’ve been reseaching corruption in the church for a few years now.

You have a major problem in the church. I know Christians don’t like facts (another finding of my research) but that’s the fact. You are working in a church climate of corruption.

Now, of course if there was no climate of corruption then there would be no need to have open books. But the reality is..there IS a climate of corruption, and every pastor, no matter how squeaky clean has to acknowledge the reality in which they operate.

As a journalist I earn $36,000 AUS a year.

There you go. What was so difficult about that?

Has my world crumbled to the point where cockroaches have invaded my private nether regions..and vikings slaughtered my neighbours because I revealed my income?

Of course not...and it wouldn’t hurt if pastors - if they have nothing to hide - fully open the books.

“ I got reamed by one family because I bought a new car.  A Toyota Corolla.  My other car, burned up in a fire but that didn’t matter because I was supposed to live in poverty and drive junk.”

A satisfactory explanation. And if your books are open and you’re full of satisfactory explanations, then it’s the idiotic people who want you to get around on a bicycle who’ll end up looking stupid.

But because of the general systemic and structural problems associated with current church boards, who act not unlike a ceremonial guard for the senior pastor (and are usually comprised of businessmen who don’t have the first clue about pastoral ministry...because their previous or present experience is running a business, not a Christ-like ministry) then I’m sorry but another layer of accountability is needed, and if the only source of that accountability is the church members themselves and exposure on the internet...then so be it.

I think a new level of real accountability for pastors with their fingers stuck in the honey-pot is long overdue.

Heck, I’m old enough (40) to remember when Christianity had something to do with honesty and intregity.

We are in desperate times with a rapidly corrupted church leadership and that calls for desperate measures.

Lance,
You site your research but never site your research.  You say you are doing research on corruption, make sweeping accusations but do not even link your name to yourself.  You seem to have an anger towards the church, pastors in particular. 

So what if I opened the books and the books showed I earned 100,000 us.  (I do not earn anywhere close to this) someone says I only earn 45,000 us and think you should earn less.  Their concern is not about corruption it is about being out earned by a pastor. 

What thoughts do you have on this?

The reason churches should have open books is simple… they are a “non-profit” organization in the government’s eyes and, as such, act as a “tax-exempt” entity.  By law, these types of organizations have to make their records public.  This is the how they prove their “non-profit” status is legitimate.  If a church does not want to disclose its financial records and yet keep their integrity, the answer is plain… resign your “tax-exempt” status.

Apologies Todd… was trying to reiterate what you wrote in your original post:

The church administration has willfully neglected to uphold the State of Tennessee Statute, T.C.A. 48-66-101 et. seq., that governs Not-For-Profit organizations and leaves this incorporated group of BBC wondering what the church administration stands to gain by locking its doors and closing its books.

My point is this… when a church leadership structure closes it’s books while still enjoying tax exemption, it is breaking the law.  As such, they are also breaking God’s commands (Rom.13) and this is cause for questioning.

Followup-1. When necessary?-maybe never in a church this large.  The situation is now that the IDC group will be actively trying to “take down” the leadership @ the church.  At no time has this been done well by either side, to a degree.  The pulpit and leadership has failed to acknowledge that there is opposition.  I’m to the point that I think they should just take each accusation and have a meeting of explanation that is open to all and then shut it off.  The fact is that in a church this large, there is no way a staff can lead in any direction if they have to stop and explain every move they make.  2. Let go/leave-I’m of the opinion that if I don’t like a church any more, I leave.  I was in a liberal church and I’m not quite that way so I thought well maybe I can change some minds/hearts, nope-just a lot of arguments about doctrine.  Time to go.  Same deal here.  They are saying we won’t go and we’re going to drive Gaines away if it kills the church.  The fact is that any bad publicity prior to the child molestation thing was “church stuff” that never should have been public.  3.  I have no answer to that, I’ve wondered it myself.  4.  Don’t know, I think the church is handling it rather badly at that but again I don’t know how else they could operate if every time 100 members or 1000 members didn’t like the soup on Wed nights or the preaching on Sun morning that group became an official protest group.  5.  I don’t see a gain for the cause, it make our church look like exactly what the world says about the church, behold how they smear the reputations of one another, gossip, accuse publicly, demean and ridicule, and generally act like politicians.  The Saving Bellevue website says it all in one of their little links-Bellevue Members-- You have rights.....If that’s not worldly I don’t know what is.

Can someone give me a Biblical method to deal with this crisis?

I see accusatons and back-bitting, no humility and grace. Maybe I am nuts, but the Bible may be the authority in this matter and both sides need to examine their actions and heart aginst the standard of scripture and confess their sins to the body, repent of the grevious actions they have commited and begin an accountability relationship with someone (say the Peacemakers Ministry) who does not have an axe to grind. My supicion is thaat this new board doesn’t want reconciliation in any way with the leadership - they seem to only want vindication.