Board members present: Marco Helles, Stephen James, Johan Sahlén, Sungha Wendin, Göran Johansson and Patrick Amofah.
Visit by the environmental group
The environmental group presented their thoughts on how the church could decrease its impact on the environment by working with these questions actively and strategically. The main proposal is to embrace one of the existing standards, for instance the model the Swedish church is working with. The environmental policy of the church was also emphasized and the Board considered that it might be time to go over it in order to make sure that we are working according to this policy, or whether it needs to be revised according to today’s ministry.
Budget proposal for 2016
Anette Engkvist, administrative leader of the church, presented the budget proposal, which has also been processed by the Financial Committee. A decision regarding the budget will be made at the Board meeting on 10 December. It was noted that gifts and offerings need to increase considerably in the coming years if we want to keep the existing ministries.
Presentation of the proposal of a revised constitution
The group that has been working on a revision of the constitution presented their proposal. There were mainly adjustments due to the fact that the congregations which used to belong to the Covenant church are now part of the Uniting Church in Sweden. The Board found that the group had fulfilled their task. A decision regarding the revised document will be taken by the congregation during the winter of 2016, according to the following schedule:
10 December: The proposal will be discussed in detail by the Board.
15 December: The pastors will discuss the church order and the theological foundation.
16 December: Meeting with interested members of the congregation. In order to participate in the meeting a notification in advance is needed. Each participant is expected to have ordered a copy of the proposal and read it through.
19 January: The Constitution group will submit their final proposal to the Board.
28 January: The Board will make a decision about the proposal for a new constitution and submit it to the congregation on 31 January.
13 March: Congregational meeting, first decision
17 April: Annual meeting, second decision.
Decision regarding dividends from the Company group
The Board decided that the dividends from the financial result of 2015 will be 20 million kronor.
Need for increased support of Immanuel Unga
The positive development within the ministry among young people in the Swedish fellowship will be difficult to continue without further support. The financial situation does not allow an increase in staff, so we need to find another solution. The Board asked Anette Engkvist to discuss the needs in detail with Immanuel Unga as well as what potential alternatives there may be to support the area.
Decision regarding the new organization
The Board decided to adopt the new organization based on one Board for the whole congregation, Councils for each language group, Committees and Groups. The proposal will be sent to the different Councils before a decision is taken at a future congregational meeting.
The next Board meeting will be on 10 December 2015.