United Church of God, an International Association
Council of Elders Meeting Report

Sunday, December 15, 2002‚ Cincinnati, Ohio

The Council applied itself to dealing with a variety of topics today: Ethics, Roles & Rules Committee business, a discussion of Council eligibility, a proposal for a plan to address the subject of modesty on a church-wide basis, the 2003 General Conference of Elders, retirement planning, and a meeting in executive session with the Member Appeal Committee.

Ethics, Roles and Rules

Committee chairman Gary Antion brought three items to the Council quorum today for its consideration (Jim Franks was absent due to a previous commitment to perform a wedding ceremony).

Terms of four members of the Member Appeal Committee (which also currently serves as the Expelled Elder Appeal Committee) are due to expire April 30, 2003. Mr. Antion pointed out the Council’s responsibility to solicit the names of elders who are willing to serve on this committee from among the eligible membership of the General Conference of Elders, and distributed a copy of the mailing that will shortly be sent to all elders for their consideration.

He next directed the Council’s attention to fine-tuning a proposed job description for the recently appointed post of Council Parliamentarian (Matthew Fenchel was appointed to the position earlier this year). Discussion also touched peripherally on streamlining and standardizing the Council’s procedure, and Mr. Fenchel’s anticipated help along those lines.

Lastly, Mr. Antion moderated a discussion on establishing guidelines for guests who attend the Council’s open business meetings. Council members agreed that there have been times in past meetings when the business of the Council itself has been delayed or hampered because, without established guidelines, the moderator felt obligated to entertain all comments from any who were present. Several suggestions were made to the document as proposed; Mr. Antion will incorporate the changes and return the completed copy to the Council later in this round of meetings.

Council Eligibility

Leon Walker asked for consent without resolution for his request to have the Chairman clarify, in a letter to all elders, which elders are not prevented by our governing documents from serving on the Council. This list includes the officers of UCGIA, operations managers, Ministerial Services team members, and regional pastors. Confusion on this issue, Mr. Walker suggested, may well have influenced past ballots for the Council. Some have interpreted Section 9.1 of the Church Bylaws to mean, for instance, that the President could serve on the Council, but that the Treasurer and the Secretary could not (even if they were elders in good standing). It is the Council’s responsibility to interpret the bylaws, and it does not understand Section 9.1 to prohibit the service of any of the three officers, providing they are ordained elders of the Church. The Council gave the requested consent, with Messrs. Dick, Horchak, Jewell, Kilough, McCullough, Thompson, and Walker in favor; Mr. Dean opposed; and Messrs. Antion, Kubik, and Seiglie abstaining (Mr. Franks being absent).

Modesty

Doug Horchak, on behalf of the Youth Education team, brought a proposal to the Council designed to help provide consistency in the Church’s approach to the subject of modesty. He spoke of ongoing efforts of which he’s aware:
• Articles addressing the topic in the Church youth magazine (available on the Internet only) by Colleen Winner and Janet Treadway.
• Instruction at Camp Heritage over the past three years by Mrs. Winner, Janel Johnson, and Pam Myers; and seminars presented at the Cincinnati Family weekend in 2001 and the upcoming Lexington Family weekend by Mrs. Johnson and Mrs. Myers.
• A recent Houston-area Bible study by local pastor (and Council member) Jim Franks addressing the topic after requests by ladies in the congregation for such a study.
• Other local initiatives, such as instruction weekends hosted by pastors’ wives, for teen girls in their areas.

The Church’s administration is very supportive of the concept; Mr. Horchak has discussed this specific proposal at some length with the Church president, Roy Holladay. Mr. Horchak suggests four steps that can be taken relatively soon:
• An article in the Ministerial Quarterly.
• An article in the United News.
• An article in United Youth Camp Magazine.
• A video presentation (slides and other support) with accompanying sermon outline for pastors to use as an informational vehicle for the whole church.

Council members asked for clarification. Does the Youth Education team envision this as church policy, or education? If policy, what would be the standard for application? And the consequences for non-compliance? If a policy, it would need Council approval. If an educational effort, the editorial review policies in place in the Church would provide all the direction needed.

Mr. Horchak answered that it would be intended as an educational effort, coordinated through the Administration, governed by editorial policy. It would educate all in the Church, old and young, men and women, adults and teens, rather than being focused on any particular segment of the Church family. The Youth Education team is bringing it forward, having recognized the broader need by ongoing efforts to provide proper guidance through the Church youth programs (primarily United Youth Camps).

Leon Walker stated that this being the case, he believed today’s presentation to be a case of the Administration informing the Council of its activities, with no Council action required. Media Operations manager Peter Eddington agreed, and suggested that the articles in the Ministerial Quarterly and United Camp Youth Camp Magazine should be the first steps, with feedback from the elders and camp programs giving focus to the other two steps. Mr. Horchak agreed, and thanked the Council for its input.

Member Appeal and Planning

The Council met with the Member Appeal Committee (MAC) in executive session as the afternoon’s meeting began.

Following the executive session, Mr. Kilough worked with the Council to hammer out details in planning for the 2003 General Conference of Elders, scheduled for May 4 & 5 in Cincinnati. The theme “Maximizing Your Ministry” was adopted by unanimous ballot of the Council quorum present.

Mr. Holladay then described his plan to establish a task force to examine retirement planning for employees of the Church. Their work could draw on the earlier study by the Ministerial Workload and Remuneration Task Force if it so chose, but would have a somewhat different focus for its efforts. Health care costs factor in to the equation, as do questions about how to balance the mix of Church discretionary assistance to its retirees with their own 403(b) plans (that mix will shift as the 403(b) plans have longer to mature and grow for later-retiring employees).

Mr. Antion stated his belief that this was another example of an Administration initiative for which the Council was appreciative of being kept informed, but which did not require any Council action. Names for the task force were suggested, but will be released when all have been contacted and a final list of those who agree to serve is available.

Doug Johnson

© 2002 United Church of God, an International Association